Nobody's Fool

Novelist Richard Russo may be the poet laureate of small town Americana, he genuinely seems to live and breathe in a world revolving around diners, snow blowers and poker games. This is the also world “Sully” (Paul Newman) knows like the back of his hand, and he navigates it with such pragmatism and ornery humour, he’s well down the home stretch before he realizes what an awful mess he’s made of everything.

The catalyst for this revelation is the return of his grown son, Peter (Dylan Walsh), who either wants to build some bridges or tear them down, he’s not sure which. But even as Sully gruffly acknowledges his son and grandson for the first time in a long time, he also has to face his responsibilities to an alternate family, including his elderly landlady (Jessica Tandy), his boss’s wife (Melanie Griffith, to die for), Toby, and Rub, his mentally disabled colleague in the construction trade (Pruitt Taylor Vince).

Director Robert Benton hit the commercial jackpot with Kramer vs Kramer, but he hits the sweet spot with this underrated gem. In its quiet, compassionate simplicity and grace this is the kind of movie you want to cherish and grow old with.

Is it a Christmas movie? Not only that, it’s Bruce Willis’s best.

Nobody’s Fool is an unprecedented treat, populated with charming, believable characters and a parting shot so beautiful even the hardest of hearts will melt helplessly at its sight.

Caroline Westbrook, Empire