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Tender Mercies (film) Rated PG, 1982 Stars: Robert Duvall as Mac Sledge, Tess Harper as Rosa Lee, Allan Hubbard as Sonny, Betty Buckley as Dixie, Ellen Barkin as Sue Anne. Horton Foote, Producer, Screenwriter Produced by Antron Media Inc / EMI Films / Universal Mac Sledge (Robert Duvall), a once-famous country western singer, wakes up broke and hung over in a tiny Texas motel run by widowed Rosa Lee (Tess Harper). Having nowhere else to go, Sledge takes a job at the motel, and through the kindness and religiosity of Rosa he changes his self-destructive ways. He marries Rosa (after she insists he be baptized) and becomes a father/pal to her son (Allan Hubbard). Given an opportunity to make a comeback, Sledge considers leaving his new family behind, but after a reunion with his own unhappy daughter (Ellen Barkin), he vows never again to ruin anyone else's life. A simple story simply told, Tender Mercies is a warm, persuasive tale of redemption, with Robert Duvall giving one of his finest performances. Also appearing is Betty Buckley as Duvall's ex-wife, a Dolly Parton-type country star, and Wilford Brimley as Duvall's former manager. The only complaint we can make is that it's a little difficult to believe, despite his skill at the guitar and his down-home demeanor, that Robert Duvall's character was ever truly the big celebrity that he is supposed to have been. -- Hal Erickson (All-Media Guide) |
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