Every now and then a small gem of a film comes out of nowhere (even though this one was about 8 years in the making). This is the story of a fabled Tennessee man circa 1930s – part folk lore, part legend – named Felix Bush. He’s played by Robert Duvall (think the Apostle) and this is the one that’s going to get him that next Oscar nomination. When the story opens, Felix takes a rifle shot at the ankle of Buddy (Lucas Black) who afterall, has clearly disregarded the sign Felix posted reading, “No damn trespassing. Beware of Mule.” Next thing we know Felix runs into Buddy again where he works at a funeral home run by Frank Quinn (Bill Murray). Felix explains to the men that it’s “time for me to get low…to get down to business.” He wants to plan a living funeral and see just who will show up and what they’ll have to say about him. Has he made peace with God? Or is that his plan all along? Quinn’s Funeral home is going broke – nobody’s dying – so with Bill Murray giving the kind of dry performance we all know and love, he goes along with the old geezer’s foolish epiphany. On top of it, they’ll run a raffle at $5 a pop to determine who will inherit Felix’s land after he kicks the bucket. But alas, this is where the problems begin (not in the script but in the story). Let anybody get a whiff of money and you know they start to see things in a different light. Enter Mattie (Sissy Spacek) who has a lot of secrets and a long history with Felix. Seeing the two acting on screen together, btw, is wedded bliss. From the moment the movie opens with its tenderly-dropped lines about the nature of life and human relationships you realize it’s one of the smartest screenplays all year. The direction is brilliant and the pacing is superb, especially given the down-home turn-of-the-century feel of the South. The premise feels Six Feet Under meets Groundhog Day on Walton’s Mountain. It’s about taking the time to get life right. It’s about forty years of living a lie for ole Felix. It’s about living someplace between life and death, and finally discovering right from wrong. Three and a half tiaras
