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Peacock, the festival's top prize. Film critic Jugu Abraham said the jury's
standards were higher than those of the Academy Awards, and that Tender
Mercies ' lack of success at the festival was a "clear example of what is good
cinema for some, not being so good for others". [72] Home media [ edit ]
Following its brief theatrical run, Universal Studios quickly sold the film's
rights to cable companies, allowing Tender Mercies to be shown on television.
When the film unexpectedly received five Academy Award nominations nearly a
year after its original release, the studio attempted to redistribute the film
to theaters; however, the cable companies began televising the film about a
week before the Oscar ceremony, which essentially halted any attempts at a
theatrical re-release. [7] When the film first played on HBO in March 1984, it
surpassed the three major networks in ratings for homes with cable
televisions. [73] Tender Mercies was released on VHS some time later, and was
first released on DVD on June 22, 1999. [74] Reception [ edit ] Box office [
edit ] Tender Mercies was not considered a box office success. [13] [73] [75]
In its first three days, March 4–6, the film grossed $46,977 from exclusive
engagements at the Tower East Theater in New York ($21,183), the Fine Arts
Theater in Los Angeles ($18,254) and the Carnegie Theater in Chicago ($7,540).
[67] Tender Mercies eventually played at a total of 37 theaters and grossed
$8,443,124. [76] Critical response [ edit ] The excitement of Tender Mercies
lies below the surface. It's not the quick charge of fast action, flashy
performances, or eye-zapping cuts. Rather, it's something much more rare — the
thrill of watching characters grow, personalities deepen, relationships ripen
and mature. It's the pleasure of rediscovering the dramatic richness of
decency, honesty, compassion, and a few other qualities that have become rare
visitors to the silver screen. It feels good to have them back again. David
Sterritt, The Christian Science Monitor [4] Tender Mercies received mostly
positive reviews. [9] [73] Richard Corliss of Time declared it the "best
American movie of the new year". [77] Carol Olten of The San Diego Union-
Tribune declared Tender Mercies the best movie of 1983, and "the most
poignant, but forthright, film of the year, with a brilliant performance by
Robert Duvall". [78] Janet Maslin of The New York Times wrote, "This is a
small, lovely and somewhat overloaded film about small-town life, loneliness,
country music, marriage, divorce and parental love, and it deals with all of
these things in equal measure. Still, the absence of a single, sharply
dramatic story line is a relatively small price to pay for the plainness and
clarity with which these other issues are defined." She also praised
Beresford's direction, which she said lent the movie a light touch. [79] The
Times ' Canby wrote, "In all respects Tender Mercies is so good that it has
the effect of rediscovering a kind of film fiction that has been debased over
the decades by hack moviemakers, working according to accepted formulas,
frequently to the applause of the critics as well as the public." [65] Leonard
Maltin gave it three out of four stars, applauding Duvall in particular and
describing it as a "winning but extremely low-key film", though he
characterized Foote's screenplay as "not so much a story as a series of
vignettes". [80] David Sterritt of The Christian Science Monitor praised the
film for its values, for underscoring the good in people and for avoiding
flashiness and quick cuts in favor of a subtle and deliberately paced story,
while maintaining a PG rating and omitting sex, drugs and violence. He also
felt, however, that it tended toward melodrama on a few occasions and that the
soundtrack had "a bit of syrupy music ... especially at the end". [4] Some
reviews were less favorable. David Ansen of Newsweek said, "While one respects
the filmmaker's small-is-beautiful philosophy, this story may indeed be too
small for its britches. ... Beresford's nice little movie seems so afraid to
make a false move that it runs the danger of not moving at all." [81] Linda
Beath of The Globe and Mail said Duvall's performance was "fabulous," but that
the film was "very slight" compared to Beresford's Australian pictures. [71]
Gary Arnold of The Washington Post panned the film, criticizing its mood and
tempo and describing Buckley as its only true asset: " Tender Mercies fails
because of an apparent dimness of perception that frequently overcomes
dramatists: they don't always know when they've got ahold of the wrong end of
the story they want to tell." [82] Many critics specifically praised Duvall's
performance. Sterritt called it "one of the most finely wrought achievements
to reach the screen in recent memory." [83] In Corliss's description,
"Duvall's aging face, a road map of dead ends and dry gulches, can accommodate
rage or innocence or any ironic shade in between. As Mac he avoids both
melodrama and condescension, finding climaxes in each small step toward
rehabilitation, each new responsibility shouldered." [77] Ansen said, "Robert
Duvall does another of his extraordinary disappearing acts. He vanishes
totally inside the character of Mac Sledge." [81] Maslin said he "so
thoroughly transformed into Mac that he even walks with a Texan's rolling
gait"; she also complimented the performances of the supporting cast. [79]
According to a review in People , "Duvall gives it everything he has, which is
saying a great deal. His beery singing voice is a revelation, and his unfussy,
brightly burnished acting is the kind for which awards were invented." The
review also described Betty Buckley as "bitchy and brilliant". [84] Duvall was
praised as well for pulling off his first true romantic role; the actor said
of the response, "This is the only film where I've heard people say I'm sexy.
It's real romantic. Rural romantic. I love that part almost more than
anything." [23] Reflecting on the film a decade after it came out, critic
Danny Peary said he found Duvall's restrained portrayal "extremely irritating"
and criticized the entire cast, save for Buckley, for their "subdued,
emotions-in-check, phony 'honest' performances. You just wish the whole lot of
them would start tickling each other." [85] In his book Alternate Oscars ,
listing his personal opinions of who should have won the Academy Awards each
year, Peary excluded Tender Mercies from all the categories, and chose Michael
Caine as deserving of the Best Actor honor for Educating Rita . [85] In June
2009, critic Roger Ebert included Tender Mercies in The Great Movies , his
series of reviews celebrating what he considers the most important films of
all time. He praised what he called one of Duvall's most understated
performances, as well as Foote's minimalist storytelling and the restraint and
patience of Beresford's direction. Ebert said of Foote's screenplay, "The
down-to-earth quality of his characters drew attention away from his
minimalist storytelling; all the frills were stripped away. ... Rarely does a
movie elaborate less and explain more than Tender Mercies ." [86] Accolades [
edit ] The 56th Academy Award nominations were announced about ten months
after Tender Mercies was released. Little had been done to promote its
candidacy: only four Oscar campaign advertisements were purchased; all of them
appeared in the trade journal Variety , [75] and Duvall had declined to
campaign for himself or the film. [87] Beresford and studio executives were