Tim Blake Nelson

  • The True Don Quixote (2019)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, October 2022) So a modern man, slightly off his rocker, imagines himself as Don Quixote in the age of social media and, uh, that’s it. Profoundly uninteresting despite a committed central performance by Tim Blake Nelson and a few modern updates to the age-old literary classic, The True Don Quixote is a film that works on superficial recognition and eccentric small-town humour. It’s all rather good-natured and innocuous—nothing really bad will happen here, you can rest assured—but also profoundly empty and meaningless. The film doesn’t make much in terms of using its premise for thematic commentary—it plays, it ends, and that’s it. As a result, it feels fleeting as well: why watch The True Don Quixote when there are plenty of other movies to watch? Go tilt at windmills elsewhere.

  • Flypaper (2011)

    Flypaper (2011)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On-demand video, April 2012) Here’s my new life pro-tip for cinephiles: “Get premium cable TV channels for the big Hollywood movies; keep it for the smaller films that you wouldn’t have seen otherwise!” Flypaper may not have been seen in theaters, but on the small screen it makes for a clever and satisfying crime mystery.  The film does take a while to find its footing, as a quirky savant finds himself in the middle of two simultaneous bank robberies: for a while, Flypaper’s tone remains fuzzy as it veers between a serious crime film and a more light-hearted comedy.  But such initial sputters a common in dark comedies, and Flypaper soon finds itself on firmer footing as the real nature of its convoluted plot becomes more apparent.  Patrick Dempsey is the anchor of the film as a troubled genius investigating the crime in which he’s being held hostage, while Ashley Judd makes for a compelling heroine.  Some of the supporting characters do the best work, though, as with the banter between blue-collar bank robbers played by Tim Blake Nelson and Pruitt Taylor Vince, or a small-but-showy part for Jeffrey Tambor.  The dialogue is occasionally witty, the script is a cut above most crime comedies, and the inspired direction has its moments.  Flypaper is a dark-horse, hidden-gem kind of low-budget film: small cast but a capable script and well-handled filmmaking.  It wraps up on a high note, and leaves a great impression.