Tender Mercies from 1983 is the story of a washed up alcoholic country singer who gets on the straight and narrow after meeting a beautiful motel owner and her playfully adorable son. The film is slow and subtle but it is an incredible character study of quiet southern introverts. The most memorable insight of the film is right at the end, Robert Duval's character pronounces "I have never trusted happiness." I find myself often wondering when the other shoe will drop (in fact knocking on wood now), but really I guess all you can do is hope for good carma.
On the subject of the costumes, I thought they were excellently done. The characters were living in rural Texas on less than nothing. Costume designer Elizabeth McBride captured the understated devil may care cool attitude of what good country music once was. In mixed denim and plaid, the characters had the look that most hipsters try damn hard to get like but never really achieve.
