Celebration of the quiet American hero

It’s hard for me to watch Ulee’s Gold without a couple of big juicy tears welling up ten minutes into the film.  That’s approximately when Ulee Jackson (Peter Fonda), working in his garage, is drawn into a reluctant conversation with his seven-something granddaughter Penny (Vanessa Zima) about the men in his platoon in Vietnam, none of whom survived.

“Those were good guys, Penny.”
“It’s so sad,” she says.
“You like sad?” asks Ulee.
“No, but sometimes inside it makes you quiet.”

That scene and this poignant statement by an adorable little girl give you the essence of the movie: the bittersweet, calm dignity of an honest man’s living struggle.

In fifteen minutes through his interactions with people in town and briefly at home, the extraordinarily ordinary person of Ulysses Jackson is established:

He’s a beekeeper, pursues the excellence of Tupelo honey, keeps things to himself, has lost his wife, is taking care of his two granddaughters (the teen is difficult), their father is in prison for robbery, their mother abandoned them, Ulee is physically beatup, and his honey harvest is due.  Continue reading →