Nesbitt has always been one of my favourite actors.However I never expected to see him in such a role.He is onscreen virtually the whole time and totally dominates it.In the end rather sad and touching.
20 Reviews
Tour de force by Derren Nesbitt
malcolmgsw19 May 2019
Absolutely amazing film
Boristhemoggy22 September 2019
Someone else said this was a flawless feel good film. I'd not say that I'd say it was pretty melancholy and maudlin at times, however the story is real, and there is humour and sadness and joy and everything thrown in.
The two main actors convinced me 100% that they are in fact cross dressers as they were so good at the role, but Derren Nesbitt who I haven't seen since the 60's, blew me away with one of the best performances I've seen this year. If he is not oscar nominated for Tucked then that is the final nail int he coffin for me that proves they are fixed.
Amazing performances, amazing film.
Gender choices and challenges: understanding self
gradyharp23 June 2021
Writer and director Jamie Patterson is the co-founder of Jump Start Productions and has both written and directed many British films. He brings to life the world of drag queens in this sparkling film released in 2017 in the UK, winning awards in the 2018 Los Angeles Outfest Film Festival.
The film opens in a LGBTQ+ nightclub with elderly Jackie Collins (Derren Nesbitt) lip-syncing a song then delivering some of the funniest audience-focused jokes of any stand up comedienne. Jackie is not gay: he has always had an affinity for dressing in women's clothes, was married to a woman who died of cancer, and has a estranged daughter Lily (April Pearson) whom he has not seen in years. Jackie encounters a young drag queen Faith (Jordan Stephens), sees that Faith is sleeping in his car, and invites him home. The pair's discussions about their gender - Faith is a male who prefers to be seen as female but is tenuous as to gender declaration - provide a very fine exploration about gender assignment and choice. Their friendship grows in importance. Jackie has been informed that he has only six weeks to live (terminal carcinoma) and decides to continue his life as a performing drag queen to fill his time, and while Faith advises him to contact his daughter about his diagnosis, Jackie declines. April, whose wedding is approaching, appears at one of Jackie's shows and the result provides a touching conclusion.
Derren Nesbitt is superb in this tough role, allowing us to appreciate his character's conflicts while performing some of the most hilarious stage jokes on film! Jordan Stephens, an established recording artist, offers a strong portrait as Faith. The two actors employ Jamie Patterson's story to offer a fine overview of how to be themselves in a lifestyle few understand. The film is both an excellent LGBTQ+ story and an excellent, entertaining and touching experience.
The film opens in a LGBTQ+ nightclub with elderly Jackie Collins (Derren Nesbitt) lip-syncing a song then delivering some of the funniest audience-focused jokes of any stand up comedienne. Jackie is not gay: he has always had an affinity for dressing in women's clothes, was married to a woman who died of cancer, and has a estranged daughter Lily (April Pearson) whom he has not seen in years. Jackie encounters a young drag queen Faith (Jordan Stephens), sees that Faith is sleeping in his car, and invites him home. The pair's discussions about their gender - Faith is a male who prefers to be seen as female but is tenuous as to gender declaration - provide a very fine exploration about gender assignment and choice. Their friendship grows in importance. Jackie has been informed that he has only six weeks to live (terminal carcinoma) and decides to continue his life as a performing drag queen to fill his time, and while Faith advises him to contact his daughter about his diagnosis, Jackie declines. April, whose wedding is approaching, appears at one of Jackie's shows and the result provides a touching conclusion.
Derren Nesbitt is superb in this tough role, allowing us to appreciate his character's conflicts while performing some of the most hilarious stage jokes on film! Jordan Stephens, an established recording artist, offers a strong portrait as Faith. The two actors employ Jamie Patterson's story to offer a fine overview of how to be themselves in a lifestyle few understand. The film is both an excellent LGBTQ+ story and an excellent, entertaining and touching experience.
Very watchable first half
cekadah30 September 2019
Then the second half becomes a sentimental mess with Jackie finding a path back to his estranged daughter. This is where the story becomes predictable.
Otherwise the relationship between the characters 'Jackie' & 'Faith' keep the plot going at an entertaining pace. There are no 'heavy social issues' tossed upon you - the viewer.
It's just a story of an elderly man dealing with his career & health and its effect upon family and new found friend.
Otherwise the relationship between the characters 'Jackie' & 'Faith' keep the plot going at an entertaining pace. There are no 'heavy social issues' tossed upon you - the viewer.
It's just a story of an elderly man dealing with his career & health and its effect upon family and new found friend.
A bit flat
eeriechills2 June 2021
Everyone needs a little faith.
Red-1259 October 2018
Tucked (2018) is an English movie written and directed by Jamie Patterson.
The film stars Derren Nesbitt as Jackie, a straight man who performs as a woman at a nightclub. He's not just Jackie, as he tells us. He's "The one and only Jackie."
Within the first few minutes of the movie, we learn that Jackie has a particularly aggressive form of cancer. His physician tells him to ease back a little, but naturally that's exactly what Jackie doesn't want to do.
Enter Jordan Stephens as Faith, a new performing artist at the club. We're never sure if Faith is straight or gay, and that's the way he wants it. He's very talented, and he certainly could be successful, especially after Jackie takes him under his wing.
There's a subplot about Jackie's estranged daughter, which is predictable, but works well enough. Actually, the entire film is fairly predictable. We know the beginning and we know the end.
What makes the film work is what happens along the way. It helps that the acting is truly outstanding. We learn to care about both Jackie and Faith and to care about exactly what will happen next.
We saw this movie at Rochester's great Little Theatre, as part of the outstanding Image Out, the Rochester LGBT Film Festival. It will work well on the small screen.
This movie has too few IMDb ratings to be meaningful, and I believe that I'm the first IMDb reviewer. So . . . you'll have to take my word for it that Tucked is worth seeing. Or, as Faith says, "Everyone needs a little faith."
The film stars Derren Nesbitt as Jackie, a straight man who performs as a woman at a nightclub. He's not just Jackie, as he tells us. He's "The one and only Jackie."
Within the first few minutes of the movie, we learn that Jackie has a particularly aggressive form of cancer. His physician tells him to ease back a little, but naturally that's exactly what Jackie doesn't want to do.
Enter Jordan Stephens as Faith, a new performing artist at the club. We're never sure if Faith is straight or gay, and that's the way he wants it. He's very talented, and he certainly could be successful, especially after Jackie takes him under his wing.
There's a subplot about Jackie's estranged daughter, which is predictable, but works well enough. Actually, the entire film is fairly predictable. We know the beginning and we know the end.
What makes the film work is what happens along the way. It helps that the acting is truly outstanding. We learn to care about both Jackie and Faith and to care about exactly what will happen next.
We saw this movie at Rochester's great Little Theatre, as part of the outstanding Image Out, the Rochester LGBT Film Festival. It will work well on the small screen.
This movie has too few IMDb ratings to be meaningful, and I believe that I'm the first IMDb reviewer. So . . . you'll have to take my word for it that Tucked is worth seeing. Or, as Faith says, "Everyone needs a little faith."
A real Gem!
philpotts-6123525 July 2021
I am so pleased I Googled Derren Nesbitt and discovered this smashing film. How well I remember him from the 60s onwards, with those piercing blue eyes and ability to chill the soul!
He is simply excellent in this film & makes a very touching partner to Jordan Stephens, who balances the act very well.
I wish it had received a wider release - it deserves to have done.
He is simply excellent in this film & makes a very touching partner to Jordan Stephens, who balances the act very well.
I wish it had received a wider release - it deserves to have done.
Had it's moments
muamba_eats_toast17 May 2019
There is a good idea behind the film and generally the lead 2 were likeable however it did have the feel of a TV movie in my opinion and the rest of the cast didn't seem to be on the same level. There were moments I was really buying into it but others where it was misfiring. With a few changes from the writers and an increased running time could certainly have been better then ending especially seemed rushed which is suprising given its short lengths and the powerful scenes that could potentially have been had at the weeding leading up to it and following. Still not a bad film but not enough to stand out for me.
A beautiful and powerful portrayal of love, loss & lipstick - highly recommend!
ScriptyMcScriptface7 April 2019
I was lucky enough to catch this film at the BFI Flare LGBTQI+ film festival and despite being intrigued by the synopsis, I wasn't fully prepared for how moving a film I was in for.
This is a mesmerising, heartwarming & wry tale of friendship, family, gender fluidity, life choices and much more - all wrapped up in a superbly shot and exquisitely balanced story. The local setting and framing of the reality, mundanity and beauty of the leads' existence really shines in the directing and camerawork with some of the shots literally taking my breath away on the cinema screen. One closeup of a hairy knee through fishnets actually bought me to tears.
The witty and nuanced script is superb and lifted even higher by Nesbitt on blistering form as the ageing performer, with Jordan Stephens holding his own in the emotional scenes as his young ward. The whole cast really sinks its teeth into the tale and those moments are great, but at its core, this is a vehicle for Nesbitt to show why he should have had many more lead roles in his brilliant career and thanks to the director, Jamie Patterson, he finally gets that moment and runs with it.
All in all this is a beautiful, timely, unique masterpiece which I can only hope gets the wide audience it deserves. Highly recommended!
A for Idea, Concept & Acting, D for execution - it falls flat
scotartsproduction7 May 2019
Warning: Spoilers
What a lovely concept & idea, and what fresh, committed actors. Some of the integral scenes where the actors flourished were really powerful. Another positive is that this is a good attempt for something new, outside the common McHollywood gay-gay-rah-rah tripe. Otherwise, it needs a lot of help.
This seems to be another victim of made-for-cinema TV melodrama is relied upon to carry the whole film. The main character is terminally ill.
Script: the dialogue is so illogical at times it completely throws any mood the actors worked to build. Basic time & place problems, chronology and believability. Young person arrives, is 21 years old, but somehow not old enough to stay on a coworkers couch? And then, the repetition - same sob story about the terminal illness and being abused by "dad", and "I'm not gay I'm straight" - it borders, I believe unintentionally, on misandry and internalised homophobia.
And how many times do you need a main character to fall on the floor, and how many fart, potty and pee lines do you really need in one film? It did not serve the film. Jackie's makeup told more of the life he/she lead that all the falling on the floor Reality TV nonsense.
And for all that's good and great in the world: PLEASE STOP WITH THE JERKY CAMERAS. No one is ever going to want to watch these films in 20 years - and what's with the manipulated screen proportions - aspect ratio? Dream sequences? Maybe. The entire film? no, please.
Second is the desperate attempt to pack the film full of every Pollyanna PC Pronoun cause you can find - we don't need the preachey lessons on gender and all that - we need to see these particular characters flourish in THEIR environment, as THEY are. Problem with this is - even the stereotypes are inconsistent and sometimes painfully misused.
And overall - there's just too much going on. A hot mess. The saving grace of the film were the incredible jokes and rough-trade delivery of them by the Jackie character. But once we get taken on the ride, the car runs out of gas.
It seems the filmmaker had a great concept, but needed a lot of help making it into a compelling script. And needed a director with a keen, scrutizing eye. And an editor to get rid of all the extraneous & unnecessary junk packed in there. Less is more. Let is happen. These actors were underserved.
I kept thinking all along that we had a young Jay Davidson emerging, and a fantastic, quirky new film to come out of indie land. Crying Game 2.0 - but this comes nowhere near. But it appears - for whatever reason - the decision makers strove to iron and choke every ounce of fresh air out of this film.
I'll be interested to see what comes next from this group. Drop the agenda, and just make the story. It's a good story.
This seems to be another victim of made-for-cinema TV melodrama is relied upon to carry the whole film. The main character is terminally ill.
Script: the dialogue is so illogical at times it completely throws any mood the actors worked to build. Basic time & place problems, chronology and believability. Young person arrives, is 21 years old, but somehow not old enough to stay on a coworkers couch? And then, the repetition - same sob story about the terminal illness and being abused by "dad", and "I'm not gay I'm straight" - it borders, I believe unintentionally, on misandry and internalised homophobia.
And how many times do you need a main character to fall on the floor, and how many fart, potty and pee lines do you really need in one film? It did not serve the film. Jackie's makeup told more of the life he/she lead that all the falling on the floor Reality TV nonsense.
And for all that's good and great in the world: PLEASE STOP WITH THE JERKY CAMERAS. No one is ever going to want to watch these films in 20 years - and what's with the manipulated screen proportions - aspect ratio? Dream sequences? Maybe. The entire film? no, please.
Second is the desperate attempt to pack the film full of every Pollyanna PC Pronoun cause you can find - we don't need the preachey lessons on gender and all that - we need to see these particular characters flourish in THEIR environment, as THEY are. Problem with this is - even the stereotypes are inconsistent and sometimes painfully misused.
And overall - there's just too much going on. A hot mess. The saving grace of the film were the incredible jokes and rough-trade delivery of them by the Jackie character. But once we get taken on the ride, the car runs out of gas.
It seems the filmmaker had a great concept, but needed a lot of help making it into a compelling script. And needed a director with a keen, scrutizing eye. And an editor to get rid of all the extraneous & unnecessary junk packed in there. Less is more. Let is happen. These actors were underserved.
I kept thinking all along that we had a young Jay Davidson emerging, and a fantastic, quirky new film to come out of indie land. Crying Game 2.0 - but this comes nowhere near. But it appears - for whatever reason - the decision makers strove to iron and choke every ounce of fresh air out of this film.
I'll be interested to see what comes next from this group. Drop the agenda, and just make the story. It's a good story.
Simple, un-sensational, beautiful
ella-4823 May 2019
Have just been to see this at my local Picture House. What a thoroughly satisfying experience it is. A simple tale, told in a no-nonsense, non-exploitative way.
The two central performances (Derren Nesbitt as Jackie and Jordan Stephens as Faith) are utterly believable from beginning to end: no off-the-shelf 2-dimensional character tropes here, just REAL human beings dealing with REAL life.
Because of its subject matter, there is plenty of potential in this story for things to get horribly mawkish, but they don't. Yes, there are moments of intense emotion (take a packet of tissues with you - you'll need 'em), but the drama always steers just the right side of good taste on that score - i.e. genuine emotional power, yes - sentimentality, no.
Another thing I really appreciated was the way in which the growing dynamic between the two was portrayed. Writer/Director Jamie Patterson skilfully avoids trotting out the old cliché of "they can't stand each other to begin with, but learn to love each other - awww, bless". Nope: in this film, the interaction between the two is completely believable from the get-go. This, for me, is the main thing that makes this story so satisfying.
Other thoughts: nice to see a story in which a hetero cross-dressing character is treated with respect, at a time when society as a whole seems to have almost forgotten such people exist!
The only aspect of the script that left me a bit perplexed is this: at the start of the film, Faith tells us that they are gender non-binary: i.e.they don't regard themself as being either exclusively male or female. I was surprised, therefore, that throughout the whole story, Faith seemed entirely happy to be referred to by everyone as "He". I would have expected Faith's preferred pronoun to be "they". At one point in the story, the nightclub MC was seen doing a whole comedy routine about societal attitides to "new" pronouns, so this detail struck me as anomalous.
Other than that, though, I have nothing but praise for this small but damn-near-perfect gem of a movie.
The two central performances (Derren Nesbitt as Jackie and Jordan Stephens as Faith) are utterly believable from beginning to end: no off-the-shelf 2-dimensional character tropes here, just REAL human beings dealing with REAL life.
Because of its subject matter, there is plenty of potential in this story for things to get horribly mawkish, but they don't. Yes, there are moments of intense emotion (take a packet of tissues with you - you'll need 'em), but the drama always steers just the right side of good taste on that score - i.e. genuine emotional power, yes - sentimentality, no.
Another thing I really appreciated was the way in which the growing dynamic between the two was portrayed. Writer/Director Jamie Patterson skilfully avoids trotting out the old cliché of "they can't stand each other to begin with, but learn to love each other - awww, bless". Nope: in this film, the interaction between the two is completely believable from the get-go. This, for me, is the main thing that makes this story so satisfying.
Other thoughts: nice to see a story in which a hetero cross-dressing character is treated with respect, at a time when society as a whole seems to have almost forgotten such people exist!
The only aspect of the script that left me a bit perplexed is this: at the start of the film, Faith tells us that they are gender non-binary: i.e.they don't regard themself as being either exclusively male or female. I was surprised, therefore, that throughout the whole story, Faith seemed entirely happy to be referred to by everyone as "He". I would have expected Faith's preferred pronoun to be "they". At one point in the story, the nightclub MC was seen doing a whole comedy routine about societal attitides to "new" pronouns, so this detail struck me as anomalous.
Other than that, though, I have nothing but praise for this small but damn-near-perfect gem of a movie.
A Wonderful Film
ladymidath20 January 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Tucked is a beautiful film about age, gender identity, sexuality and the losses that we experience as we move through life. Derren Nesbit is wonderful as Jackie, an elderly drag queen who befriends a young drag queen who is gay called Faith played by Jordan Stephens. Jackie is told that he is dying of cancer so he decides to start doing things he has always wanted to do and to try and reconciliate with his estranged daughter.
When he discovers Faith sleeping in his car because his father has thrown him out, Jackie takes him in and the two form a bond together. This is s sweet and touching film and even though it is about a man who is dying, it is ultimately life affirming. There is a gentleness to the story as it slowly unfolds. A kindness in the simple conversations and gestures of the characters as they go about their lives.
This is a rare film, one that is as deep and as complex, yet and simple as a modern fairytale about a beautiful aging queen that is nearing her end and still has things that he needs to accomplish in order to be at peace.
I highly recommend this film to anyone that loves film making at its finest.
Don't Fail In The First Minute!
heratyplant4 January 2021
Did you know, movies are really hard to get made, to find the money, to find a company to make it & then to actually make it, finish it & get it released - It's Tough!!
So when, in the opening scene of your 'masterpiece', you let the actor down & irritate the audience, so much so that they don't want to continue watching, do you think you should have thought about it a little more?!?!
I prefer 'live' singing, but one of the tricks in a drag artists bag, is to 'lipsync' to a song or even a film scene & get every word mouthed perfectly. Have you seen Rupaul's Drag Race, fail in the closing lipsync battle & you're booted off the show.
Our lead here then, an 80 year old, veteran artiste, not suffering from any memory loss that I can perceive, performs a drag classic, Gloria Gaynor's, I Will Survive. The poor actor, Darren Nesbitt, a veteran performer of 60 years, did not know the words. OK, fine, shoot him from the front, with screens or cue cards in front for him to read, NOT from behind & the side so you can see he doesn't know the words & he's not able to read them!!! This shows so little care not only towards the actor, but the audience as well, does the director, Jamie Patterson, think we're stupid & that we won't notice? If he cares that little about the viewer right from the start, I lose all confidence in the rest of the film, there's so much else to watch today, you can't let your audience down for even a second.
Skipping ahead a little & for what it's worth, Nesbitt, of course does a great job, but 'Faith', his protégé or drag daughter, is as flat as a pancake, so thank movie, but I'll pass.
If I was lucky enough to ever 'make' a movie, I would make sure that I didn't fail in under 60 seconds, what a shame!
So when, in the opening scene of your 'masterpiece', you let the actor down & irritate the audience, so much so that they don't want to continue watching, do you think you should have thought about it a little more?!?!
I prefer 'live' singing, but one of the tricks in a drag artists bag, is to 'lipsync' to a song or even a film scene & get every word mouthed perfectly. Have you seen Rupaul's Drag Race, fail in the closing lipsync battle & you're booted off the show.
Our lead here then, an 80 year old, veteran artiste, not suffering from any memory loss that I can perceive, performs a drag classic, Gloria Gaynor's, I Will Survive. The poor actor, Darren Nesbitt, a veteran performer of 60 years, did not know the words. OK, fine, shoot him from the front, with screens or cue cards in front for him to read, NOT from behind & the side so you can see he doesn't know the words & he's not able to read them!!! This shows so little care not only towards the actor, but the audience as well, does the director, Jamie Patterson, think we're stupid & that we won't notice? If he cares that little about the viewer right from the start, I lose all confidence in the rest of the film, there's so much else to watch today, you can't let your audience down for even a second.
Skipping ahead a little & for what it's worth, Nesbitt, of course does a great job, but 'Faith', his protégé or drag daughter, is as flat as a pancake, so thank movie, but I'll pass.
If I was lucky enough to ever 'make' a movie, I would make sure that I didn't fail in under 60 seconds, what a shame!
better than torch song triology....??actually mmmmyess
ops-525353 April 2019
Well, i did not expect an outcome of these proportions of a film of this genre. its about an elderly man, who has loved to crossdress for well over 50 years, and has been in the entertainment business as a drag queen for many of those years.
we are all invited in from the day he gets the ticket to neverland from his doctor, and how he is battling through the last path of life ,the good and the bad.
you wont believe it but this film made me laugh like never before, and at the end nearly crying my eyes out. its tucked full of jokes and real drag humour on stage, and will engulf you for the rest of your life because the message are so brilliantly acted out by derren nesbitt that im sure your toes will culr themselves in your sucks, and with a fresh and juicy language tells the drag'sters way of life and thinking.. you are really acting like an oscar candidate mr.nesbitt,believe it or not......
the technical product, are basically near perfect, and the make up and dress department has done a great job. what haunts me a little are some of the close up camera angles , but thats just a few times, and wont shake this tenner into a niner.very well done indeed, as mr. nesbitt would say....
so the grumpy old man thinks, wether you are gay, strait, crosser, transvestite,lesbian or dragster, religous or atheist, watch this movie, it will crush your heart, and most surtainly crash your thoughts about a dragsters life. its a ten with a recommend
we are all invited in from the day he gets the ticket to neverland from his doctor, and how he is battling through the last path of life ,the good and the bad.
you wont believe it but this film made me laugh like never before, and at the end nearly crying my eyes out. its tucked full of jokes and real drag humour on stage, and will engulf you for the rest of your life because the message are so brilliantly acted out by derren nesbitt that im sure your toes will culr themselves in your sucks, and with a fresh and juicy language tells the drag'sters way of life and thinking.. you are really acting like an oscar candidate mr.nesbitt,believe it or not......
the technical product, are basically near perfect, and the make up and dress department has done a great job. what haunts me a little are some of the close up camera angles , but thats just a few times, and wont shake this tenner into a niner.very well done indeed, as mr. nesbitt would say....
so the grumpy old man thinks, wether you are gay, strait, crosser, transvestite,lesbian or dragster, religous or atheist, watch this movie, it will crush your heart, and most surtainly crash your thoughts about a dragsters life. its a ten with a recommend
Poignant Story of Regrets and Recoveries
anitalansing-40-58191515 June 2019
This movie is one of the most charming movies I have watched in a long time. It provided a tale of missed opportunities, sorrows and hurt. However, there is recovery. I am satisfied that the movie ended on a happy note, especially after a decade of regrets and pain that the main character, Jackie, had to deal with. Time heals all wounds, and we all can begin again as long as we make the effort to fix the mistake made. Superb acting. Wonderful storyline. Glad that I have a chance to view and enjoy this precious gem of a movie. I don't remember ever seeing this advertised at the theaters, however, Tucked far surpasses many of the movies shown in the theaters today. Good viewing indeed.
What a delight
cockezville20 February 2022
I stumbled on this film on Amazon and was pleased. Very heartwarming and sad at the same time and I found the acting quite good especially the lead actor who played Jackie. I am surprised this film did not get more attention.
An absolute Gem!
philpotts-6123525 July 2021
Engaging performances in a unique and moving story about gender, age and loss.
Hobes837 April 2019
A film that left me both lifted and moved at the end. This odd couple story delivers characters with depth and empathy and, refreshingly, an honest view of Brighton and the characters you can find there. Highly recommended!
We need more movies like this 👍
rambla-6511517 May 2019
Amazing!
sdiazbravo6 April 2019
An amazing story about friendship and about sweet and hard moments in life. Clever script and marvellous acting. The photograpy is great. The main caracter is particularly interesting. I love this film and I highly recommend it.
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