Guarding Tess - #040

In the early to mid 90’s films starring an antagonizing pain in the ass character who slowly drops their guard only to realize the object of their animosity was actually their best friend all along were all the rage. While Driving Miss Daisy and The Bodyguard managed to gain critical and financial success respectively, Nicolas Cage’s foray into this short-lived genre didn’t go quite as well. But does this film deserve its place in relative obscurity or is it a lost gem? We’ll find out as we breakdown the 1994 comedy-drama Guarding Tess. A highly decorated secret service agent gets the assignment of his nightmares guarding a demanding, nitpicky former first lady but, as we soon find out, there’s more to their relationship than meets the eye and he’s the only one she can trust to save her life. Guarding Tess stars the legendary Oscar winning actress who was also nominated for a Golden Globe for her role in this film Shirley MacLaine, Eugene Tackleberry himself from Police Academy 1 through 7 David Graf, a whole host of character actors including Austin Pendleton who might be best known as Gurgle from Finding Nemo, James Rebhorn who you might recognize from every other TV show and movie ever made, Richard Griffiths AKA Vernon Dursley in the Harry Potter films, and of course, a man who REALLY knows how to get information out of an uncooperative suspect, Academy Award winning actor Nicolas Kim Coppola better known as Nicolas Cage.