Nov, 2014 whats worrisome in the homesman is that he takes distressing twists, like briggss revenge on the realestate man, and makes them more brutal than they have to be. Nov 12, 2014 title and director notwithstanding, tommy lee jones the homesman is very much a feminist western one painting a vivid picture of how difficult it was for even a strong and. Mar 06, 1988 the homesman went off on a strange tangent and i found myself not really caring how it was going to end. In pioneer nebraska, a woman leads where no man will go. By default, mary bee cuddy is chosen as the homesman, the person who will accompany the women back east. Mary bee cuddy is a 30ish spinster, tough as nails but yearning for a man, who has set up a nice homestead out near the town of loup, in oklahoma territory. May 18, 2014 actordirector tommy lee jones said that his new film, the homesman, set during the mid19th century western expansion of the united states, was about american imperialism across the continent.
Three women have lost their minds in the homesman, but honestly, everyone you meet in the film is slightly crazy, the homesman most of all. She could plow, she could shoot, and she wasnt afraid to take on duties that other men shied away from. Tommy lee jones rustles up fine feminist western, homesman. Soon to be a major film directed by and starring tommy lee jones and costarring meryl streep, hilary swank, and john lithgow, this classic western novel captures the devastating realities of early pioneers in the american west through the eyes of one extraordinary woman. Have you ever waited for your favorite book to be turned into a movie. The homesman is a 2014 historical drama set in the 1850s midwest, directed by tommy lee jones.
In pioneer nebraska, a woman leads where no man will go soon to be a major motion picture directed by tommy lee jones. Spend six months trapped inside a dark sodhouse with sickly children, your food and firewood running low, and your nearest neighbor many. The homesman is a 2014 historical period drama set in the 1850s midwest, directed by tommy lee jones. The abbeys rapid response to a crisis thats torn us apart. The homesman movie clip rescue 2014 tommy lee jones, hilary swank movie hd duration. Hell, you might even be angry, like many audiences were with the underappreciated the grey.
The homesman is a remarkable western delving into numerous social issues all but ignored by other films of the genre such as the role of marriage, the churchs role in society, womens role in. A strongwilled woman recruits a loathsome drifter to help transport three insane women across the unforgiving nebraska territories so that they may find sanctuary with a compassionate minister and his wife in this drama directed and cowritten by tommy lee jones. A significant plot development about three quarters of the way through has caused some. Better to say the homesman, based on a 1988 novel by glendon swarthout, is concerned with the struggles of women in the west. I purchased the book on amazon cheaper and read it in about three sittings. Time is marked in children lost, crops that fail and bitter winters that steal the sanity of your nearest and dearest. I saw the movie last night, it was a very sad movie, and i loved it. Dear john, the surprise hit romance that opened over the weekend, might not have been as big a hit if it had the original ending in a reallife twist, the movie until three weeks before its. Spoilers a question about the ending of the homesman 2014. But i cant think of a recent film that ends like the homesman. Nov, 2014 in the homesman, a most unromantic american west hilary swank and tommy lee jones play two very different people taking a dangerous trip across the arid plains in a beautifully photographed film. To ask other readers questions about the homesman, please sign up. Swank and jones are sensational tommy lee joness western about a womans lot on the wild frontier refuses to sugarcoat its subject, and is all the more satisfying for it. It was a what an odd and ultimately disappointing read this was.
May 18, 2014 the homesman is probably described by many as a western, but thats lazy. Swarthouts prose and plot flow like the swirling missouri river, deceptively. Channing tatum and amanda seyfriend starred in dear john, with the. Three women who have been driven mad by pioneer life are to be transported across the country by covered wagon by the pious, independentminded mary bee cuddy, who in turn employs lowlife drifter george briggs to assist her. The homesman is a devastating story of early pioneers in 1850s american west. The frontier of the old west has rarely been evoked as a more miserable, barren land than it is in this melancholy novel by the author of the shootist. Twitter tommy lee jones in competition western stars hilary swank, john lithgow, james spader, hailee.
Dear john does center on a dear john letter, but it takes a few unexpected paths. Four pioneer women, all of them wives, for one reason or another have gone insane in a territory lacking an asylum. The movie spoiler your guide to the latest plot twists and surprise. This is a road movie on horseback, a saunter across the plains, a journey through mistrust and emotions where a mistake or misplaced trust will result in death. Then when it finally happens you barely recognize it on the big screen. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. The film stars jones and hilary swank and also features meryl streep, grace gummer, miranda otto, hailee steinfeld, john lithgow, and james spader. The homesman was first printed in 1988, and is highly worthy of its 2014 rerelease. They announce the end of a life but the continuation of the ideas and deeds. Soon to be a major motion picture directed by tommy lee jones, the homesman is a devastating story of early pioneers in 1850s american west. Tommy lee jones directs and stars in a new western. The screenplay by jones, kieran fitzgerald and wesley oliver is based on the 1988 novel of the same name by glendon swarthout.
It situates the model of a strong female character alongside three other women who are exploited for suspense and shock value, places convincingly iconoclastic figures in triedandtrue western tropes, and manages. Set on the great plains in the mid1800s, the homesman aims for a story thats poignant and told sparely. The homesman is never subtle, but the film nonetheless makes. In the homesman, why did mary bee hang herself screenprism. By default, mary bee cuddy is chosen as the homesman, the person who will. Parents need to know that the homesman is a western based on a novel by glendon swarthout with disturbing material, mostly related to three frontier women who go insane. Visually, this film is stunning, and not just on the plains. Once we hit november, every serious movie arrives with oscar expectations. The west, as seen in the homesman, is an unforgiving place, with flashes of stark and nightmarish beauty. Swank and jones are particularly good in the leading roles.
Hailed as a feminist western by some, the homesman only is up to a point. Nov 09, 2014 the first two acts of the homesman are as ungainly and interesting as its main characters. I am a fan of tommy lee jones so this piqued my interest. The storyline is quite unusual with some rather unexpected detours. Spoilers a question about the ending of the homesman. She employs a feisty lowlife drifter, george biggs jones, to join her. Women are the center of the action, women drive the action forward, women are not only damsels in distress but heroic figures of grit and courage sometimes in the same moment. Nov 05, 2014 the homesman soundtrack list 2014 complete tracklist, movie score details, the entire ost playlist, all songs played in the movie and in the trailer and who sings them.
The homesman is a dark, complex story of gender issues and changing conventions on the frontier, and in an era that sees this genre fading, jones has made a western winner. Based on a novel by glendon swarthout who also wrote the shootist the. The first half of the homesman leads us along that path, with a terrific. Hilary swank, tommy lee jones, miranda otto, sonja richter, grace gummer, john lithgow, meryl streep, james spader, evan jones. Anyone who imagines that a homesteaders life on americas great plains was all little house on the prairie hasnt tried it. May 18, 2014 the homesman an absorbing, melancholy look at the hard lot of women in the old west. The homesman by glendon swarthout overdrive rakuten. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the homesman.
Soon to be a major motion picture directed by tommy lee jones. In the homesman 2014, mary bee hilary swank was the antithesis of a regular woman in 1850. What does the homesman say about womens roles in frontier. The homesman is based on a 1988 novel by glendon swarthout, who. This book, the homesman, caught my eye at costco because of the cover. Nov 14, 2014 when three women living on the edge of the american frontier are driven to the brink, the task of saving them from their surroundings falls to independentminded mary bee cuddy swank. Over the last three years, much of what the guardian holds dear has.
They scream, thrash, and moan, and one cuts herself with a needle. Its an unusual story about four women who loose their minds after a hard winter in the nebraska territory in the 1850s. A homesman must be found to escort a handful of them back east to a sanitarium. In the book tim lives and at the end of the book, john is sitting atop a hill overlooking savannahs home. The homesman is a 2014 frenchamerican period drama film produced and directed by tommy lee jones, based on the 1988 novel of the same name by glendon swarthout. The notsogood news is that the film, while heartfelt, is dramatically stillborn. Have a look below to see the official score list for the 2014 western movie, the homesman. Once a teacher but now a lone and lonely homesteader in her early thirties.
Dear john, the letter readand with those two words, a heart was broken and two lives were changed forever. Tommy lee jones is directing and starring in the feature film the homesman, along with hilary swank, miranda otto, john lithgow, tim blake nelson and meryl streep. The men are helpless bystanders or ambiguous allies. I was so upset about the ending, i really wanted it to be a fairy tale ending but that didnt happen. The homesman is based on a novel by glendon swarthout, whose the. He is reflecting on their love they once had and it. Dear john did anyone else think that the ending was kind of.
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