By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.5 cats
Director: Tommy Lee Jones
Starring: David Dencik | Grace Gummer | Hailee Steinfeld | Hilary Swank | James Spader | John Lithgow | Meryl Streep | Miranda Otto | Sonja Richter | Tommy Lee Jones | William Ficthner
Country: france, united_states
Year: 2014
Running time: 122
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2398231/combined
Jason says: “I can’t recall Tommy Lee Jones ever working with Werner Herzog at any point, and that’s probably for the best. THE HOMESMAN suggest they may be too much on the same page about how the untamed wilderness not only wants to kill any person who ventures into its domain, but it will first drive him or her mad. We are probably better off not having witnessed that combined bleak outlook.
“And while Jones’s adaptation of Gledon Swarthout’s novel sometimes pushes said bleakness not just past the point of comfort but into territory that might make a viewer give up early (more dead babies than you need to see). It’s worth sticking around, though, because Jones evokes the idea of a West that just pulverizes minds in a way that is pure horror: Men become cruel, to the point where the women they are with just shut down, and even strong, capable women like Mary Bee Cuddy (Hilary Swank) have their sense of worth chipped away to an extent that is tragic. Jones’s title character may be the most rational in his amorality, but he’s hollow for it.
“It’s a fine, fragile performance on Jones’s part, a notable contrast to his many more bombastic parts – or the sleepwalking turn in THE FAMILY which I suspect was done as barter for this movie (Luc Besson’s Europacorp produced it). Hilary Swank is exceptional as Cuddy, giving a performance that evokes solid decency but also highlights the cracks that have been forming in part as a result of that. It’s essential in making the film’s last act completely believable even while it feels like a betrayal. The turns from Grace Gummer, Miranda Otto, and Sonja Richter as the women who lost their minds are terribly effective, and there’s a string of memorable appearances in smaller parts: John Lithgow, William Ficthner, James Spader, Meryl Streep, Hailee Steinfeld.
“I probably won’t watch this one again – it is just too cruel at points to subject oneself to multiple times – but it’s certainly worth one watch. 4 cats
“Seen 1 December 2014 in Landmark Kendall Square #7 (first-run, DCP)”
Toni says: “THE HOMESMAN is not an easy film but a powerful film nonetheless as Jay indicates in his great review here.
“I agree with the acting performances as a whole, especially Hillary Swank and Tommy Lee Jones who I think as this film will be overlooked by many award options. I also thought it was a strong representation of the struggles and injustices of the time period but also the universal loneliness of the Cuddy character for example is something we all can identify with. 5 cats
“(Seen in the smaller couch theatre traveling at Carolina Theatre, Asheville, NC)”