Its a signature beat for tommy lee jones, who plays briggs and who also directed, produced, and coscripted the homesman. Swanks strong performance as mary bee cuddy in the movie the homesman i knew i had to read the source material for the movie. Simply streep the meryl streep archives the homesman. Dec 10, 2014 and therein lay the challenge of costuming the homesman, a bleak frontier tale that finds mary bee cuddy, a desperate, homely spinster played by hilary swank, and george briggs, a noaccount drifter played by the films director and one of its writers, tommy lee jones, on a fiveweek journey to guide three disturbed women across the. The 2014 homesman film is closely based on the novel by glendon. 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. Thats just about the worst thing mary bee cuddy could ever say to a person. Title and director notwithstanding, tommy lee jones the homesman is very much a feminist western one painting a vivid picture of how difficult it.
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. The west, as seen in the homesman, is an unforgiving place, with flashes of stark and nightmarish beauty. 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. Anyone who imagines that a homesteaders life on americas great plains was all little house on the prairie hasnt tried it. Set predominantly in sodbuster country we encounter a wide range of weathers and strangers. I did guess who the culprit was before the ending, which took a little of the suspense out of the story for me, but overall, it was a solid book and i will continue to read his authors work. Slater and though i did not like it as much as the liar, it was still a well written, entertaining mystery.
Four pioneer women, all of them wives, for one reason or another have gone insane in a territory lacking an asylum. This, of course, came after norma tied norman up and dragged him down to the. Pearl quickly becomes friends with elenas son moody, who fancies her, and his siblings lexie, trip and izzy. I think this was a labor of love for tommy lee jones, whomore because of its limited distribution, i was lucky to catch this at our local art theatre. This movie is tommy lee jones second directorial, and like the first, its a masterpiece. An error occurred while retrieving sharing information. Why hilary swank breaks your heart in the homesman indiewire. Near the end, on his own, george briggs must ford a dangerous river. One throws a baby away in an outhouse, and other dead babies are also shown. The homesman hilary swank and tommy lee jones go west with volatile cargo 4 out of 5 stars. Spend six months trapped inside a dark sodhouse with sickly children, your food and firewood running low, and your nearest neighbor many miles away so you are forced to deliver your baby.
What does the homesman say about womens roles in frontier. In the homesman, hilary swank and tommy lee jones help three women driven to madness by the frontier get back east. I suspect the story, which was a novel by glendon swarthout, is probably close to the true raw life women faced in the west mid 1800 and the depiction by the actors and jones as director and actor is superb. Twitter tommy lee jones in competition western stars hilary swank, john lithgow, james spader, hailee. The homesman stars hilary swank and tommy lee jones the. Mar 06, 1988 the homesman went off on a strange tangent and i found myself not really caring how it was going to end. Spend six months trapped inside a dark sodhouse with sickly children, your food and firewood running low, and your nearest neighbor many. The homesman hilary swank and tommy lee jones go west with volatile cargo. The journey in tommy lee jones the homesman, based on the 1988 novel by glendon swarthout, travels from west to east, from the unmarked nebraska territory to a town in iowa.
Its a perfect ending to a movie that isnt perfect, but. The homesman is probably described by many as a western, but thats lazy. 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. Pooreericson used her connections, including another mother at her childrens. Its an unusual story about four women who loose their minds after a hard winter in the nebraska territory in the 1850s. Did tommy share with you a lot of research with books and old photographs. But, the first and last times she speaks in the film, shes proposing to a man who turns her down.
When cuddy draws the black bean, which means she will transport the women, someone remarks that it is may 4, and she should be back by the 4th of july, which means, of course, that it is late spring. A bit of story line tweaking could have given the film a bit more of a commercial success. Storytelling tips from the homesman 2014 slap happy larry. Spoilers a question about the ending of the homesman. In pioneer nebraska, a woman leads where no man will go soon to be a major motion picture directed by tommy lee jones. 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. Lessons from tony hortons new book the big picture the p90x guru opens up about his favorite life laws, like why you should love it or leave it. Hilary swank in the homesman 2014 melanie laurent at an event for the homesman.
A homesman must be found to escort a handful of them back east to a sanitarium. Tommy lee jones rustles up fine feminist western, homesman. Swank and jones are particularly good in the leading roles. 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 to project a. But if youve really honed in on the homesman, youll be shaken.
Based on a novel by glendon swarthout who also wrote the. 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. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. By default, mary bee cuddy is chosen as the homesman, the person who will. May 18, 2014 the homesman an absorbing, melancholy look at the hard lot of women in the old west. We were always barely eight hours ahead of the set between the stitching and the textile work. James spader on the womens behalf, but mary tragically mistakes the older mans. The homesman went off on a strange tangent and i found myself not really caring how it was going to end. The homesman is a 2014 historical drama set in the 1850s midwest, directed by tommy lee jones. The homesman, the second theatrical feature directed by actor tommy lee jones, has the slippery, stubbornly imperfect feel of a vintage acid western. To the end of the land, to be sure, is a long, meandering tale in which strikingly little happens. The homesman jordan hoffman 05182014 you are a man of low character. The banjo has steel strings with frets and a design that first appeared around 1890.
Read the the homesman movie synopsis, view the movie trailer, get cast and crew information, see movie photos, and more on. In the homesman 2014, mary bee hilary swank was the antithesis of a regular woman in 1850. Spoilers a question about the ending of the homesman 2014. The homesman stars hilary swank and tommy lee jones. Hilary swank and tommy lee jones star in the homesman.
Visually, this film is stunning, and not just on the plains. Movies and tv shows starring tommy lee jones, including mistakes, quotes, questions, trivia and more. Discussion in visual arts started by the panda, nov 22, 2014. Like a wilderness trek, destination for grossman is beside the pointits the journey itself, and what you notice, and what you think about, along the way, which is the objective. This time we take a look at the 2007 oscar winning modern classic, no country for old men, adapted from the cormac mccarthy book of the same name by the coen brothers fargo, the big lebowski. 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. 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. Instead, a massive spoiler warning about quicknstraights next. Hulu one year before the richardsons house is set on fire in 1998, elena richardson lets out her spare duplex to mia warren and her daughter pearl. 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. 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. I dont understand the ending of the movie and was wondering if anyone else can shed some light on the rest of the movie after tommy lee jones drops off the three women. I am a fan of tommy lee jones so this piqued my interest.
She could plow, she could shoot, and she wasnt afraid to take on duties that other men shied away from. The homesman is a devastating story of early pioneers in 1850s american west. 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. It has very tight, economic tale telling with no fat on the bone. The homesman an absorbing, melancholy look at the hard lot of women in the old west. But of all his books and there were many one, the good old boys reeks of west texas.
One of swarthouts skeletons, the old colts, the melodeon, etc. Movies and tv shows starring tommy lee jones movie mistakes. And maybe its because i made the mistake of watching the special features afterwards, which consisted of interviews. The homesman has a long way to travel and passes through violence, sentiment and grim realism as if cormac mccarthy was doing the little house on the prairie. John freeman because of its limited distribution, i was lucky to catch this at our local art theatre. The red carpet has been rolled, the stars departed and the losers hopefully dried their eyes. The homesman opens in the 1850s, when early pioneers are doing anything they. It is a reverse trajectory of the typical western path, the wildness of the prairies and plains reverting, startlingly, to a tame village perched on the edge of the placid missouri river. It was a what an odd and ultimately disappointing read this was. In the end, that meant well over 200 pieces of clothing, she said. Nov 14, 2014 the point of the homesman, directed by tommy lee jones and based on glendon swarthouts novel of the same name, is not that these adjectives are inappropriate. 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. The screenplay by jones, kieran fitzgerald and wesley oliver is based on the 1988 novel of the same name by glendon swarthout.
I purchased the book on amazon cheaper and read it in about three sittings. 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. The storyline is quite unusual with some rather unexpected detours. 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. Tommy lee jones also stars in his second film as a director a. My old friend, elmer kelton, was about as west texas as anybody could be.
The men are helpless bystanders or ambiguous allies. Its about a bossy spinster named mary bee cuddy hilary swank who agrees to transport three mentally ill women on a monthlong trip from loupan arid nebraska territory thats suffering widespread crop. Based on a novel by glendon swarthout, the movie begins promisingly in nebraska territory in 1855, where mary bee cuddy swank is, despite being a single woman, doing the job of a proper homesman. Hailed as a feminist western by some, the homesman only is up to a point. This book, the homesman, caught my eye at costco because of the cover. 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 women are objectified and trivialised.
The film stars jones and hilary swank and also features meryl streep, grace gummer, miranda otto, hailee steinfeld, john lithgow, and james spader. Set on the great plains in the mid1800s, the homesman aims for a story thats poignant and told sparely. The sharp contrasts between western frontier and eastern civilisation nicely point towards the ending of a brief romantic era. As previously mentioned, the homesman has been released on dvd and bluray in france, yesterday. 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. The western drama, directed by tommy lee jones and starring jones, hilary swank, james spader, john lithgow and meryl streep in a cameo performance, had its world premiere at the cannes film festival this spring and released french theaters shortly after hence the early home media release. The first two acts of the homesman are as ungainly and interesting as its main characters. They scream, thrash, and moan, and one cuts herself with a needle. The ending of no country for old men finally explained. A claim jumper and a pioneer woman team up to escort three insane women from nebraska to iowa.
In the homesman, why did mary bee hang herself screenprism. 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. Lessons from tony hortons new book the big picture. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the homesman. Some of his best known novels were made into films of the same title, where the boys are, the shootist and they came to cordura. Tommy lee jones directs and stars in a new western. He was born in west texas, grew up in west texas, wrote books that were about places like west texas, and in 2009 died in west texas. May 18, 2014 the homesman is an emotionally and powerful, idearich, almost humorless story with an immense amount of humor. When three women living on the edge of the american frontier are driven mad by harsh pioneer life, the task of saving them falls to the pious.
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