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THE HOMESMAN

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(Dark, poignant 1850’s western)

There’s nothing like a good ole Western!

And there’s nothing quite like “The Homesman,” the dark, poignant tale of the harsh Nebraska Territory and the tough life it offered its people back in the 1850s.

Hilary Swank gives an Oscar-worthy performance as Mary Bee Cuddy, a “plain and bossy” spinster working her farm and searching for a man to share her life. She accepts the challenge of transporting three “crazy” farmer’s wives to Iowa, where they can be properly cared for. We get a brief look at their impossible situations, and it is downright bleak, shocking and depressing.

As Mary Bee prepares for her difficult journey she comes across and saves a man about to be hanged for claim-jumping. Her conditions are to the point. She will cut him down if he agrees to help her bring the women to the safe haven. 

Tommy Lee Jones, who also directed the two-hour saga, plays a grungy old guy with a touch of humor and a fear of being trusted. He makes up the name of George Briggs and reluctantly helps Mary Bee take care of her charges, who are tied up inside a locked wagon.

They encounter Indians, thieves, cold weather, attempted escapes and other challenges along the way, as Mary Bee and George begin to slowly accept each other’s ornery ways.

Mary Bee has a tenderness below her hard exterior and will occasionally stop to smell the roses (if she could find one in this god-forsaken, barren land). George has a kinder side to him, but it ain’t easy to bring to the surface.

As they near the end of their journey, a tragedy occurs, but the journey must continue.

That’s all we’ll tell you, except to say that there are many messages in this metaphoric tale that may be passed off as a downer, but beneath it all shows the strength of the human spirit. It is tough to watch at times, but we couldn’t keep our eyes off the screen. It is like nothing we have ever seen before.

As good as Swank and Jones are, they get incredible performances from their three charges, in addition to cameo appearances by John Lithgow, James Spader and Meryl Streep. “The Homesman” is one of our favorite movies of the year.

Rated R for some violence, sex, nudity, cussin’ and a couple of difficult scenes to watch.

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