My mother was born in a sod house on the prairie of North Dakota and my grandmother was the town mid-wife and abortionist. Homesteading was hard and demanding and Tommy Lee Jones has captured the the gut-level struggle that came with 160 acres and the nearest neighbor five or ten miles away. It drove those without an iron will to insanity. If you are looking for a shoot-um-up western, this is NOT it, but if you love the history of the frontier, and want to get a feel for its tragedy and day to day fight for survival, this is a great movie. Beautifully filmed, expertly acted, wonderfully scripted, I could not have asked for more. I have never liked Hillary Swank, but this was an incredible performance. Tommy Lee Jones was his beautifully curmudgeoned self. I especially liked the accurate use of period firearms and I will not quibble over the availability of 1851 36 caliber paper cartridges in end of the earth Nebraska Territory nor Ms Swank having a wardrobe of new dresses through out the film. The film accurately captured the ethos of the western prairie and gave me a look and a feel into my own grandparents. Thank you Tommy Lee Jones for a classic.
Review of The Homesman
