Review of The Homesman (2014) by Greg W — 01 Sep 2015

Depressing film with little emotional payoff by the end. I can appreciate Swank's acting, and the rarely touched on topics of the old west (the brutality, the sense of community, the important role the church played, and prairie fever), but the plot twist mid-movie with Swank committing suicide didn't make a lot of sense and it went downhill from there.

I did understand some points the film was trying to convey - survival of the fittest (if it doesn't make you crazy it makes you stronger), the emotional detachment Jones' character needed to keep chugging along in his aimless life, and the importance of life needing to go on for most pioneers.

But there were too many issues to make it a truly great movie.