Review of The Homesman (2014) by João Miguel R — 04 Mar 2015

Tommy Lee Jones is (in my opinion) one of America's greatest living actors, and brings a certain gravitas and humor to whatever he does. Aside from his acting he has also directed a few films as well, and THE HOMESMAN is his latest directorial effort (he also stars).

I suppose you could classify this film as a Western, but it really doesn't cover the material you would expect from the genre. Instead you have a woman, Mary Bee Cuddy (Hilary Swank), who volunteers to take three mentally broken women back East where they can be given better care.

Along the way she frees a claim jumper, George Briggs (Tommy Lee Jones), who she enlists to help her on her journey. What follows is quite possibly one of the weirdest, but strangely compelling, Westerns I've had the pleasure of seeing.

The first thing that should be noted is the unconventional plot structure. Yes there is a clear beginning and an endgame, but instead of relying on the usual devices or story beats, the film takes a number of twists and turns which propel the story along.

What this film seems to be primarily interested in is the toll that life in the West took on people, particularly women. Not only do you have three women who couldn't handle life in the frontier territories, but you also have the central female character who has a problem because no one will marry her.

Described by others as "plain" and "bossy," this journey is able to give her a purpose since life seems to have passed her by in every other regard. And, given the time period, being an old maid wasn't exactly the best thing to be.

Other than that, the main draw of the film is the strange journey they embark upon. I also quite liked the painterly images that were captured, and that showed off the natural beauty of the Western landscape.

Tommy Lee Jones, like Clint Eastwood, certainly has a great eye for visuals and it shows in the beautiful cinematography. One thing I didn't expect, but was a pleasant surprise, was how funny some parts actually would be.

Tommy Lee Jones also delivers in this area as he provides some comic relief to contrast with Hilary Swank's rather serious character. The only fault I can really find with the film, and this might be a deal-breaker for some, is how slow the film is at times.

That's not to say it's boring, but there are some moments that seem to drag a little, and it isn't helped when there are long stretches with little to no dialogue. That being said, the workings of the plot are of little concern here because it is the journey, the characters and the overall mood of the picture that really count.

It's not a film I'd necessarily watch again, but I did enjoy the strange experience for the most part.