The Homesman

Set in the Nebraska Territory in the 1850s, The Homesman follows Mary Bee Cuddy, a single, deeply religious woman living a hard and isolated life on the frontier. When three local pioneer women lose their minds under the strain of that existence, she is given the task of taking them east to Iowa, where a Methodist community has agreed to care for them. The journey requires a man's help, so Mary Bee rescues a drifter and outlaw named George Briggs from near death and hires him to accompany the wagon.

Tommy Lee Jones directed the film, his third feature after The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada and The Sunset Limited, and he also co-wrote the screenplay and appears as Briggs. Hilary Swank plays Mary Bee, with Grace Gummer, Miranda Otto and Sonja Richter as the three women, and Tim Blake Nelson among the supporting cast.

Released in 2014, the film is a co-production between the United States and France, produced in part by Luc Besson. Made for about 16 million dollars, it earned roughly 3 million dollars worldwide, a small return relative to its cost. On TMDB it holds a rating of 6.5 out of 10 from over 900 votes, while a critics' rating of 7 out of 10 from 155 reviews places it somewhat higher than the audience score.