For his second big screen directorial effort, Tommy Lee Jones is firmly in Western territory, producing, writing, directing and co-starring in The Homesman with Hilary Swank. The first trailer has now arrived.
The drama finds Swank as Mary Bee Cuddy, a staunchly independent pioneer woman who has taken on the job of shepherding three mentally unstable women from Nebraska to Iowa. Between them and their destination lies miles of rough terrain, natural barriers and swarms of threats from unfriendly wagon trains to bandits and Native American tribes that prey on unwary travellers.
To help in her mission, Cuddy enlists the help of George Briggs, a claim jumper she meets when he’s been sentenced to hang. Convincing him to journey with her, the pair sets out on their perilous task.
Jones has secured the services of some great actors here besides Swank, with the likes of Meryl Streep, Hailee Steinfeld, Jesse Plemons, Tim Blake Nelson, William Fichtner, John Lithgow, Miranda Otto and James Spader all aboard. With Luc Besson’s EuropaCorp providing the distribution funds, The Homesman will hit the States in limited release on October 3 after a festival run that includes Cannes, but doesn’t have a set UK date yet.