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This movie is hard to find, so I recently paid top dollar on ebay for a nice-condition VHS version. Diane Lane and Helen Hunt play young teen girls who grow up resigned to be victims of a patriarchal, nominally Christian, polygamist group of separatists in the 1950's West. This is a great set-up for a richly textured melodrama with interesting characters on all sides-- patriarchs, rebels-in-the-'cult', unwitting/resigned victims of the cult, even law enforcement. Unfortunately, what we get is all these types of characters painted with the broadest possible strokes and given the most Hollywood of motivations for every action. That polygamy is unacceptable is never questioned as a premise. I agree- it need not be. But the cult is portrayed quite clearly as being abnormal primarily because of their faith, not just their polygamist tradition. By not-so-subtle analogy, any person of faith whose way of life impinges on personal 'freedom' (i.e.: reckless pleasure seeking) is a totalitarian mind-control demon. When characters wish to speak out against the 'system' in this film, they never take an informed Christian standpoint against polygamy that would stress personal responsibility and what Biblical manhood and womanhood really is. Rather, they take the tired 'follow your heart/follow your dreams' line that Hollywood thinks never gets old. The performances and basic plotlines are all very watchable, I just wish the script had aimed a little deeper-- more at the intellect and less at the heart. This film begs for a remake. I say an effective casting would be Evan Rachel Wood (Thirteen), Kristen Stewart (Panic Room), Megan Burns (28 Days Later), and Scarlett Johansson as some of the young sister-wives and Tom Wilkinson, Chris Cooper, and Brendan Gleeson as some of the patriarchs. Throw in whatever 16-20 year old actor is currently bankable to be your rebel youngster who wants to keep his favorite young girl out of the bed of his patriarch father.
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