Meek's Cutoff (2010)

Settlers traveling through the Oregon desert in 1845 find themselves stranded in harsh conditions.

Director:

Kelly Reichardt

Writer:

Jonathan Raymond (screenplay) (as Jon Raymond)

Stars:

Michelle Williams, Bruce Greenwood, Paul Dano

7 wins & 14 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Michelle Williams	...	Emily Tetherow
Bruce Greenwood	...	Stephen Meek
Will Patton	...	Soloman Tetherow
Zoe Kazan	...	Millie Gately
Paul Dano	...	Thomas Gately
Shirley Henderson	...	Glory White
Neal Huff	...	William White
Tommy Nelson	...	Jimmy White
Rod Rondeaux	...	The Indian

Storyline

The year is 1845, the earliest days of the Oregon Trail, and a wagon team of three families has hired the mountain man Stephen Meek to guide them over the Cascade Mountains. Claiming to know a short cut, Meek leads the group on an unmarked path across the high plain desert, only to become lost in the dry rock and sage. Over the coming days, the emigrants must face the scourges of hunger, thirst and their own lack of faith in each other's instincts for survival. When a Native American wanderer crosses their path, the emigrants are torn between their trust in a guide who has proven himself unreliable and a man who has always been seen as the natural enemy.

---

Plot Keywords:

f rated | feminist film | blackfoot indian | bucket | cayuse indian | 

---

Genres:

Drama | Western

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some mild violent content, brief language and smoking

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 April 2011 (UK)

Also Known As:

Meek's Oregon 1845 Cutoff

Filming Locations:

Oregon, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$20,024, 10 April 2011

Gross USA:

$977,772

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,205,257

Company Credits

Production Co:

Evenstar Films, Film Science, Harmony Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Actors went through a week of Pioneer Camp.

---

Goofs

When Meek and Solomon ride off in pursuit of the Indian, Meek's hat blows off and he continues on without stopping. When the two men return some time later, with the bound Indian in tow, Meek is wearing his hat.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Jimmy White: [reading from Genesis] In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. And Adam called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living.

---

Connections

Featured in Ebert Presents: At the Movies: Episode #2.1 (2011)

---

Soundtracks

Nearer, My God, To Thee
(uncredited)
Written by Sarah F. Adams and Lowell Mason
Performed by Neal Huff

User Reviews

Beautiful non-narrative film

It is interesting reading all of these angry people here, who seem to appreciate having seen an amazing film but don't understand why it does not have a 'three act structure' or Hero's journey. If you are a fan of early Michael Haneke or even Tarkovsky (to a lesser extent), then you will like this film. It is a very gentle observational piece which takes its time to even let you hear human voices. It wants you to feel the wind on the scrub desert or to hear the bubbling of the river.

To make a film like that, especially in America where the audience is weened on cleanly prepared stories that have beginnings, middles and ends, is brave, stubborn and amazingly lucky that Kelly Reichardt was able to raise the money to make it.

Fantastic. Unique, Beautiful.

But just do not expect to be 'told' what happens next, because nothing massively important actually does. Just like life really.