Homestead

Decent movie if it was a movie. Just so everyone is aware before they go spend money to see this. It is basically the first two episodes to their show. A show that is only available on their app that also requires a monthly a subscription. This is either genius or stupid. For someone like myself that does not like shows because I cannot commit the time I feel totally ripped off. If you watch the movie and don't subscribe to continue the show you are basically left completely hanging at the end of the "movie" overall it was ok. Just feel they may have a better response if they were more clear on what this actually was.

Having a guilty pleasure for what read as the "darker" element of the genre, checked it out.

The cinematography just brought back the 70s westerns that I grew up watching almost immediately, so settled in. Like most westerns, the antagonist is usual prevalent in the onset. Solid enough acting on all fronts, but what felt like it might head in the direction of interest...it plods along with very limited content, and even more limited expansiveness. Even the scenery, which can elevate these films, fell flat.

It's basically a broken family, a cabin, and some bad dudes out for revenge. That's it. Where some take this next level, the more recent (and pretty excellent) "Old Henry" excelled in bringing forth that classic feel...The Homestead just spins it's tires for the better part of an hour filled with unspectacular series of missed opportunities. I found it reminded me of a made for television (are these still a thing?) film. Very short, very uneventful, short on captivating violence that comes with even the most modern of the genre, and certainly mislabeled along the way as "horror", which confused me about the half way point, as the violence was pretty tame throughout. I can handle crossover appeal with the implied supernatural elements entwined with western films (High Plains Drifter) and horror element (Bone Tomahawk), this was more comparable to a Little House on the Prarie reinterpretation.

What comes is a very predictably boring run into the third act and an anticlimatic finish. Nothing stood out as anything more than mediocrity and a dud of a film.

Right, well without ever having heard about this 2023 Western titled "Homestead", I opted to sit down and watch it, as I had the opportunity to do so. I must admit that the movie's synopsis sounded interesting enough.

However, writer and director Ehrland Hollingsworth delivered a very bland and generic Western, one that was without much of any thrills, excitement or even a thoroughly thought through storyline. The narrative in "Homestead" was so simplistic that you could leave the movie for a long time and come back and still be up to speed with the events in the narrative. It was that bland, slow paced and monotonous.

The cast in the movie was fair enough. I mean, you're not in for any grand award-winning performances, and the only familiar face was Brian Krause. But given the severe limitations imposed upon them by an inferior script, then the actors and actresses faired well enough.

"Homestead" looked like a Western movie, but just lacked a drive and a proper storyline, and that made sitting through 79 minutes of this movie quite the ordeal. I doubt that even the most hardcore of Western fans will get much of a buzz out of watching writer and director Ehrland Hollingsworth's 2023 movie "Homestead".

The movie's cover had the movie set up for way more than what writer and director Ehrland Hollingsworth could manage to deliver. In fact, the movie's cover was actually the best part about the entire ordeal, sadly so.

My rating of "Homestead" lands on a three out of ten stars.

I was expecting a decent western flick. The story had promise but there was so much missing. The acting was decent and some of the dialog was well written. What ruined it was all the missing ingredients for a decent western. Using a brass frames pietta 1958 Remington black powder pistol was a big sin. Remington never made brass framed pistols, Those are cheap replicas made today. Pa stated he had a heifer and was waiting for a bull to start breeding. Where did the heifer stay? All they had was a one room shack with a good electrical service as the lighting was poor and too bright. No corral, barn, of any kind for animals, Not even a single horse in the whole movie. There was too much un-needed conversations that drug on forever.

This is not a movie. It's the first episode of a TV show. DO NOT waste your money going to see this. I wouldn't watch this even on a free service like Pluto TV.

The storyline started out interesting but at every turn it went the wrong direction. The dialogue and acting are also terrible.

There were audience members that left half way through the show. It's absolutely terrible. I've never said anything like this before about a movie. I seriously want my money back.

And at the end they ask you to scan a QR code to buy someone else a ticket. The only way I'd scan that QR code is for a refund. Hollywood just scammed me.