SummaryTwo estranged siblings (Haley Lu Richardson, Owen Teague) return home to the sprawling ranch they once knew and loved, confronting a deep and bitter family legacy against a mythic American backdrop.
Directed By:Scott McGehee, David Siegel
Written By:Mike Spreter, Scott McGehee, David Siegel
Montana Story
Metascore
Generally Favorable
73
User score
Generally Favorable
6.5
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Metascore
Generally Favorable
91% Positive
20 Reviews
20 Reviews
9% Mixed
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Sep 13, 2021
100
Thanks to the specificity of Richardson’s performance in particular and Giles Nuttgen’s gorgeous cinematography (the movie is shot on 35 mm), Montana Story evokes a grandiose style of American frontier filmmaking, somewhere between John Ford and Kelly Reichardt. See it on the largest screen you can find.
May 18, 2022
80
Montana Story is a personal film, a small story told under the Big Sky. Those skies can make any story feel epic in scope — they frame tales as mythology in a way. But in Scott McGehee and David Siegel’s film (they wrote and direct), those same skies are so grand and far-reaching they can make you lose your perspective.
User score
Generally Favorable
60% Positive
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
30% Mixed
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
10% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
May 19, 2022
10
This movie is one of my favorites in a long time. It starts out slow, and builds one little bit at a time. And each piece lays on top of the last so delicately, but all the while you have this uneasy feeling, like tension building. It is so cleverly done, and feels very confident in the way it sets things up. In some ways, it can feel old-fashioned, like movies used to be. It's built on character and relationships and history and unspoken secrets. And it all plays out in a Montana landscape that is just breathtaking, and beautifully captured by the cinematographer. The side characters are all very interesting and strong, not throw-away characters, but people who have interesting stories, too. And I LOVE movies about horses. I definitely recommend this movie to anyone who loves movies, or horses, or Montana or the American West. And Haley Lu Richardson should win awards for her performance. I think she steals the show.
Sep 17, 2021
80
This is a minor-key modern Western whose melancholy probe into the bruising past gives way, in a quietly satisfying conclusion, to the hope of reconciliation, even healing.
May 23, 2022
75
It moves, makes us care and involves us in the genuine drama of two young people trying to heal themselves. The austere beauty of the locations doesn’t hurt either.
May 17, 2022
70
The interactions between the people may seem small in comparison to the wide-open landscapes and rolling hills. In the hands of everyone involved with this moving drama, however, they echo long and loudly nonetheless.
Sep 17, 2021
67
It’s a subtle and poignant performance that makes you eager for Richardson to have an even bigger spotlight in he next endeavor.
May 12, 2022
50
The film is initially distinguished by its poetic understatement, only for it to eventually succumb to staleness.
Jun 2, 2022
6
Montana Story is an indie film that seems conventional in every way from the start and that's a good and bad thing at the same time. It has quality craftsmanship. I can't say anything negative about it. The film is pretty well made overall.
However, to what extent can we appreciate a recycling of ideas that risks absolutely nothing? Montana Story is a movie made to show off the actors work. Especially Haley Lu Richardson, who delivers a strong performance.
The problem is that her good work is inside a film that goes nowhere. Yes, I repeat, the quality is good, but its entire course since its beginning has been more than defined.
It's so predictable that it doesn't provoke any real emotion and therefore leaves no memorable impression. The only conclusion the film's plot offers is redemption and you know after the first 10 minutes and I'm telling you, this film doesn't try anything new.
What would have been truly interesting and challenging is if it had tried something else. I can tell anyone that it's worth a look, but also understanding that this sort of drama has been seen too many times before.
Production Company:
- Big Creek Projects
Release Date:May 13, 2022
Duration:1 h 53 m
Rating:R
Awards
Toronto International Film Festival
• 1 Nomination
Cleveland International Film Festival
• 1 Nomination
Deauville Film Festival
• 1 Nomination
