Bullet Points: Homestead
If I had to guess why there has seemingly been an uptick of Westerns lately, I would say it’s all about the money. Westerns allow independent, modestly budgeted films to go back to basics. There’s no need for car chases, massive firefights or over the top set pieces that eat up budgets.
The latest Western to come across my desk, is 2023’s Homestead, directed by Ehrland Hollingsworth…
- Dead Eye: The movie begins with Robert (Brian Krause) taking in a little target practice with his step children Brian and Irene. Brian is struggling, but Irene is a natural opting not to go for the stationary targets and instead shoots a rabbit right through the eye! Irene (played by Betsy Sligh) is easily the most unique character in the entire movie… not only is she a good shot, she also isn’t afraid to shoot off her mouth. Irene does not keep it a secret that she wants to use her marksmanship abilities to kill a bandit and one day, her deadbeat biological father. She’ll soon have her chance to make one of those dreams come true….
- The Past Comes Back: It turns out that Robert was once a part of a murderous gang of bandits. Robert stole some of the gang’s ill-gotten money so he could start a new life and that’s exactly what he did. After leaving the gang, Robert met single mother, Beth, and the two married. Robert then got some land, built them a house and had big plans to start a ranch… that is until his former bandit buddies track him down. The bandits include Big Ben, Bad Luck Enoch, Peter the Apostle, Robert’s replacement Jonathan and Lewis (played by WWE Hall of Famer Dallas Page). Beth, Brian and Irene find themselves tied up and used as leverage to force Robert to give them back the money he took from them.
- The Big Bad: Now the leader of the bandits is the creepy Ezekiel (played by Scot Scurlock. Ezekiel personally recruited each member and is an almost god like figure to them… so you can imagine a guy with that sort of complex is probably not going to let Robert just give him his money back and let things end there. Ezekiel is looking to unleash his wrath on the man who betrayed him and his guilty by association family. The majority of Homestead is tension filled (some might say harrowing) with Ezekiel and his bandits menacing Robert and his family with each member of the family doing their part to fight back.
The Verdict: If you are looking for an off the rails, rootin’ tootin’ Western, Homestead is not going to appease you. Instead, Homestead takes the slow burn storytelling approach, with the peril escalating as the movie plays out. Brian Krause gives the movie a little star power and is easy to empathize with as a man looking to right the wrongs from his past… The two MVPs of the movie are Scot Scurlock’s Ezekiel, who comes across like the devil himself on screen and Betsy Sligh’s Irene, who has a swagger and confidence you would not expect. Her bravado was such that I actually believed this young girl could take out her much bigger and experienced foes… Special acknowledgement to Dallas Page (DDP for those in the know). As someone who first saw Dallas back in 1988 on ESPN when he was a manager in Verne Gagne’s American Wrestling Association, it’s almost surreal to see him playing a bandit in a Western in 2023. At the same time, it is not surprising as Page is noted for his ambition and making things happen for himself, inside and outside the wrestling business.
