Jewell and Gil are farmers. They seem to be working against the odds, producing no financial surplus. Gil has lost hope of ever becoming prosperous, but Jewell decides to fight for her family.
Acting
Lange's volcanic desperation; Shepard's crumbling stoicism.
Cinematography
Golden hour Iowa fields that mock the family's desperation.
Direction
Pearce's documentary background makes poverty viscerally real.
Director
Richard Pearce
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Lange bought the rights to the true story herself after reading it in Life magazine, then battled studio executives who wanted to fire director Pearce.
Released during the 1980s farm crisis, it was criticized as 'depressing'—then ignored by Oscar voters who preferred Sally Field's flashier rural turn in 'Places in the Heart.'
US
