Meek's Cutoff

For the historical wagon road, see Meek Cutoff.

Meek's Cutoff
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Kelly Reichardt
Produced by	Elizabeth Cuthrell Neil Kopp Anish Savjani David Urrutia
Written by	Jonathan Raymond
Starring	Michelle Williams Paul Dano Bruce Greenwood Shirley Henderson Neal Huff Zoe Kazan Tommy Nelson Will Patton
Music by	Jeff Grace
Cinematography	Chris Blauvelt
Editing by	Kelly Reichardt
Studio	Evenstar Films Film Science Harmony Productions Primitive Nerd
Distributed by	Oscilloscope Pictures
Release date(s)	September 4, 2010 (2010-09-04) (Venice) April 8, 2011 (2011-04-08) (United States)
Running time	104 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Meek's Cutoff is a 2010 western film directed by Kelly Reichardt. The film was shown in competition at the 67th Venice International Film Festival.^[1] The story is based on a historical incident on the Oregon Trail in 1845, in which frontier guide Stephen Meek led a wagon train on an ill-fated journey through the Oregon desert to find the route known as the Meek Cutoff.

Cast

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

Synopsis

In 1845, a small band of settlers traveling across the Oregon High Desert suspect their guide, Stephen Meek, may not actually know where he is going. What was supposed to be a two-week journey has stretched into five. With no end in sight, tensions rise as water becomes increasingly scarce and supplies run low. The wives look on as the husbands discuss what to do, unable to participate in the decision making. The dynamics of power begins to shift when they capture a lone Indian and hold him captive so he may lead them to water. Questions plague the settlers as they press on with dwindling resources: Should they trust Meek? Will the Indian lead them to water or a trap? Are there others following them? How much longer can they survive?

Critical reception

Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 85% based on reviews from 108 critics and reports a rating average of 7.5 out of 10, a generally positive reception. It reported the overall consensus, "Moving at a contemplative speed unseen in most westerns, Meek's Cutoff is an effective, intense journey of terror and survival in the untamed frontier."^[2] At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film received an average score of 85 based on 36 reviews.^[3]

References

1. ^ "Venezia 67". labiennale.org. 2010-07-29. http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/festival/lineup/off-sel/venezia67/. Retrieved 2010-07-29. 
2. ^ "Meek's Cutoff". Rotten Tomatoes. http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/meeks_cutoff/. Retrieved July 5, 2011. 
3. ^ "Meek's Cutoff". Metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/movie/meeks-cutoff. Retrieved July 5, 2011. 

External links

• Official website
• Meek's Cutoff at the Internet Movie Database
• Meek's Cutoff at AllRovi
• Meek's Cutoff at Box Office Mojo
• Meek's Cutoff at Metacritic
• Meek's Cutoff at Rotten Tomatoes