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A woman is forced to leave her comfy Indiana city to go to Nebraska with her family because her husband wants to farm. She faces finding out they were scammed and there is no land, a miscarriage, widowhood after they finally find a place to settle, and holding on to the place with her children. The one false note is her playing hard-to-get with an obviously smitten neighbor who is ringing her chimes as well.

Joanna Pettet is the woman, William Shatner her husband and David Janssen the man who wants to be. If you can believe this bit of casting, Lance LeGault is a friendly neighbor and totally good guy. Helen Hunt makes her acting debut as the woman's daughter. Yes it's a feminist piece since a "pioneer feminist" is who the story revolves around, but it's not preachy and is well done.

This film was much better than I originally expected. Set in the post-Civil War era, it depicts the plight of a small family in Indiana setting out west to start a farm. "John Sergeant" (played by William Shatner) gambles everything on some land in Nebraska in the hope for a brand-new life. His wife, "Maggie Sergeant" (Joanna Pettet) is reluctant to leave but does the best she can to support her husband. Along the way out west, they encounter hardship and disappointment which this film displays in a very realistic manner. And while William Shatner gives a decent performance, it is Joanna Pettet who is the real star of this picture as her acting was first-rate. David Janssen (as "Robert Douglas") is also quite good playing the part of a free-range cowboy in a supporting role. The weaknesses in this movie are few, but if I had to list one it would probably be that the ending could have been drawn out a bit more. All things considered though, there are plenty of westerns which have a great deal more violence and action than this particular film. But if you're looking for a movie that is fresh and genuine then this is a fine candidate, especially for family viewing.

I've always thought of Joanna Pettet as one of the most beautiful and glamorous women of the big screen and small in the latter half of the last century. So it's a pleasant surprise that in Pioneer Woman Pettet ditches the glamor and becomes a hard working Pioneer Woman who salvages her husband's dream of going west.

She faces some real problems as she and husband William Shatner sell all they have in Indiana move west on land Shatner bought from the railroad. Shatner does this unilaterally without consulting Pettet, in those days that is how it was done.

First Shatner gets uprooted from his land by some brothers who've been working it for seven years now. Then he's killed homesteading new land in Wyoming territory.

Pettet makes some critical choices for herself and kids Helen Hunt and Russell Baer. Hard work, a little luck and an understanding an hunky neighbor in rancher David Janssen make her believe that staying might be the best idea.

Pioneer Woman is a sober assessment of what pioneer life was like on the American frontier. Even without Indian wars it was still a rugged existence especially for a woman.

Pettet shows she has the right stuff. In fact this G rated film is actually quite the feminist manifesto.

A great film for family and feminist audiences if you can believe that.

It's pretty clear that "Pioneer Woman" was actually a pilot for a proposed series. Probably it was for the best it wasn't picked up, because there aren't any signs that this would have been especially engaging or surprising. It does get some historical details more exact than a lot of other westerns - for example, it's correct in showing that covered wagons used oxen for the most part and not horses, and that settlers often built houses with sod instead of logs. As well, the first half of the movie gives plenty of entertainment thanks to William Shatner, because he gives one of his hammier performances.

Like most seventies TV movies it wears a general air of PG sanitization that is quite resistible, especially when compared to grittier, more hard hitting Westerns in theatres at the time, like "Will Penny", "McCabe And Mrs. Miller" and, of course, anything by Peckinpah. It feels like something that would have been shown in a mid 1970s, eleventh grade U. S. History class following the unit on The Westward Movement; that is, if you had a semi cool teacher.

As a result of the above censoriousness, with one or two exceptions, like the scene where the title character is forced into a premature abortion by the cruelty and venality of her fellow homesteaders, there are no scenes that have much of an impact. Two in particular, the death of Mrs. Sergeant's husband (played way too broadly by Capt. Kirk) and the prairie fire, are remarkably bland and forgettable. Buzz Kulik, at his best, say in "Warning Shot" and "Yellow Canary", is a fine action director but you wouldn't know it from this too polite look at the hardships of farmsteaders in the West. It is all summed up, for me, in the performance and look of Joanna Pettet, with her well modulated tones, perfectly coifed hair, and duds that look like they came out of the J. Peterman catalog. Especially that oh so cute Army Hat. Give me any of the lonely Kansas farm wives in any random episode of "Gunsmoke", instead. C plus.

PS...Best performance is turned in by Helen Hunt who, at age 10, not only acts rings around everyone else in the cast but, in the process, really exposes the lousy kid actor who plays her brother.

I recently watched Pioneer Woman (1973) on Prime. The storyline follows a family heading west after the father acquires land he hopes to settle and use to start a new life. But once they arrive, they're met with hostility, and the father is killed-leaving the mother to decide whether to continue pursuing their dream or return back East with her daughter.

Directed by Buzz Kulik (Brian's Song), the film stars Joanna Pettet (Casino Royale), William Shatner (Star Trek), Helen Hunt (Twister), and David Janssen (The Green Berets).

This is a surprisingly fun western with a distinct grindhouse feel in many ways. The female-led revenge plot feels like something right out of that genre. Seeing Shatner take a brutal beatdown caught me off guard-it was tough to watch. The film's setup is strong and feels grounded in the real challenges of the era. The backdrops, sets, props, and period-accurate attire all help pull you into the world.

There's a lot to appreciate here for anyone looking for a different kind of western-especially one with a strong, resilient female lead.

In conclusion, Pioneer Woman is a fairly average film in execution, but it's also unique and gritty. I'd give it a 6/10.

I enjoyed this movie more than I thought I would.

It presents well the vulnerability of the individual in settling the pioneering lands of vastness. Especially for a woman who has children to care for where survival is rough & tough & against the odds! I thought these insights were effectively described in the diaries of the woman attempting to farm the harsh lands amidst con-men, the well-meaning and hillsides of buffalo. But every time, it's a case of a struggle to make more steps forward, against the obstacles forcing the determined back, through natural and man-made catastrophes.

Along the way, the vastness of the raw scenery is impressive in creating a sense of the difficulties of this "pioneer woman" and those around her. Well worth a look!

This was an entertaining made for TV movie-something to catch in the middle of the night when insomnia hits. I won't provide a synopsis as there are several written but I would like to suggest that anyone with an interest in movies about Pioneer Women seek out "Heartland" with Rip Torn and Conchata Farrell. Ms Farrell's portrays a widowed mother in 1910 who sets across the country in answer to an Ad to become a housekeeper with the eventual dream of owning her own homestead. The movie is much more realistic than "Pioneer Woman" and is based on the letters of Elinore Pruitt Stewart collected in Letters of a Woman Homesteader. The movie truly shows the harsh reality these women faced and Ms. Farrell, with her larger stature is better suited to this role than the delicate, pretty Ms Pettet.

I just watched this movie on Starz and was riveted when I saw Shatner in it. His best scene came when David Janssen brought him back on horseback "dead" after a rain storm / landslide or something killed him. Did you see how still he lay on that horseback?

Not a whimper or a word out of 'im. God, he plays a dead man so well ! This movie was a complete waste of film. They should have just burned it in the brush fire toward the end of the movie. Horrible !

Acting sucked all around. Only the beautiful eyes of Joanna Pettet kept me watching. Beam me out of here ! The Western movie will never be the same.

For long years, the idea of the "TV movie" has portended a level of artifice unbecoming of actors, and ill-suited for the big screen. I'm not going to say that 'Pioneer woman' is perfect, because it's not; there's undeniable ham-handedness about the production in no small part, especially nearer the beginning. To my pleasure, however, it's more enjoyable than not, with writing and direction just suitable enough to give the cast a slight opportunity to demonstrate their skills - while earning a nice little paycheck. Though certainly marked by a measure of kitsch, William Shatner gives an admirable performance as prideful John Sergeant, commendably restrained and emotive compared to his most bombastic displays. It's quite worth noting that Helen Hunt makes her debut as young Sarah, only 10 years old when the feature premiered. And I appreciate Joanna Pettet's turn as protagonist Maggie, a role that allows her so show even in this context her range, nuance, and potential as a leading lady.

It's a pretty straightforward narrative here - dialogue and characters are adequate as they are written; scene writing is strong enough to help complete the story, give the actors room to work, and keep us invested. More than anything 'Pioneer woman' represents a portrait of the hardship of western expansion and the settler life - disputes, unpredictable conditions and turns, scarcity, endless hard work. It's a fairly solid period piece, replete with great care for costume design, set design and decoration, props, and depictions of the wide, open spaces that are all to easy to overlook in our modern busy lives. All the while, there are also consistent themes including pride, the meaning of home, men's selfishness (a notion that, let's face it, requires little actual acting from Shatner), the importance of community - and, one must note, touches of casual racism, and sexism as reflected in predominant patriarchy.

Suzanne Clauser's screenplay surprises for how good it is, and Buzz Kulik's direction, and the production design broadly. This picture is hardly a revelation, but honestly, it's much better than it has any right to be. I began watching with mixed expectations at best, and find that I am pleasantly satisfied with the result. I don't think there's any reason to go out of your way to watch this, but 'Pioneer woman' is an enjoyable, engaging movie if you come across it - and to my delight, not at all a bad way to spend 75 minutes.

Pioneer Woman (1973) was one of those movies that endlessly played on cable and late night T.V. during the mid to late 80's (god I miss those days). It was real cheesy and extremely hokey ( I like 'em like that) and it showcases the talents of one of my favorite cheese actors William Shatner (he sure made a lot of these movies). His mugging and posturing in front of the camera has to be seen to be believed. A brief synopsis, a family of homesteaders move out into the wild. wild, west and encounter more than they bargain for.

Harmless fun for all ages. If it ever comes on the idiot box watch it but I wouldn't go out of my way to get a copy.

C+

This seems to be a loose adaptation of "A Lantern In Her Hand" by Bess Streeter Aldrich - a young pioneer woman named Maggie toughs it out with her children in Nebraska, survives prairie life, lives to see a thriving state. If you enjoyed this movie, you'll love the book.

Otherwise, the movie has all the check marks of a 1970's movie - with Helen Hunt in her first credited roll! Nice plot, insert panic moments, love, hardships, and the rest. Joanna Pettet makes a believable pioneer woman with a nod to William Shatner, out of his stereotyped space cowboy role. Also nice to see David Janssen in this lightweight drama.