Les Indomptés

On Swift Horses is a slow-burning, atmospheric drama about love, secrets, and self-discovery. The film's strength lies in its strong performances and beautiful cinematography, which capture the quiet intensity of the characters' emotions. While the pacing is deliberate and may feel too slow for some, the emotional depth and subtle storytelling make it worthwhile. It's a thoughtful film that lingers after the credits, exploring themes of longing and identity with sensitivity.

Synopsis: Muriel and her husband Lee are beginning a bright new life in California when he returns from the Korean War. But their newfound stability is upended by the arrival of Lee's charismatic brother, Julius, a wayward gambler with a secret past. A dangerous love triangle quickly forms. When Julius takes off in search of the young card cheat he's fallen for, Muriel's longing for something more propels her into a secret life of her own, gambling on racehorses and exploring a love she never dreamed possible.

Muriel (Daisy Edgar Jones) and her husband Lee (Will Poulter) are about to begin a bright new life, which is upended by the arrival of Lee's brother Julius (Jacob Elordi). Muriel embarks on a secret life, gambling on racehorses and discovering a love she never thought possible.

I think the film is trying to say that none of us know what we want, until we lose what we don't want, and find what we do. But I could be wrong because this tedious film doesn't actually seem to have a point.

It's nicely filmed, but so slow I was getting quite frustrated at things not happening, and when they did they made no sense. I honestly think it is nothing more than a titillating film with men on men sex, women on women sex and plenty of boobs, camel toe and men in white underpants.

There's no real flow at all and no real storyline; it's empty and boring. Will Poulter is great but apart from him there's not much decent acting going on. It was laborious to get through to the end so I give it a 4 and that's being incredibly generous.

I am a big fan of Edgar-Jones and desperately wanted to love this film. I saw the film at SXSW in the beautiful Paramount theater with Edgar-Jones appearing on stage with several of the other actors. She is the producer of the film.

I found the story very disjointed and the overall flow of the film fighting against itself. Yes it is super glossy with beautiful actors across the entire cast so great eye candy but for myself uninspiring acting.

So what is the point of the story here? Is it we keep secrets or one needs to follow their own path? Honestly the end of the film was a complete let down and was thinking riding horse into the sunset was a final joke.

USA FILM FESTIVAL Greetings again from the darkness. One need only watch a couple of episodes of "Leave it to Beaver" to comprehend just how ideal and perfect family life in the 1950's was. Only that was a Hollywood façade and real life was much different, especially for anyone who wasn't a straight white male ... and even many of those served in the military during the Korean War and/or faced the pressure of being the sole breadwinner. Daniel Minahan (known mostly for his TV work) directs the screenplay from Bryan Kass (LIZZIE, 2018) who adapted the 2019 novel from Shannon Pufahl.

Daisy Edgar-Jones (TWISTERS, 2024) stars as Muriel, a young woman who reluctantly accepts the wedding proposal from Lee (Will Poulter, DEATH OF A UNICORN, 2025; MIDSOMMAR, 2019). In keeping with the times, Lee assumes his dreams of a new house in the growing suburbs of California are shared by his new partner ... so he's a bit annoyed by her reluctance to sell her childhood Kansas house she inherited from her recently deceased mother. A third wheel pops up in the form of Lee's rudderless younger brother Julius (Jacob Elordi, PRISCILLA, 2023), who has recently been discharged from the Navy.

An intriguing connection forms between Muriel and Julius, and it continues playing out through the entirety of the story. While Lee strives for the traditional American dream, Julius and Muriel separately maneuver through their own internal emotions that don't easily slide into the life respectable folks are expected to follow. Both have a bit of hustler in them as Muriel uses her alert ears during shifts as a diner waitress to pick up tips on the next horse race, while Julius capitalizes on his casino surveillance job - one that brings him money and love.

Two excellent supporting roles are courtesy of Diego Calva (BABYLON, 2022) and Sasha Calle (THE FLASH, 2023). To disclose specifics would be to reveal spoilers that I refuse to serve up. What I can say is the story takes us from Kansas to California to Las Vegas to Tijuana. Along the way, we witness the challenges faced by those out of step with society. We see the deceits required as these characters walk the line between what's expected and the path to follow their own dreams. It can be heartbreaking and frustrating, and Minahan's film expertly shoots down the façade of the perfect 50's. The acting is superb, with Daisy Edgar-Jones seamlessly capturing the look of the era, while Jacob Elordi beautifully fulfills the more difficult role. This is a film for those who appreciate climbing inside the characters to understand their longing.

Now playing in theaters.

Be prepared for a lot of butts...both human and cigarettes.

Here's my 2nd "Mystery Movie" (or as AMC calls it, "Screen Unseen.") All I knew was the Rating (R) and length. My guess was "Sinners." Wrong. My friend's guess, and he's almost ALWAYS right, was "The Accountant 2." Also, wrong. In fact, neither of us could be FURTHER from what this movie was.

And I bet this was a very, very big surprise to the almost-packed audience. I had to not-so-secretly smile to all the heterosexuals in the audience who would've never paid to see a LGBTQ+ period piece melodrama...in their lives.

As stated, this movie takes place in the 1950s and explores an unconventional love triangle. Two brothers, two Korean War veterans couldn't be further apart, but still love each other. In-between is one of the brother's wife. All three have dreams...and two of which were really hard to come by with 1950s homophobia.

I liked the movie, there's really nothing wrong here. I like that there were two heartbreaking leads vs. The typical one. The acting was fine and the stakes were real. Was it anywhere close to the similar Brokeback Mountain?

Absolutely not. Not even in the same league. But, it's a good update to how homosexuals struggled in the 1950s. I can't even imagine what it was like then. I will forever salute the brave men, women and everyone who stood up to homophobia to make it easier - no, 1000x easier for future generations.

I don't suspect so, but it would be interesting to see if this gets any award buzz next Awards season. Maybe I'll have to revisit this and see something different. For right now: I did like it, I didn't love it and I didn't regret seeing it.

***

Final Thoughts: I do love to go into a movie cold. Not knowing much about it, other than the title, usually at least one of the leads, maybe genre/subgenre and a recommendation. This is by far, the coldest I've ever experienced. I never once heard of this movie, the background or absolutely anything. In fact, I was worried I wouldn't remember the title since I never heard of this before to write this review. Well, I finally got my #1 wish...to be completely frozen over.