Tommy Lee Jones presented his newest feature The Homesman at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival on Sunday, May 18, receiving positive reviews as part of the esteemed In Competition films.

'The Homesman' Earns Good Reviews

The Homesman follows pioneer woman Mary Bee Cuddy (Hilary Swank) as she journeys east with three women driven mad to get them to the care of a minister’s wife, played by Meryl Streep. Along her journey, Mary partners up with a downtrodden claim jumper, George Briggs (Tommy Lee Jones).

Jones’ film has received very positive reviews, particularly for it’s strong female lead, a rarity in Hollywood.

“The movie looks at what life was like for women on the Plains in the early West. That’s not something we’ve seen often on film. Life was pretty tough on women, but that wasn’t really a discovery. But it was something we scrutinized rather closely. It was very difficult for these women to be on the cutting edge of the frontier,” Jones said of the film, which he co-wrote.

During the press conference, Jones revealed that he was interested in exploring the history of sexism and gender biases in The Homesman.

“I don’t think there’s a woman in this room that has never felt objectified or trivialized because of her gender. There’s a reason for that, there’s a history of that and I think that’s an interesting thing,” Jones said.

Jones Defends Portrayal Of Native Americans

Jones seemed less concerned with how the film would portray Native Americans. In The Homesman, Native Americans, specifically a Pawnee group, are presented as potential killers and a threat to Mary Bee Cuddy and George Briggs, a narrative often found in traditional Western films. Many critics worried about the film’s portrayal of Native Americans, something Jones dismissed.

When questioned at the press conference for the film, Jones said that he didn’t worry about his film being controversial in any way, saying that the costumes designed for the Native American actors were very thoroughly researched.

“I am not ashamed of the fact that they [the Pawnee] are considered by our characters to be potentially homicidal. We are not bending the truth at all or stereotyping anybody. That’s the last thing we wanted to do,” Jones stated, though he seemed unwilling to elaborate.

On a lighter note, Jones joked about directing himself in a film, something he called “a luxury.” When asked what it was like to direct himself, Jones said, “As a director, I can tell you that I do everything I tell myself to do. And as an actor, I listen to myself very carefully.”

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