The Locusts

source: The Locusts

I have to wonder if the cohesion that might have held this movie together is lying on the cutting room floor. There are so many subplots that are never properly developed and not tied up at the end. I stumbled into this movie thinking it was some Sci-Fi work (as described by the on screen analysis of "on demand.") I just wanted a movie to put me to sleep. This wasn't that movie. Locusts did not take over the planet. But I was immediately struck by the brooding nature of the direction and how it drew me into the movie. However, sometimes I felt like it was some mini-series I had missed the first episode of. Some of the performances were good, but the plot meandered along until it suddenly became hurried. In the last 10 minutes the "mother" tells of her rape by her father, her son drowns himself, somehow, in the gelding shed and the mother finally did the world a favor and shot herself. Fortunately our hero and heroine ride off into the sunset in their maroon pick up truck and we're marooned, wondering if this is a happy ending or not... that is if you can consider a man who raped and murdered a woman a "hero." In the end, it didn't put me to sleep, but made me wonder why I had stayed up so late.

...in the type and class of 'Cat on a hot tin roof' and 'Summer and smoke'. Jeremy Davies should have won an award for his very talented performance of a difficult role-he's this generation's Anthony Perkins. Vince Vaughn's performance was excellent and moving too, and a meaty role for him-a Marlon Brando-type role, to be sure! Dark, depressed, tragic movie,with an air of inevitability hanging over it, beautifully photographed, with a lovely sound track with several golden oldies. The soundtrack really set a tone and time for the movie, and was at the right volume, unlike so many current artless movies where blasting music or car engines obliterate the dialog. Too bad that the delay of Clay in running after Flyboy at the end of the movie, as Flyboy ran from his mother's bedroom, was not believable-it was obvious that Clay would have ran after his very distraught young friend right away.

This is the second movie in a row that I've watched which has good acting but is let down by a wayward script. I was amazed at Ashley Judd's commanding performance as Kitty. All credit too for Kate Capshaw, Jeremy Davies and Vince Vaughn. The pace of the whole movie was painfully slow and the ending was a huge disappointment. The castrating of bulls was really excessive and unnecessary. Watch this as a measure of how big a star Ashley Judd will become.

*Spoilers* This is one of the most moving, well it made me cry for like twenty minutes after it had finished...when the guy hanged himself, I cried so much, cos I really wanted that character to get away from his nasty mother and have a happier life, great performances from the two main charcters jeremy and vince...*Sniffs* All my favourite films have made me cry...it's weird that. Actually all the main characters in my favourite films die...hmm...owell. except for a film called can't hardly wait. my fave films are comedies and sad emotional films, usually meaningful.Anyway, you dont want to hear this, wouldn't be surprised if your not even reading this, but again anyway, it is a good film, a bit slow at the beginning, but very emotional, be warned, you may cry like a baby!

Clay Hewitt(Vince Vaughn)is a drifter from Missouri stopping in 1960s Kansas in hope to earn some money. He only has seven bucks in his pocket. He meets some locals, including Joel(Daniel Meyer), Earl(Paul Rudd), Patsy(Jessica Capshaw) and Kitty(Ashley Judd). Earl suggests he look for employment at Delilah Ashford Potts'(Kate Capshaw) feed ranch. Delilah's reputation of sleeping with her hired hands is common place. She demeans her son 'Flyboy', who is traumatized from his father's death. Clay finally fits in with the other workers and of course is a sexual target of his boss lady. Before Clay talks Kitty into moving on to California; he discovers two big Potts family secrets. The strong sexuality earns THE LOCUSTS the R rating. I really like the diverse characters. The photography catches the moodiness of the story.

I have always thought that Vince Vaughn was a decent actor but this film just proves I was wrong...he is fantastic! Ashley Judd, Kate Capshaw, and Jeremy Davies turn in performances that would earn them award nominations if the movie had any media backing whatsoever. Great film.

Will the real Vince Vaughn please come forward and do some more acting like this. He really stood out in this picture. Although not the best I have ever seen, the movie kept me intrigued to the very end. It had all the stuff great movies are made of...sweaty 120 degree weather...ice tea in mason jars...family secrets...the shirtless ranch hand in the spare room... the sultry older woman who lusts after him...and plenty of cigarettes...

I agree with bjb completely on this one. Skip this and rent Cat on a Hot Tin Roof or Hud. I can actually think of a couple southern movie cliches that weren't used: the cattle did not develop brucelosis; the protagonist did not fight racism at any point in the movie;and (Specific to Texas)though longneck beers were constantly being imbibed, I could not surmise that they were Lonestar brand and nobody was drinking Dr Pepper. Still, Ashley Judd looks great. The plot is preposterous and somebody needs to explain to me why Kate Capshaw's character did not want her son to leave?

Considering that any subsequent viewing of this film will be on video or cable, why not take a look? The draw being a good performance from Vince Vaughn. The writing is terrible and the dialogue is almost embarrassing. The plot is ridiculous, full of literary (but really juvenile) symbolism. Somehow, Vaughn still manages to be fun to watch, even when he is castrating bulls.