The setting of this film is the West Texas oilfields in 1939 and it is based on a 1966 novel by Tom Pendleton. Jim McNeely wants to marry Mazie Wales but her mother talks to Jim about it and Mazie’s father gets Jim a job in the oil fields. At first, Jim thinks this is a great opportunity and it will possibly further his marriage prospects with Mazie. What happens is nothing like he expected. The work is brutal, the machinery is very heavy and dangerous. The foreman is only barely human and he a brute as well. Jim will have to wait until he can build up his body and muscles if he wants to take on the foreman in a fist fight!!
The only bright spot in Jim’s life is meeting Lee Montgomery. He sees her driving down the road to the local store and she is very beautiful. The other crew members tell Jim that Lee is married and he better think more than twice about being interested in her!! When Lee sees him walking along the road, she offers him a ride. She lets him off before they would arrive at her house. Later, she dares to drop him off closer to her house. Jim survives the oil field job and he has realized that Mazie’s father sent him to the job just to get him out of their lives. Jim makes friends and he learns about the other side of the oil business. The side where he can drill his own well and see if the money will come pouring in.
118 min, Drama directed by Ty Roberts and written by Gerry De Leon and Ty Roberts with Hassie Harrison, Austin Nichols, Ali Cobrin, Lane Garrison, Lew Temple, Donny Boaz, Allan McLeod, Gary Teague, Gregory Kelly, Temple Baker, Shelley Calene-Black, Ned Van Zandt.
Note: Imdb 5.6* with 242 reviews, Roger Ebert 1 1/2* Glenn Kenny, Rotten Tomatoes 28% with 18 critics 89% with 137 user ratings, Metacritic 43 out of 100 with 9 critics (3* positive, 1* Mixed, 5* negative), Amazon 4.4* out of 5* with 475 reviews. 4* (I liked this movie)
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