Texas, 1916. Short-tempered farm worker Bill convinces his lover Abby to marry their dying boss in order to claim a share of his fortune. However, events conspire to derail the plan, not least Abby’s increasing attraction to the farmer, and his seemingly miraculous recovery.
Director Terrence Malick’s follow-up to Badlands depicts a harshly beautiful world of swirling corn, dust and tangled emotion.
It also includes a career-best performance from Richard Gere as Bill, a complicated, unsympathetic and ultimately tragic figure, who only realises the consequences of his actions when it becomes too late to reverse them.