It's 1935 Waxahachie, Texas. Edna Spalding (Sally Field) loses her sheriff husband after a negro boy accidentally shots him. The locals lynch the boy. Edna doesn't deal with the financials and is in danger of losing the farm. Banker Mr. Denby is eager for her to sell. He unloads his blind, bitter brother-in-law Will (John Malkovich) on her as a boarder. Drifter Moze (Danny Glover) comes looking for work. He steals her silver spoons and gets caught. She lets him work on her farm growing cotton. Her sister Margaret Lomax (Lindsay Crouse) is struggling to survive but her husband Wayne (Ed Harris) is secretly cheating with school teacher Viola Kelsey (Amy Madigan).

Sally Field does a brilliant job playing this compelling character. She starts off lost and grow to be a driven dynamo. The only minor problem is the affair between Wayne and Vi. They're not really connected to Edna and is nothing more than a distraction. Edna, Will and Moze are the central character. The story needs to concentrate on the trio's relationship. Despite this minor problem, this is a great movie.

At the time this film was released I was 20 years younger. I liked it but it did not stay in my memory of good movies to watch. I just saw it again today and could not leave my seat. Was it the story? Yes. Was it the acting? Yes. More than anything it was the situations that the characters faced. Art imitating life and doing a very good job of it.

What I liked most is that I did not think that the performances took away from the story. It's about how your life can change in a split second. Change in a way that challenges you to look at yourself deeply. It's about personal values. It is the type of story that moves me most these days. Stories about humans. It is a stunning film.

This is a fine movie, certainly, lit up by some truly great performances.

First of all Sally Field's turn as the woman who has to learn how to run a cotton farm in the Depression when everything was stacked against her.

Followed by Danny Glover's underwritten performance as Moze, the man who helps her do that.

But, despite the fact that it received an Academy Award, I think the problem here, to the extent that it is a problem, is the script. It tries to cover too many stories, rather than developing the other main characters.

Nor was I a fan of the directing. Too many atmospheric shots. I would rather have learned more about some of the characters, especially Moze.

Still, a good movie, and one that will repay your watching it.