Fresh
A precisely modulated yet cumulatively forceful story of a rural family feud turned deadly.
Eddie Cockrell, Variety
Shotgun Stories
Two families. One feud. No going back.
2007 · 1h 32m · PG-13
Drama, Thriller
Directed by
Jeff Nichols
Overview
Shotgun Stories tracks a feud that erupts between two sets of half brothers following the death of their father. Set against the cotton fields and back roads of Southeast Arkansas, these brothers discover the lengths to which each will go to protect their family.
Director and cast
- Jeff Nichols Director
- Michael Shannon as Son Hayes
- Douglas Ligon as Boy Hayes
- Barlow Jacobs as Kid Hayes
- Michael Abbott Jr. as Cleaman Hayes
- Travis Smith as Mark Hayes
- Lynnsee Provence as Stephen Hayes
- David Rhodes as John Hayes
- Glenda Pannell as Annie Hayes
- G. Alan Wilkins as Shampoo
- Natalie Canerday as Nicole
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
88%
Tomatometer
Fresh
Director Jeff Nichols lets the action unfold slowly following an impromptu insult, but the escalation of hatred and pain feels natural.
Maureen M. Hart, Chicago Tribune
Fresh
... here there's also an undercurrent of biblical revenge that lends the narrative a sense of violent menace and an almost continuous tension.
Joshua Katzman, Chicago Reader
Fresh
Few films are so observant about how we relate with one another. Few are as sympathetic.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Fresh
Shotgun Stories is a cautionary tale about revenge, but more than that, it is a beautiful, authentic-feeling portrait of a family and a place.
Michael Ordona, Los Angeles Times
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