First Cow

Name: First Cow
Genre: Drama
Released: March 6, 2020
Duration: 122 min
Rating: 89
Cast: Alia Shawkat, Clayton Nemrow, Dylan Smith, Ewen Bremner, Gary Farmer

2020

METASCORE

Universal acclaim based on 44 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 124 Ratings

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7.0

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7.0	Your Score
7.0	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 124 Ratings

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First Cow

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Movie Details & Credits

A24 | Release Date: March 6, 2020 | PG-13

Starring: Alia Shawkat, Clayton Nemrow, Dylan Smith, Ewen Bremner, Gary Farmer, Jeb Berrier, John Keating, John Magaro, Lily Gladstone, Manuel Rodriguez, Orion Lee, Patrick D. Green, René Auberjonois, Scott Shepherd, Ted Rooney, Toby Jones, Todd A. Robinson

Summary: A taciturn loner and skilled cook (John Magaro) has traveled west and joined a group of fur trappers in Oregon Territory, though he only finds true connection with a Chinese immigrant (Orion Lee) also seeking his fortune; soon the two collaborate on a successful business, although its longevity is reliant upon the clandestine participationA taciturn loner and skilled cook (John Magaro) has traveled west and joined a group of fur trappers in Oregon Territory, though he only finds true connection with a Chinese immigrant (Orion Lee) also seeking his fortune; soon the two collaborate on a successful business, although its longevity is reliant upon the clandestine participation of a nearby wealthy landowner’s prized milking cow.… Expand

Director: Kelly Reichardt

Genre(s): Drama

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 122 min

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Critic Reviews

100

Justin Chang

Mar 4, 2020

Suffice to say the plot’s every unfolding development is a deft and delightful surprise, and it may be the most suspenseful and entertaining demonstration yet of Reichardt’s rigorous attention to detail — her patient, genuine and remarkably cinematic fascination with the workings of process and minutiae. Read full review

100

David Edelstein

Mar 7, 2020

This haunting movie transports you to another world — and redefines home. Read full review

100

Tara Brady

Jul 9, 2021

As ever, Reichardt works in delicate movements as a storyteller. Magaro and Lee’s wonderful chemistry keeps perfectly in step with the filmmaker. Read full review

David Fear

Mar 6, 2020

How it informs so much of what the movie is getting at is something you’ll find yourself mulling over for weeks after you’ve left the theater. The feeling that you’ve just witnessed a major work from a great American filmmaker, however, is instantaneous. Read full review

Barry Hertz

Mar 9, 2020

As audiences, we lean toward demanding a near-constant auditory assault – that if we’re not hearing something, we’re missing something. Director Kelly Reichardt has no qualms with upending this, and other pieces of conventional cinematic wisdom with First Cow, a film that takes great care to remind us of the whisper-quiet bones of America’s history – a time when there wasn’t much to hear except what nature was telling us. Read full review

Marshall Shaffer

Mar 4, 2020

By grounding her intellectual explorations in intimately observed human drama, Reichardt delivers another nuanced behavioral portrait as well as an incisive historical tome. Read full review

Mick LaSalle

Mar 10, 2020

With Reichardt, you really do feel like you’re actually there. The only problem is that, a lot of the time, you’re really not happy to be there. Read full review

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User Reviews

Scott92

Mar 16, 2020

First Cow deals with toxic masculinity and capitalism in a modern, delicate and effective way. The story is well-developed and the characters are authentic and lovely. Reichardt didn't disappoint me at all, one of her best movies so far.

0 of 11 users found this helpful011

Guillermothecow

Jul 22, 2020

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Muúuuuuuuuu mejor pelicula de vacas epicas moo una vaca una ..una laca vaca… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

LatinCritic13

Mar 6, 2020

A movie about a man and his cow and who wouldn't that this is one of the best films I have ever seen in a long time. You got definitely had me there with that one A24.

3 of 13 users found this helpful310

JLuis_001

Jul 25, 2020

First Cow is a film that will put you in a trance if you decide to enjoy it that way.
It could certainly be said that even the most atmospheric films are still a means of entertaining, but even in the face of the excellent quality of the production, it will all be reduced to whether this isFirst Cow is a film that will put you in a trance if you decide to enjoy it that way.
It could certainly be said that even the most atmospheric films are still a means of entertaining, but even in the face of the excellent quality of the production, it will all be reduced to whether this is the kind of film you're looking for as entertainment.

Kelly Reichardt's new film is an adaptation of Jon Raymond's novel, The Half-Life. He also wrote the screenplay alongside Reichardt.
I honestly don't have any opinions on the novel because I didn't even know it, so I can't tell if the director's treatment was the right one but regardless of that fact, personally I think Reichardt delivered a great film.

First Cow favors tone and atmosphere over narrative, therefore I must emphasize that although the friendship story is the main engine of the film; The rhythm, the lack of dialogue and the way in which events unfold, are things that are more focused on your immersion in the situation rather than just observing it from a distance.

John Magaro and Orion Lee are completely in tune and both actors hold the film perfectly because as I said this is a story about friendship and because of the lack of dialogue, the only thing that makes that believable, are their expressions and emotions and they both do a pretty good job.

First Cow will reward your patience if you allow it to captivate you and you allow yourself to absorb its pace and story.

To me was a great film and is yet another strong addition for A24’s catalogue.… Expand

0 of 3 users found this helpful03

risonyeong

Apr 25, 2021

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. not too sure why the font of the title is in bright yellow. at first i thought it was a comedy. the show was atmospheric accurate of the hard life of gold prospectors in america.
very tortured pace of conversation which makes this movie stands out.
the tension of tragedy is masterly directed. what happened to both the protagonist nobody knows. the director puts in a scene of a soldier with a gun. as they escaped slowly thro the bushes, i had this foreboding of a shot that never came.
be patient and endure all the dark melancholic lightless world of the fort. very accurate.... not doctored beauty of revenant. raw and relevant… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

moviemitch96

Jul 22, 2020

In this film, a late 1800s Oregon fur trapper meets and befriends a Chinese immigrant, and together, they decide to try and get ahead by secretly stealing the milk from a local cow owned by a wealthy landowner in order to make cakes and pastries out of it to sell to people. It's a small andIn this film, a late 1800s Oregon fur trapper meets and befriends a Chinese immigrant, and together, they decide to try and get ahead by secretly stealing the milk from a local cow owned by a wealthy landowner in order to make cakes and pastries out of it to sell to people. It's a small and intimant film with a simple premise, but it's still very effective thanks largely in part by the two lead performances and chemistry of John Magaro and Orion Lee as fur trapper Cookie and humble immigrant King-Lu respectively. Their onscreen friendship is undeniably charming to watch, and I found myself rooting for them in their strive for a better and more prosperous life from start to finish. From a technical aspect, the film is beautifully shot, even settling for a smaller aspect ratio in order to better fit with the times it's portraying, and each shot in the film almost appears as an old photograph come to life. It moves a little slow and takes its time, but in doing so, it manages to illustrate the quest for prosperity and simple pleasures in a unique way and is shown in a time period not seen too often in film. Overall, it's a slow and simple yet ultimately humble period film that tells a nice friendship story while it's at it, making it worthwhile enough.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

Bobx11

May 21, 2021

A slow two hour slog of a movie with a depressing story that lacks any kind of pay-off. There's a lot of sloooow and looong artsy shots which indie critics love, but it doesn't make up for the lame duck story writing.

0 of 3 users found this helpful03

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