Sweetgrass

2009, Documentary, 1h 42m

64 Reviews 500+ Ratings

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critics consensus

At once tender and unsentimental, Sweetgrass gracefully captures the beauty and hardships of a dying way of life. Read critic reviews

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Sweetgrass Photos

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Movie Info

This spare documentary follows a group of shepherds as they guide hundreds of sheep through endless miles of Montana wilderness. Herding the livestock through the Beartooth Mountains, the crew covers stunning landscapes as they brave dangerous weather and the threat of various wild animals, including bears and wolves. As the shepherds make their journey, the film depicts the hardships that they face in their age-old occupation, which seems largely outmoded in 21st-century United States.
  • Genre:
    Documentary
  • Original Language:
    English
  • Director:
    Lucien Castaing-Taylor, Illisa Barbash
  • Producer:
    Ilisa Barbash
  • Release Date (Theaters):
     limited
  • Release Date (Streaming):
  • Box Office (Gross USA):
    $206.7K
  • Runtime:
  • Distributor:
    Cinema Guild

Cast & Crew

Lucien Castaing-Taylor
Director
Illisa Barbash
Director
Ilisa Barbash
Producer

Critic Reviews for Sweetgrass

All Critics (64) | Top Critics (33) | Fresh (62) | Rotten (2)
Full Review… Anthony Lane New Yorker Full Review… Kieron Corless Sight & Sound Full Review… Nicolas Rapold Film Comment Magazine Full Review… Sukhdev Sandhu Daily Telegraph (UK) Full Review… Philip French Guardian Full Review… Peter Bradshaw Guardian Full Review… Tom Meek Cambridge Day Full Review… David Harris Spectrum Culture Full Review… Matthew Lucas From the Front Row Full Review… Steve Erickson Gay City News Full Review… Al Alexander The Patriot Ledger Full Review… Alistair Harkness Scotsman
View All Critic Reviews (64)

Audience Reviews for Sweetgrass

  • Jun 24, 2011
    "Sweetgrass" is a stunningly photographed documentary about the process of sheep farming in Montana. The movie keeps the human subjects at a distance, giving us little chance to really get to know any of them. Instead, the natural scenery and the sheep are the true stars here and the one who looks directly into the camera knows that. In fact, he would like to file a complaint with his union representative about the working conditions. Yeah about that. Not much has changed in this profession since the 19th century. The cowboys still ride horses, camp out under the stars and rely on dogs for a lot of help in keeping the sheep in line. Cell phones are about the only indication that this is now the 21st century. And I should warn those of you expecting lots and lots of footage of cute sheep roaming around the mountains that there is a gruesome shot of an eviscerated sheep which speaks to the difficulty and frustration for the cowboys which is expressed in the most colorful language heard since "Deadwood" went off the air.
    Walter M Super Reviewer
  • Jan 12, 2010
    Beautifully lyrical documentary chronicles the last sheep drive into the Beartooth Mountains in Montana, a time honored tradition that has been going on since the late 19th century. A quiet, simple, elegiac ode to a forgotten way of life.
    Matthew L Super Reviewer
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