evilpinklolita I saw this movie a long time ago, and it was so boring it stuck in my mind ever since. It's on the order of Solaris (starring George Clooney and directed by Steven Sodenbergh). Sleepy town, underwhelmed characters, boring story, unexciting plot, nothing to catch or hold your attention, just a lot of limp-as-a-dishrag apathy. I'm not a person who has to have fast action shoot em ups all the time, either. I'm just fine with quiet, intelligent, thoughtful films too. But there has to be something. And this movie has nothing. So do yourself a favor. Run away. Run away fast. Or take a long nap. You'll get just as much out of it, and save yourself money too. Or at least a slot in your Netflix queue.

Robert J. Maxwell A small town of mostly Mexican residents is about to be ruined by a land developer who has visions of hotels, motels, condos, and ski lodges dancing in his head. The few hundred men and women in Milagro are divided about what to do. Some see construction jobs bringing in money and excitement. Others feel that "our town is a family." The developer and his team of henchmen are all in this together, but the conflict between the townspeople grows until an accidental shooting takes place. The main mean guy, Christopher Walken, hunts down the accidental shootist, Chick Vennera, but the victim of the shooting recovers and refuses to press charges. Richard Bradford is the head of the development company and gives up his attempt to buy the land, raging against his advisers. This summary makes it sound like some angry docu-drama, but it's a surprisingly gentle and whimsical movie.This is a kind of tricky area to deal with in any kind of fiction. The tendency is to make the villagers and the interlopers generic. How many times have we seen these romanticized peasants? They always go about their business in a languid informal manner. They sing a lot. They eat with gusto. They don't mind a drink now and then. They have a great sense of humor and a mystical feeling for the land. Often there's a highly respected, or at any rate easily tolerated, dotty ancient man or woman.And how often have we seen the equivalent of these land developers? They dress in suits and ties. They're full of guile. They press the law to its limits and maybe a little beyond. They have no particular feelings for each other. Their only interest is pelf.The director, Robert Redford, doesn't entirely avoid these clichés, but he keep them about as toned down as this kind of story permits. Some of the actors aren't that convincing, but Christopher Walken certainly is. Every performance he gives seems like a polished gem. The film has virtues beyond the plot and the other usual elements. The photography captures a magnificent landscape. Not staggeringly majestic -- not the Grand Canyon -- not that raw -- but a silent and self-satisfied ocean of pinyon and juniper clotted rolling hills. You can almost smell the Pinesol.Alas, though, the tony resort development is a canard. That's not the problem facing these small-town good guys. It's the people who are going to live in those condos and ski on those slopes that present the problem and the problem extends far beyond the town limits of Milagro or even San Juan County. And it's not a pleasant problem to contemplate because it involves us.The people who will live in those condos must live somewhere, and some day they will have to live here, and, as the local editor, John Heard, points out, they'll demand clean water and restaurants. Taxes will skyrocket and urban sprawl will sprawl.In 1950, the population of the earth was roughly 2 billion. It's now 6 billion and by 2050 will have doubled.Robert Bradford and the Ladd Devine Development company may give up in disgust but can anyone doubt that there will be another such entity offering greater bribes ten years from now? Or that eventually one or another such entity will get what it wants? Or that such entities are only the thin end of the wedge of a change process whose proportions are monumental?The good folks of Milagro are going to lose their village, just like everybody else. But how can we argue against population growth? You might as well argue against motherhood and apple pie.

danappofc I have been reading IMDb reviews for several months, but this is the first time I have felt a need to add one of my own. This is mostly a response to the detractors of this film. Since Milagro is one of my favourite movies I have ever seen, I was amazed at the vitriol it inspired in some people. At first it made me angry -- but then, it just made me sad to know that so many people are so ignorant of real life, and of the magical realities that exist in this mundane world. This film is probably the most real film about the most real people I have ever seen. Fat, rich, and greedy white men do indeed oppress good people of colour and limited means all over the world all the time, and I suspect that the critic's vitriol had its base in the fact that this movie so effectively portrays this oppression. To anyone who wants an inspiring, witty, funny, and heartfelt story about the 'little man' who successfully stands up to the Machine, this movie is a must see.

classicsoncall I think I'll file this one under 'best movies no one ever heard of', oddly enough right next to "Nobody's Fool", which stars Robert Redford's buddy Paul Newman. Redford does a great job here of mixing together unknowns with a name supporting cast to tell a compelling spiritual tale that leaves you feeling good at the end. Fortunately, the film doesn't need a prayer to St. Jude, the patron saint of desperate causes.It's wonderful to see how Joe Mondragon's (Chick Vennera) accidental swipe at a sluice gate shakes up a town and makes his father's bean field a community event. Together with some of the Dancing Angel's divine intervention to spread the word in Charlie Bloom's (John Heard) newspaper, the town of Milagro rises up to oppose the area's development by greedy corporate fat cats. You know it's only a matter of time before the locals win out, but the fun is in seeing how they get there.Interestingly, the film's 'star' talent doesn't seem to get in the way of the story; Christopher Walken, Daniel Stern, John Heard, and Melanie Griffith all blend into their characters without stepping on the toes of the Milagro cast. Along the way, each of their portrayals learn something of themselves and the power of the human spirit. But the one to really keep an eye on is the town patriarch Amarante (Carlos Riquelme), who combines the wisdom of the angels with the temerity to buy his bullets with food stamps. One gets the impression that he might be the next angel in training, almost certainly so as the movie comes to a close."The Milagro Beanfield War" is certainly deserving of a wider audience. Kudos to Robert Redford for an inspiring piece of work that steps outside the boundaries of traditional Hollywood fare.