Watch The Milagro Beanfield War
- R
- 1988
- 1 hr 57 min
-
6.8 (7,024)
The Milagro Beanfield war is the 1988 film adaptation of the titular first novel written by John Nichols; itself the first of a trilogy. Robert Redford handled direction for the film while author John Nichols, as well as David Ward, penned its screenplay. Notable actors within the film include Daniel Stern as sociology student Herbie Platt and Christopher Walken as Kyril Montana, a federal agent.
The story of The Milagro Beanfield War takes place in and around the small Mexican town of Milagro. Filming for the Milagro location of the film occurred within the mountainous Truchas of northern New Mexico. Because Milagro's primary industry happens to be agriculture, things become complicated after several financially powerful individuals and companies manipulate water rights in an effort to drive down the price of land so that the land may be bought for little to nothing.
With the new watering restrictions in effect, protagonist Joe Mondragon (played by Chick Vennera) is unable to make use of an irrigation ditch to water his crops. Frustrated and unable to properly tend to his crops, Joe goes to check on his father's nearby farmland and discovers a "Prohibited" tag over the valve of the irrigation ditch. Furious with how things have changed, Joe kicks the valve with enough force to accidentally break it. Considering this a sign from God, Joe decides against repairing the valve and makes use of the water which flooded into his land by planting beans.
Eventually Joe's farming and accidental sabotage catches the interests of the very men trying to buy out Milagro's land. This then begins a war of escalation, where the men of power even resort to a hired gun to solve their problem. The film concludes with a final standoff between Milagro's citizens and law enforcement.
The Milagro Beanfield War is a 117-minute long film distributed by Universal Pictures.
The Milagro Beanfield War is a 1988 comedy with a runtime of 1 hour and 57 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 6.8.
