Harvest of Fire (1996)
In a small Amish community, three barns are burnt down almost simultaneously. FBI agent Sally Russwell is sent in to investigate this possible hate crime. What she finds however is a community that little trust for outsiders or "The English" as they call them. However, in her investigations, Agent Russell makes friends with one entrepreneurial widow, Annie Beiler who has her own curiosity about this stranger. Together, Annie introduces Russell in-depth to this close knit community bearing many appealing attributes. However, as Sally's investigations continue, she discovers secrets that reveal uncomfortable truths about the religious community that are linked to the arson attacks.
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A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.
The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.
A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.
It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.
Wonderful television movie dealing with the Amish people.What makes this film so good is that at by the end these people are willing to accept their own mistakes and come together. Obviously, Amish people have strong family values as they shun technological advancement.Lolita Davidovich is wonderful as the FBI agent sent to the Amish country to investigate a series of barn burnings. She is equally matched by Patty Duke, an understanding Amish women, who while accepting the values of her people, also knows how to relate somewhat to the outside world.There are the usual cast of characters who come under immediate suspicion. We can't jump to conclusions and while the ending may be a shock to others, it still shows the cohesiveness of these people in times of adversity.This is a beautifully done film.
I considered the first two-thirds of the film fairly interesting, as I didn't know much about Amish customs. However, the resolution of who did the barn burnings (which I won't reveal here) struck me as very false, contrived, and unbelievable.
This is a film that is beatifully done in every sense. Its direction, its acting (Patty Duke is marvelous), its music, its writing, just everything. It's as gorgeous as looking at one of the amish's quilts. From Hallmark Hall of Fame, this was the year's second highest-rated tv movie.
Let me put this delicately - this ain't exactly an ensemble piece. If you take away the meaningful dialogue between Lolita Davidovich and Patty Duke, you end up with about 15 minute of film left, including footage of 4 barns burning down.And, perhaps it's due to my proximity to the Pennsylvania Amish area, but I really thought it was a tad condescending to the audience to have the Sheriff explain and pontificate on the Amish customs every time he and the FBI agent head out to investigate.