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First Cow

2020 2h 2m
Drama Western
MOVIEVIBE Rating
7.0/10
562 reviews
Your Rating
First Cow

In the 1820s, a taciturn loner and skilled cook travels west to Oregon Territory, where he meets a Chinese immigrant also seeking his fortune. Soon the two team up on a dangerous scheme to steal milk from the wealthy landowner’s prized Jersey cow—the first, and only, in the territory.

"A simple western about the origin of the American Dream."

Top Billed Cast

John Magaro
John Magaro
Cookie
Orion Lee
Orion Lee
King-Lu
Toby Jones
Toby Jones
Chief Factor
Ewen Bremner
Ewen Bremner
Lloyd
Scott Shepherd
Scott Shepherd
Captain
Gary Farmer
Gary Farmer
Totillicum
Lily Gladstone
Lily Gladstone
Chief Factor’s Wife
Alia Shawkat
Alia Shawkat
Woman with Dog

Detailed Critic & Audience Reviews

S SWITCH. Verified TMDB Critic
2020-08-13

'First Cow' may show an origin of capitalism, but unlike the wild west of Wall Street, Reichardt points to an alternate reality where it's not the muscle of capitalism that conquers, but rather the sweet companionship and commitment to fellowship that will, not the greed of self-interest. In Reichardt's world, greed is a modern illness, and it's only when Cookie and King-Lu's solidarity falters that their lives begin to unravel. People will succeed in cooperation, not at the expense of others - a lesson that feels even more important now in 2020 than it may have ever felt in 1820.
- Joel Kalk...

M Manuel São Bento Verified TMDB Critic
2020-09-08

If you enjoy reading my Spoiler-Free reviews, please follow my blog @
https://www.msbreviews.com

As you should know by now, I love watching films as blind as possible: no trailers and a minimum amount of information about the plot (or none at all). A24 became such a popular studio that I don’t even need to know anything else about the movie, I’m always in. Universal, Paramount, Warner Bros., Disney, and Columbia might be the Big Five of film studios, but gradually people are starting to shift their attention to smaller, independent ones who deliver fewer movies per year, but a higher r...

C CinemaSerf Verified TMDB Critic
2022-03-28

This is a gently comedic story of a couple of pioneering Oregon frontiersmen. Cook-cum-baker John Magaro ("Cookie") who falls in with the entrepreneurial "King-Lu" (Orion Lee). The pair quickly realise that there is a decent amount of money to be made by indulging the sweet teeth of their fellow hardy companions - and when they discover that the local headman has had a cow delivered - the only one for miles - a clandestine business that involves purloining the milk from said cow to enhance their cakes offers riches, but some risk too - the factor (Toby Jones) is unaware that his is, technicall...

B badelf Verified TMDB Critic
2022-06-16

For sure not a Hollywood film. This film is a beautifully executed character study about friendship....