In the American west, just after WWII, best friends Big Boy (Woody Harrelson) and Pete (Billy Crudup) return from the war to find half their hometown employed by corporate cattle-rancher Jim Ed Love (Sam Elliott). Defying Jim Ed and hanging onto mythic ideals of the west, Big Boy and Pete team up with an old-time rancher (James Gammon) to raise cattle the cowboy way, and life in Hi-Lo, New Mexico becomes a volatile powder keg. The fuse is lit when Mona (Patricia Arquette), the wife of Jim Ed’s foreman, begins a heated affair with Big Boy. When Pete’s past longings for Mona resurface, the cowboys’ bond of friendship becomes sorely tested, while Hi-Lo awaits the outcome of their explosive run-ins with Jim Ed. Beautifully directed by Stephen Frears (Dangerous Liaisons, The Grifters) and scripted by Walon Green (The Wild Bunch) from Max Evans’ novel, this searing drama in the classic Western tradition features top-notch performances from its cast, including Cole Hauser and Penélope Cruz.