Curse of the Starving Class

Based on Sam Shepard's Obie-winning play, this gritty drama follows the Tate family, whose patriarch, Weston (James Woods), is an alcoholic Vietnam vet unable to mend his self-destructive ways long enough to ensure the future of his struggling family farm. Weston's determined wife, Ella (Kathy Bates), clings to dreams of a better life, as do their two children (Henry Thomas and Kristin Fiorella), but their stark existence threatens to crushes their hope.