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“On Swift Horses” Film Details

• Runtime: 1 Hour(s) and 57 Minutes
• Date Seen: April 14, 2025 (AMC Screen Unseen)

• Released On: In Theaters (Public Release Date: April 25, 2025)
• Director(s): Daniel Minahan
• Writer(s): Bryce Kass
• Based on Work By: Shannon Pufahl
• Genre(s): Drama, Romance, Young Adult, LGBT+, Historical
• Rating: Rated R
• Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics

Summary

In the 1950s, Lee and Muriel appear to be in love. Lee is desperate for Muriel to marry him, but she hesitates. At first, it isn’t clear why, but then Lee’s brother Julius shows up, and there is your answer. Muriel wants options, but at the same time loves country life in Kansas and the home her formidable mother left her.

But, with investing in Lee’s dream, she allows herself to be uprooted and taken off to California, seemingly left in a perpetual state of longing not just for Kansas but Julius, later Sandra, and all the while, she doesn’t seem to realize early on that Julius is more so the type to have his eyes for a Henry.

Cast and Characters

Lee (Will Poulter)

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• Character Summary: Lee is a veteran of the Korean war who has had it tough. His mom died when he was young, father lost it after his mom died, and since that point, for neither him or his younger brother Julius, there wasn’t stability. So, as an adult, it seems Lee’s goal is to give himself the stability his parents weren’t able to.

Muriel (Daisy Edgar-Jones)

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• Character Summary: With a mother who had a college degree, a car, and was one of the first to be divorced in their county in Kansas, Muriel had the example of a strong and independent woman. This is why she struggles with marrying Lee and not becoming a housewife, but certainly being an aide to having his dreams come true rather than pursuing her own dreams or even figuring out who and what she likes.

Julius (Jacob Elordi)

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• Character Summary: Julius is somewhat Lee’s opposite. While Lee seeks stability, Julius is a bit more geared towards adventure, loose goals, and doesn’t treat their upbringing as something that should inspire course correction. Now, this isn’t to say Julius doesn’t want love and partnership as Lee clearly wants, but with being queer, finding the one for Julius isn’t as easy as talking to the hottest person in town.

Sandra (Sasha Calle)

• Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
• Character Summary: With her inheritance of her father’s home, Sandra has spent years crafting a community and creating a sort of refuge for the local lesbian population. But, there is something about Muriel that, even with Muriel married and maybe more so curious and having fun, than looking for commitment, draws Sandra in and makes her hope for more.

Gail (Kat Cunning)

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• Character Summary: While Sandra is as close to openly queer as one can be in the 1950s, Gail is the type to take advantage of the assumption of close female friendships to live in the shadows. She even frequents a local gay bar to enjoy the ladies she finds interesting, while still presenting herself as a high-class woman who likely could never be thought of as gay.

Henry (Diego Calva)

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• Character Summary: Henry is of Mexican origin, currently living in Las Vegas, who catches Julius’ eye. In fact, Henry makes the first move and while Julius wasn’t sure at first, be it because he has been burned before or because they work together, Henry becomes the love of Julius’ life who he is willing to lie, cheat, and steal for in order to be with.

Other Noteworthy Information

Why Is “On Swift Horses” Rated R?

• Dialog:
  • Cursing: Mild
  • Discriminatory Language: Yes
  • Innuendo: Implied
  • Suicide Mentions: No
• Violence:
  • Gun Violence: Present
  • Violence Against Animals: No
  • Violence Against Children: No
  • Domestic Violence: No
  • Gore/ Blood: Light
  • Body Horror: No
  • Notable Violence: Fight Scenes
• Sexual Content:
  • Nudity: Full (Backside/Chest)
  • Sexual Situations: Implied
  • Sexual Violence: No
• Miscellaneous:
  • Drinking: No
  • Drug Use: No
  • Vomiting: No
  • Smoking: Yes

Links

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• Official Site Link

Review and Commentary

Highlight(s)

Despite The Queer Coming Of Age Element, Nothing Feels Grandeur About Learning, Finding, Or Knowing What You Want [88/100]

For Muriel, you can see her dreams exist outside of what Lee has planned for them. She seemingly wants to see what’s out there, but also is quite happy with the expansive world there is in Kansas, and the land she owns that marks her piece of the universe. Yet, when exposed to a woman named Gail, another named Sandra, you see an awakening in her.

Mind you, there is also an awakening with Julius, for Muriel, but it is different. With Julius, who seems less bi or pan-sexual than Muriel might be, coming of age for him seems to be finding a love beyond what Lee can offer as an accepting brother. He wants a love that is passionate, makes him feel whole, and gives him a true and genuine partner.

It’s weird in a way. Lee and Julius paint themselves as opposites, but it seems the only difference is that, because of the ease of a man finding a woman, especially in the early 50s, Lee found what he needed to settle down and plant roots. Julius, on the other hand, as a queer man, the ease wasn’t there so as much as he is painted to have wanderlust, there is a need to sometimes question if his need to wander was because he knew the likelihood of finding the proverbial one in Kansas was slim?

But getting back to Muriel, something I love and appreciate about her journey, which is also seen in Julius, is that nothing is treated as a grand gesture. Whether it is sex scenes, a surprising kiss, dancing, or conversation, it is all treated in such a way that you’re reminded of the playfulness or innocence of the moment. That being happy with someone should feel natural and not need music building up to a crescendo.

You Become Invested In Nearly Every Character [85/100]

From the start, it is easy to fall for nearly every last character in On Swift Horses. Lee is just an old-school guy who wants to marry the woman he loves in Muriel, buy a home, have kids, and have a fairly simple life. Muriel, whose mother was a local trailblazer, you can see the push and pull between settling for the norm, yet taking advantage of the increasing possibilities women were being given.

Julius? He is a hustler with enough charm that, even if you know he is lying, you want to hope you are wrong or that you might be an exception to his more conniving ways. And I’d even extend this to supporting characters. Gail, with her potentially lavish lifestyle, you don’t get enough of and want to hear her full story. Sandra, who we get to see more of than Gail, you want, hope, if things ever go south with Lee, maybe Muriel can salvage what she is building with Sandra, despite how much it seems Sandra is the unfortunate half of a all too familiar story of a firmly queer woman being mainly an experience for their exploring friend.

Altogether, genuinely this group, and even Henry, though to a lesser degree, keep this movie which sometimes feels longer than it needs to be engaging – even if just because you want to see the best come out of this for all involved.

Bittersweet Romances [83/100]

From the jump, you can tell there is something off about the romances that On Swift Horses presents. For nearly everyone, there is a line between reality and the dream, and each lead character has a differing take on what that means. Muriel you can see wants to walk the line between having it all, perhaps experiencing it all, and with the right amount of luck and privilege she gets a taste of what she wants but it all is like sand through her fingers.

I would add that the way Daisy Edgar-Jones plays her, you find yourself easily dismissing the sense of selfishness that you could easily be inclined to have, for you can see this longing in her. It’s quiet, muted at times, but never disappears and with how On Swift Horses is shot, even when she pursues what can make her happy, as noted above, it is never treated as a grand gesture, it is almost like seeing the privilege a lot of people take advantage of today to explore what they want, what they like, test their luck, and usually have somewhere safe to come home to.

I mean, watching her scenes with Sasha Calle, who as Sandra is firm and comfortable in their sexuality, it can remind anyone who has gotten to experience experimenting with the same sex, and finding some sense of freedom in it, of those old feelings. This is especially true if, while you were questioning your desires and what made you happy, the person allowing you these feelings shared in your bliss of something new, even if from a different angle.

But even outside the sapphic angle, watching Jacob Elordi as Julius, someone whose need for belonging couldn’t be completely satisfied by his brother, Lee, with him too, there was this glorious exhibition of what freedom looks like, and the cost you have to pay for it. With Muriel, the cost of her freedom was falling for a man whose dreams were either too big or too small to feel she had a real place in them, and with Julius, it was trying to figure out what his dreams were in a world which tried to push the idea he wasn’t supposed to have the kind of dreams he did.

Look at it this way, while he and Lee shared a tumultuous life without parents and bouncing around family members, Julius didn’t seek stability in that white picket fence dream, but seemingly wanted to maintain a level of risk and adventure, hopefully with someone he loved without hesitation. For as much as Lee was aware his brother was queer, and he loved him while knowing this, there is only so much love from a sibling, or family member, or even friend, can do regarding fulfilling you.

So when it comes to Henry, you see this partner in crime, someone Julius can be free around, but Julius’ ambitions do not match Henry’s, which is where the heartbreak comes. For as much as Julius isn’t above lying and cheating, he plays it safe. Henry, on the other hand, operates on “Go big or go home.”

And it is in watching them all go from pillow talk to wrestling with one another’s ideas of what is needed for a wonderful life that makes you ultimately struggle to love-love when anyone is in pursuit of it, since it seems to constantly be, whoever is standing in front of any character isn’t the love of their life, but you can see they feel something intense enough to potentially settle for.

On The Fence

Long In The Tooth [73/100]

On Swift Horses feels like a two-hour movie, mainly because it isn’t clear how it will end, nothing has a sense of permanence, and even when it comes to the ending, it isn’t a period but an ellipsis. So, no matter how cute Sandra and Muriel might be, how you might hope that once Muriel gets to experience what’s out there, she will be happy with Lee, the film keeps going on and on.

I’d even say there might come a point where this feels like it should have been a mini-series, for it seems like they are trying to pack in so much from what is in the book, only to sometimes stretch itself thin and heavily lean on the performances of the actors to keep you from incessantly checking your phone for how much time should be left.

Overall

Our Rating (82/100): Positive (Worth Seeing)

While there are times you may wish that On Swift Horses was a mini-series to expand on certain characters and give you a break, there is no denying how lovingly written and portrayed every character is. Also, in terms of being a story about queer people, some of which who behave badly, it feels like a true testament that we’re in 2025 that these characters can be complicated, queer, deserving of love, and yet struggling with how they define joy, all at the same time.

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