Homestead (2024)

Homestead doesn’t so much end as pause, because the story keeps going in a streaming series, and the whole movie plays like a long first episode. Nuclear bombs hit Los Angeles, an attack knocks out the power grid, and a rich prepper named Ian Ross calls in a team of former special forces soldiers, led by Jeff Eriksson, to guard his mountain compound above the town of Oakwood. Then hungry neighbors start gathering at the gate, and the film asks a real question: who do you let in? It takes that question seriously, and its faith is sincere, carried mostly by Ian’s wife Jenna, who believes sharing will keep everyone alive. The trouble is shape, not heart. The big questions get raised, and the payoff gets saved for the show. Critics landed at 45% on Rotten Tomatoes, while opening crowds gave it a B CinemaScore. A 3.8 because it asks something worth asking and only gets halfway to an answer. $3,867 says you buy a packet of tomato seeds this weekend and feel very prepared.

What works: The central question of who gets let in when things fall apart is a good one, and the film treats both it and its faith with sincerity.

What doesn’t: It plays like the opening chapter of a series, raising its biggest questions and leaving most of the answers for later.

Who it’s for: Viewers who like faith-driven dramas and are ready to keep going with the series afterward.