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I first saw The Claim over four months ago. The studio was screening it for critics in the hope of generating some end-of-the-year buzz. In the midst of bigger films like Cast Away and Traffic, however, The Claim got lost in the shuffle. Now, long after most of the serious Oscar contenders have come and gone, The Claim is being dumped in Chicago, with little fanfare, for what will almost certainly be a short run. That's a shame, since it's one of the better movies I saw last year.

The Claim is based on Thomas Hardy's The Mayor of Casterbridge, but its been transposed to the post-Gold Rush setting of the Sierra Mountains in 1867. There, Daniel Dillon (Peter Mullan) rules the city of Kingdom Come like a benevolent lord, dispensing both justice and jobs with wisdom and magnanimity.

One day, a mysterious woman, Elena, and her daughter Hope roll into town. They're mysterious since the only women in this mining town work down at the saloon/brothel, and these two clearly don't have that in mind. The mother (Nastassja Kinski, Tess) is suffering from consumption, and the daughter (Sarah Polley, The Sweet Hereafter) is too refined for that sort of employment.

We soon learn that Daniel used to be married to Elena, and Hope is the daughter he hasn't seen since she was a baby. The three of them had set out for California when the Gold Rush hit, but they didn't have any luck. One night, in the middle of a ferocious winter, Daniel traded his wife and daughter to a prospector who actually had struck gold but didn't want to stick around to enjoy it. Now, some 20 years later, Daniel is fabulously wealthy, and Elena and Hope are returning for their claim.

Also in the mix is Lucia (Milla Jovovich, The Fifth Element), the saloon's lounge singer who happens to be Daniel's current flame. And Dalglish (Wes Bentley, American Beauty), a surveyor for the railroad, has stopped into Kingdom Come to help decide which route the transcontinental railroad should take. His decision will determine whether Kingdom Come thrives or withers away in obscurity.

The film's two major themes, love and money, are both rich ones, and screenwriter Frank Cottrell Boyce (Hilary and Jackie) mines them both, exploring their nuances and how one influences the other. Interestingly, The Claim finds more passion in lucre than love. Though there are two different love triangles, Daniel-Elena-Lucia and Dalglish-Lucia-Hope, the film spends just as much time exploring the corrosive effects of wealth and its potential loss.

Anchoring the film is Peter Mullan's fantastic performance. Though Wes Bentley and Milla Jovovich get top billing, it's Mullan's immersion in a man who realizes what he's lost that is most compelling. This is nothing new for Mullan. His Cannes-winning portrayal of the title character in My Name is Joe was simply the best male performance of 1999. Here, he's so absorbed in his character that I didn't even recognize him until the film was two-thirds over. He embodies a man who desperately wants love and what is right, but who wants money even more.

The other actors are also strong. Jovovich gives a surprisingly measured performance as the beautiful singer who's suddenly cast off into seeming poverty. Sarah Polley continues her successful run of awkward child-woman roles. And despite Bentley's ever-present smile, he makes the transition from the teenager of American Beauty to the more mature Dalglish with aplomb.

The real star of The Claim, however, is Alwin Kuchler's extraordinary winter cinematography. His nighttime shots of Kingdom Come surrounded by darkness capture perfectly the town's isolation and how dependent it is on the potential railroad. His mountain snow scenes will have the audience shivering even in the middle of June. Finally, his use of fire at various points in the movie is stunning.

Credit must also go to director Michael Winterbottom who has shown remarkable range in his fairly young but prolific career. From the costume drama of Jude to the faux-documentary Welcome to Sarajevo to last year's contemporary Wonderland, Winterbottom's movies have spanned the gamut. Now, with The Claim, he echoes the great winter westerns of McCabe and Mrs. Miller and The Outlaw Josie Wales.

The Claim is a raw tale, told with passion and conviction. Don't let the studio's lack of enthusiasm dissuade you from seeing it. But you might want to hurry; it probably won't last long, and it's well worth seeing on the big screen.   four, out of five

J. Robert Parks 4/21/2001