A River Runs Through It

"A River Runs Through It" follows the lives of brothers Norman (Craig Sheffer) and Paul (Brad Pitt) Maclean growing up in the 1920s in Missoula, Montana. Despite the same upbringing emphasizing education and religion under their Presbyterian minister father (Tom Skerritt) their lives take divergent paths as they enter adulthood. Norman attends eastern universities and pursues a career in academia and a long-term relationship with Jessie Burns (Emily Lloyd). Paul stays in Montana and makes a living as a journalist, spending his nights drinking and gambling. Despite these differences the brothers love and respect each other. Their common bond throughout their lives has been fly-fishing in the river near their childhood home where their father first taught them. They head to the river almost immediately on Norman’s infrequent visits home. It is on these visits that Norman sees his brother’s increasingly self-destructive behavior. Norman worries that his will be Paul’s undoing but realizes there is like little he can do to save him.