Picking Up the Pieces 2000

Thriller

Comedy

Mystery

Romance

Rank

#25,985

Runtime

95 mins

Language

English

Made by

The Kushner-Locke Company

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Picking Up the Pieces Plot Summary

Read the complete plot summary and ending explained for Picking Up the Pieces (2000). From turning points to emotional moments, uncover what really happened and why it matters.

Tex Cowley murders his unfaithful wife Candy Cowley and, after mutilating her, hides most of her body parts in the desert of New Mexico. The quiet, sunbaked town is soon unsettled by the strange remains and the rumors that swirl around them. A blind woman, wandering near the crime scene, accidentally trips over Candy’s hand, which has not been buried. When she touches the hand, her sight returns, and she declares that the hand is the Hand of the Virgin Mary.

From that moment, the hand becomes the centerpiece of a local sensation. Word spreads quickly, and people stream into the town out of curiosity and a longing for healing. The miracles attributed to the hand seem miraculous in their variety: a crippled man grows new legs, a teenager’s acne disappears, and a little person experiences an improbable change in his body. The village watches with a mix of awe and skepticism as these events unfold, and the once-hidden relic attracts healers, believers, and doubters alike. The atmosphere grows tense with the pressure of crowds, rumors, and the heavy weight of consequence that follows every claimed miracle.

Tex hears of the miraculous happenings and, driven by a desperate greed or perhaps a buried sense of justice, he sets out to reclaim the hand. He is pursued by Officer Bobo, a patrol officer who happens to be one of Candy’s former lovers. The chase moves across dusty streets and open horizons as Tex and the officer close in on the artifact that has reshaped the town’s fate. Eventually, the pursuit leads to a confrontation, and Tex’s attempt to steal the hand jeopardizes the entire string of miracles that had drawn people to the town in the first place.

Tex ends up in prison, separated from the life he once knew. While behind bars, he is visited by the spirit of his wife, Candy. The ghostly visitation reframes their marriage: despite her past life of infidelity and vice, the suffering she endured with Tex supposedly earned her a place in Heaven. She tells him that her experiences allowed him to be forgiven in a higher sense and that there is a path to redemption for him as well. In a remarkable turn of mercy, she arranges for his release, enabling him to return the hand to its rightful place in the church.

Through these events, the story explores themes of faith, guilt, and the curious power of belief in a community. It presents a stark look at how miracles can transform a town’s longing for meaning, even as they test the limits of desire, ownership, and forgiveness. The ending leaves viewers to ponder whether the hand’s miracles were ever purely divine or shaped as much by human hope and consequence as by any celestial force.

Picking Up the Pieces Timeline

Follow the complete movie timeline of Picking Up the Pieces (2000) with every major event in chronological order. Great for understanding complex plots and story progression.

Tex murders Candy and dismembers her body

Tex murders his unfaithful wife Candy and dismembers her body, then buries most of her remains in the New Mexico desert to avoid detection. The act is brutal and deliberate, setting into motion a chain of consequences that ripple through the town. The desert is left as a silent witness to a crime that will echo in the days to come.

New Mexico desert

A blind woman discovers the hand

The blind woman trips over Candy's hand, which had not been buried, and retrieves it. When she touches the hand, her sight returns, and she proclaims it to be the Hand of the Virgin Mary. The discovery sparks rumors and marks the beginning of the hand's miraculous reputation.

Desert village, New Mexico

Miracles draw the village to the hand

Word of the miracles spreads through the village as people line up to be healed by the hand. Tales describe a crippled man regaining his legs, a teenager's acne clearing, and a little person experiencing a dramatic change. The alleged power of the relic turns the desert village into a place of faith and fevered expectation.

Desert village, New Mexico

Tex learns of the miracles and plans to retrieve it

Tex learns of the hand's miracles and becomes obsessed with possessing the hand. He begins to plan a theft, hoping to exploit its power or escape his past. The pursuit of wealth, power, or redemption pushes him deeper into danger.

Desert town

Officer Bobo closes in on Tex

Patrol Officer Bobo, one of Candy's former lovers, starts closing in on Tex as rumors of the stolen hand spread. The pursuit adds urgency and danger as Tex moves to secure the relic before it vanishes again.

Desert road near town

The chase culminates in the theft of the hand

Tex and Bobo converge on the hand in the desert and a tense chase unfolds. In the moment of the theft, Tex grabs the hand, triggering the collapse of the miracles that had attracted the village's faith.

Desert landscape

Tex is imprisoned after the theft

Tex is captured and imprisoned after stealing the hand. The act fractures his prospects and places him behind bars where justice will weigh his crimes.

Prison

Candy's spirit visits the imprisoned Tex

Candy's spirit visits Tex in his cell, revealing that the suffering she endured with him helped her reach Heaven. She offers an otherworldly explanation for the miracles and hints at a path toward redemption.

Prison cell

Candy arranges a release to return the hand

She explains that her heavenly reward came through their shared hardship, and she arranges for Tex's release so he can return the hand to the church.

Prison

Tex is released and returns the hand to the church

Tex is released from prison and makes his way to the church to return the Hand of the Virgin Mary. The act is framed as a final act of atonement, aiming to restore order after the miracles' collapse.

Church

The hand is returned and miracles fade

Back at the church, the hand is returned, and the miraculous effects fade as the town confronts the consequences of belief and theft.

Church

Tex's uncertain future after the ordeal

The film closes with Tex reflecting on the consequences of his actions, the deception of miracles, and the fragile balance between faith and guilt that now defines his life.

Desert town

Picking Up the Pieces Characters

Explore all characters from Picking Up the Pieces (2000). Get detailed profiles with their roles, arcs, and key relationships explained.

Tex Cowley (Woody Allen)

A ruthless butcher who murders his unfaithful wife Candy and dismembers her. He buries parts of her body in the New Mexico desert and becomes obsessed with retrieving the Hand of the Virgin Mary to exploit its healing power. His crime triggers mass healings but also a violent pursuit by Officer Bobo. In prison, Candy's spirit visits him and helps arrange his release so he can return the hand to the church.

🔪 Crime 💔 Infidelity 🕊️ Redemption

Candy Cowley (Sharon Stone)

Tex's wife whose infidelity sets the plot in motion. After her murder, parts of her body are buried in the desert, and the hand’s miracles begin. Her spirit later appears to Tex in prison, explaining that her suffering allowed her to reach Heaven and aiding his release to return the hand.

💔 Adultery 🕯️ Afterlife

Officer Bobo (Kiefer Sutherland)

A patrol officer who pursues Tex; he is identified as one of Candy's lovers, adding a layer of personal entanglement to the pursuit. He represents law and order pressed against the town’s supernatural upheavals. His pursuit intensifies the tension as the hand's miracles begin to unravel.

🚓 Pursuit 💔 Love affair

Picking Up the Pieces Settings

Learn where and when Picking Up the Pieces (2000) takes place. Explore the film’s settings, era, and how they shape the narrative.

Location

New Mexico Desert

The story unfolds in a desolate desert setting in New Mexico, where a brutal crime and a legendary relic intersect. The arid landscape frames the events, creating a stark stage for passion, violence, and miraculous happenings. This remote locale turns into a focal point for belief, superstition, and moral reckoning.

🏜️ Desert landscape 🌵 Southwest United States 🏚️ Remote desert town

Picking Up the Pieces Themes

Discover the main themes in Picking Up the Pieces (2000). Analyze the deeper meanings, emotional layers, and social commentary behind the film.

✨

Miracles

An enigmatic Hand of the Virgin Mary triggers miraculous healings as villagers flock to it. The miracles transform the desert town into a place of hope, with a crippled man growing new legs and a teen finding relief from acne, among other wonders. The Hand becomes a local legend, drawing crowds and fueling belief. Tex's theft of the hand exposes the fragility of faith and shows how power is tied to its presence.

🕊️

Redemption

Candy's spirit reveals that her suffering with Tex enabled her to reach Heaven, offering a form of moral closure. The film suggests that forgiveness and salvation can transcend a life marked by adultery, hinting at a second chance for those who seek it. Tex's path toward redemption unfolds through the supernatural visitation that influences his fate. The theme emphasizes mercy and the possibility of reconciliation beyond crime.

🔒

Consequences

Tex's violent crime triggers a pursuit led by Officer Bobo, one of Candy's lovers, intensifying the manhunt. The theft of the Hand undoes the miracles, illustrating that actions have far-reaching repercussions beyond personal gain. Tex ends up in prison, where a supernatural turn of events allows for his release to return the hand to the church. The narrative frames crime as a catalyst for deep moral reckoning.

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Picking Up the Pieces Spoiler-Free Summary

Discover the spoiler-free summary of Picking Up the Pieces (2000). Get a concise overview without any spoilers.

In a sun‑baked corner of New Mexico, a tiny village clings to its quiet rhythms while the desert stretches out like an endless stage. The town’s isolation gives its residents a heightened sense of the uncanny, and the harsh landscape becomes a character in its own right—dry, relentless, and oddly intimate. A darkly comic undercurrent runs through daily life, where jokes about fate sit uneasily beside whispered prayers, setting a tone that is both absurd and unsettling.

Everything changes when a severed hand is unearthed in the sand and proclaimed a miracle. Word spreads faster than the heat, drawing strangers and hopeful believers to the dusty streets. The relic’s reputation for miraculous healings—whether tiny ailments or grand revivals—turns the village into a pilgrimage site, forcing the community to balance awe, skepticism, and the quiet desperation that fuels both. The air hums with the promise of redemption, even as the townspeople wonder what price such wonders might exact.

At the heart of the story stands Tex Cowley, a grieving husband whose loss hangs over him like the desert sun. He navigates the swirl of faith and follow‑through that the hand inspires, his own motives tangled with sorrow and a stubborn need for closure. A blind woman, stumbling upon the hand, experiences a sudden return of sight, positioning her as both witness and catalyst for the growing myth. Keeping a careful watch is Officer Bobo, a patrol officer whose past ties to the tragedy give him a personal stake in the unfolding drama, adding a layer of tension between duty and intimacy.

Together, these characters move through a world where belief feels as palpable as the dust on their skin. The film blends sharp humor with solemn reflection, probing how a single object can amplify collective hopes, expose hidden fears, and transform an ordinary community into a stage for the extraordinary. The result is a portrait of faith‑laden curiosity that lingers long after the sun sets over the desert horizon.

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