[With it releasing a bit wider this weekend, I am bumping our review back to the front page]
Tucked way in the outback of the Ozarks, where the soundtrack consists of random rifle pops and the ceaseless barking of dogs, Debra Granik’s bleak and powerful film explores family, honour and (of all things) protocol amongst a criminal clan of hillbillies. The poverty stricken setting, timeless to the point where it is unclear whether or not the film is a period piece except for a cell phone in the background and the cars driven by the police. It is winter, but no snow has fallen, and two children bounce in the sparse woods on trampoline outside of a cluttered and ramshackle home. You ever wonder why the old women in these places have such weathered and hard faces? Well circumstance and trials faced by young Ree Dolly (played powerfully and willfully by Jennifer Lawrence), in her battered flannels and animal sweaters, certainly evokes a bit of that life journey .
Seventeen year old Ree is caring for her catatonic mother and her two siblings both of which are under 10. They practically have to beg the neighbors for food (although even then, there is the pride of not begging) so dire is their situation. This is complicated when her recidivist father is caught cooking methamphetamine (a cottage industry in the hills which seems to have supplanted Moonshine in the 21st century) and posts bail as a lien on the family house. Now that he has run and is missing, the law is coming to repossess the house and through the struggling family out to the elements. Taking it upon herself, Ree becomes a bit of an investigator amongst the cousins and the extended family to find out how to get dead-beat dad back in custody so that the bondsman doesn’t take the house. While the film starts off flirting as becoming a ‘hick-noir’ as she moves amongst family that has no interest in talking to or helping out (quite the opposite, she is just as likely to be shot or assaulted, presumably for transgressions by her father). At one point one the wife of big old hoss, (name: “Thump”) says, “Don’t you have any menfolk to do this?” Straightening her back (and her resolve), the answer is simple and to the point, “No.” Ree is clearly breaching the unwritten rules of the wide and far-reaching Dolly family, scattered amongst barns and cabins in the hills, but there is little choice with her back against the wall. But Winter’s Bone, despite the appearance of a banjo, children practicing with guns, and a graphic meal preparation involving the gutting and cooking of squirrels, never feels like it is playing to cliche or type. It feels both heightened dramatically and also with vérité (the very unobtrusive, almost non-existent traditional soundtrack and the on location photography underscore a sense of authenticity). At one point, Ree looks to sign up with the Army – not so much to avoid her overwhelming responsibilities at home, but rather for the 40 thousand dollars in enlistment stipend which would help with the financial situation – and the scene with the recruitment officer more or less talking her out of that road plays so convincingly real, that I’d not be surprised if the actor did that for a living outside of this film. The film is stylish by feels real. A film like Wendy and Lucy comes to mind, as does the early work of David Gordon Green. But the focus here is family and clan and navigating a world that is both familiar (being a Dolly is the only existence Ree has known) and alien (she doesn’t normally interact with the harder men and women in the further branches of the family tree.) In a strange and surprising way, Winter’s Bone feels a bit like a Samurai drama played from the female point of view.
And then there is sort of a wild card in character actor John Hawkes, here playing Ree’s uncle whose small facial tattoo gives him the name “Teardrop.” The only remaining man in her life is both tightly controlled, but always verging on losing it to craziness. Hawkes, probably best known as the Jewish shopkeeper in HBOs Deadwood, recalls a younger Dennis Hopper (pre-Blue Velvet) and has a magnetic presence on screen. Any thoughts of Ned Beatty’s fate in Deliverance or other hillbilly stereotypes evaporate with his nuanced performance and the overall slow-burn marvel of the entire film. The film clearly belongs to Jennifer Lawrence, an actress that will very much go places after her turn here, but everything in the film is firing on all cylinders. It’s not a happy film, it is indeed one of those grim regional Sundance films (in fact, this one took the top prize at the 2010 edition of that festival), but it is the best thing to emerge from Park City since Man on Wire. And for once, this type of film ends on the exact perfect scene. The struggling indie film scene for 2010 just got a bit brighter with this bleak slice of life.
Watched the trailer for this the other day, and heard what you said on the Cinecast about it – now I’m 100% torn between catching this or Splice this weekend. Recommendation? The trailer of Winter’s Bone makes me think of Frozen River, too – would you say there are similarities of tone there?
Can’t say either way, because I haven’t seen FROZEN RIVER. Depends on your mood. Splice is fun and sleek. Winter’s Bone is portentous and bleak.
Oh, you haven’t seen Frozen River. It’s good, you oughta see it.
The way you described the bleak down-to-earthness and very unglamorized people and acting, and the themes of people just doing what they have to do to survive is what made me think of Frozen River. Actually, I think they’re about to lose their house in Frozen River, too…I forget.
Anyway. Just found out I’m going to Splice tomorrow night, so maybe I can hit Winter’s Bone on Saturday.
Just caught this. The similarities with Frozen River are not unjustified; mostly with style, tone and class of the characters. Both focus on a woman forced into ugly territory based on economic situations. They’re actually damn near identical films with a slight twist on subject matter (smuggling of people vs. rural drug making).
This came to the UK recently too and I loved it. It’s the sort of film I thought was very good whilst watching it, but thinking about it afterward elevated it to excellent. Understated yet constantly menacing (with very little actual on screen violence) observing a fascinating community dynamic. One of my film’s of the year. I’ve not seen Frozen River yet actually, I might pop it on my LoveFilm list now.
Menacing is a great word for the movie. Every set locale is menacing. The textures are almost horrific. That scene when they’re walking through the abandoned cars on the lady’s property and looking at all of the broken down farm machinery was like watching the set up to a horror film. I had to go back and rewatch as I totally tuned out their dialogue I was so intent at looking at all the stuff in the background.
@David – Great observation on how rough this film is. I had the same feeling. It’s a brutal film but none of the violence is onscreen, it’s all subtly eluded to.
I can see the similarities in tone between this and FROZEN RIVER but for my money, this is a better, all around film though both feature star making central performances. And I absolutely love that nearly everything in this story centres on the women. It was a nice surprise.
I had a chance to speak with John Hawkes about the film last week. That interview will go up later this week.
Awesome, he was great in it. I’ll always remember him most fondly in Deadwood though.
John Hawkes is absolutely great in everything that he does.
This was really boring. Frozen River is soooo much better than this.
Hm, don’t agree that it’s boring. It certainly has its moments (I still love the walk through the farm yard with all of the broken down machinery). But I do agree it’s a tad overrated. And yes, I like Frozen River a lot more too.
Damn, overrated? I just finished it and need a few days to reflect, but this instantly shot onto my top ten of last year.
Personally I find this movie to be a most refreshing view of characters that can be found in everyday life. Not your life, you might say, but definitely a life that exists for a whole bunch of us to just want to believe is way beyond reality? In hindsight I recognized a couple of things about this movie: 1# Television was not seen as something that was available or even relevant in this world. 2# No mentions of God or religion were highly evident. #3. Music, both recorded and live were present. Is there hope to be found? This movie helps me to believe that there is, in possibly just the love even a teenaged child can develop or find to keep her family together, develop thoughts and values of her own and live with drugs and disconnnection all around her while instilling the faith that she just found on her own. To just keep trying? If a hopeless and painful abyss can exist, so does God and the love that can possibly be applied through messages like the one sent in this movie. Is it possible that people may believe that it is overrated or not worth thinking about because they have no personal context in which to place it’s most valued message? I can only imagine where love and hope could ever come from when constantly placed within perspectives that are highly advertised, and only acceptable when found as what is commonly, socially or politically correct. Survival….only God can lend us the emotional means to learn to celebrate life and not just get by. Children like these deserve the benefit of the doubt, they are the reasons we should never turn a blind eye. ” Never ask for what should be offered”…. a messgae that is prolific in it’s own right!!!!!!