Jason KingFrozen River ($16.50-)
July 26th 2009 02:21
:
Beautiful but Sad Tale of Poverty
Category: No Category
Frozen River ($16.50-)
I had the opportunity to go to the movies yesterday and watch the 3hr Red Cliff but my partner in viewing, Sam, cancelled due to breaking down in the middle of the Harbour Bridge (wouldn't wish this on anyone) so I decided to have a home day due to a massive hangover. So I settled in with a Hamburger with the Lot, my recipe for hangover cure, and hired out two DVD's that I absolutely loved, Wassup Rockers and this fine piece of arthouse cinematic brilliance, Frozen River.
Desperate single mother, Ray, lives in upstate New York and resorts to smuggling illegal immigrants into the United States as a means of making ends meet in first-time feature director/screenwriter Courtney Hunt's emotionally wrenching drama, winner of the Grand Jury Prize for Best Dramatic Feature at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. Ray Eddy is in an impossible position, it's two days before Christmas and her husband has suddenly disappeared with all of the family savings. Now, as the newly single mother of two realizes the futility of attempting to cover the house payments on her meager Yankee One Dollar Store wages, her children are forced to exist on a nutritionally devoid diet of popcorn and Tang. Ray makes the acquaintance of street-smart Mohawk Lila Littlewolf. Lila, too, has been struggling to keep her head above water amidst economic despair and from having her baby stolen from her by her mother in law, and has recently stumbled across a rather unconventional solution to her dire financial situation. Lately, Lila has been earning a living by smuggling illegal immigrants into the US, but her tribal elders disapprove of the scheme and have recently attempted to stop it by forbidding the local auto dealers from selling her a car. As fate would have it, Ray's Dodge Spirit may just be the only thing the destitute mother can count on anymore, and as this unlikely pair gas up the tank for a daring dash across the iced over St. Lawrence River, their fates become forever intertwined in ways that neither could have ever anticipated.
These two women live lives so far removed from each other, they don't even like each other, but the love of their children, their desperation and will to do what it takes to survive bring them together and grow a bond that will last a lifetime. This film is sad and depressing and it does nothing to icing coat their situations, it is a horrific viewing into lives that are no doubt way worse than ours. I whinge about a tax bill or not being able to eat out each week. These women live in caravans in freezing temperatures with limited support and no chance for salvation besides their own iron willed tenacity.
The acting is superb, Melissa Leo scored a Oscar nomination for this and I believe she deserved the actual trophy - she is amazing. Misty Upham is just as strong but more reserved - you can see small signs of her emotional upheaval but with Leo it is strong and evident. The kids in the film are just as good as their adult leads and define the level of poverty they are facing and how they are willing to do anything to help out their mother. Charlie McDermott and James Reilly, who play the sons and young brothers, are, in actual life, cousins.
First time Writer/Director Courtney Hunt shows how otherwise law abiding people can be driven to do some shady things when there are no other options. While there may still be a great divide between Natives and non-Natives, the film depicts how economic hardship has no boundaries and in fact unites both peoples. Her directorial debut scored her the Grand Jury Proze at Sundance Film Festival. Her award and was announced and presented by Quentin Tarantino who described it as the best thriller he had seen in years.
This is a must see Indie Film that won't make you laugh but will certainly bring forth a tear or two. I can't wait to see Hunt's next piece of film. Out now on DVD and worth $16.50.
I had the opportunity to go to the movies yesterday and watch the 3hr Red Cliff but my partner in viewing, Sam, cancelled due to breaking down in the middle of the Harbour Bridge (wouldn't wish this on anyone) so I decided to have a home day due to a massive hangover. So I settled in with a Hamburger with the Lot, my recipe for hangover cure, and hired out two DVD's that I absolutely loved, Wassup Rockers and this fine piece of arthouse cinematic brilliance, Frozen River.
Desperate single mother, Ray, lives in upstate New York and resorts to smuggling illegal immigrants into the United States as a means of making ends meet in first-time feature director/screenwriter Courtney Hunt's emotionally wrenching drama, winner of the Grand Jury Prize for Best Dramatic Feature at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. Ray Eddy is in an impossible position, it's two days before Christmas and her husband has suddenly disappeared with all of the family savings. Now, as the newly single mother of two realizes the futility of attempting to cover the house payments on her meager Yankee One Dollar Store wages, her children are forced to exist on a nutritionally devoid diet of popcorn and Tang. Ray makes the acquaintance of street-smart Mohawk Lila Littlewolf. Lila, too, has been struggling to keep her head above water amidst economic despair and from having her baby stolen from her by her mother in law, and has recently stumbled across a rather unconventional solution to her dire financial situation. Lately, Lila has been earning a living by smuggling illegal immigrants into the US, but her tribal elders disapprove of the scheme and have recently attempted to stop it by forbidding the local auto dealers from selling her a car. As fate would have it, Ray's Dodge Spirit may just be the only thing the destitute mother can count on anymore, and as this unlikely pair gas up the tank for a daring dash across the iced over St. Lawrence River, their fates become forever intertwined in ways that neither could have ever anticipated.
These two women live lives so far removed from each other, they don't even like each other, but the love of their children, their desperation and will to do what it takes to survive bring them together and grow a bond that will last a lifetime. This film is sad and depressing and it does nothing to icing coat their situations, it is a horrific viewing into lives that are no doubt way worse than ours. I whinge about a tax bill or not being able to eat out each week. These women live in caravans in freezing temperatures with limited support and no chance for salvation besides their own iron willed tenacity.
The acting is superb, Melissa Leo scored a Oscar nomination for this and I believe she deserved the actual trophy - she is amazing. Misty Upham is just as strong but more reserved - you can see small signs of her emotional upheaval but with Leo it is strong and evident. The kids in the film are just as good as their adult leads and define the level of poverty they are facing and how they are willing to do anything to help out their mother. Charlie McDermott and James Reilly, who play the sons and young brothers, are, in actual life, cousins.
First time Writer/Director Courtney Hunt shows how otherwise law abiding people can be driven to do some shady things when there are no other options. While there may still be a great divide between Natives and non-Natives, the film depicts how economic hardship has no boundaries and in fact unites both peoples. Her directorial debut scored her the Grand Jury Proze at Sundance Film Festival. Her award and was announced and presented by Quentin Tarantino who described it as the best thriller he had seen in years.
This is a must see Indie Film that won't make you laugh but will certainly bring forth a tear or two. I can't wait to see Hunt's next piece of film. Out now on DVD and worth $16.50.
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Comment by Natalina
My Life My Muse
Beta Girl Blog
The opening scene with the closeup of Ray's face while she's smoking a cigarette and crying over the stolen money...ripped my heart out.
Comment by Jason King
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we should have film warning labels just like food warning labels, instead of GM free it could be CGI free
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