OK, better late than never. This amazing film came out more than a year ago, and Jennifer Lawrence was nominated for Best Actress at a disgustingly young age! Jennifer is the star of The Hunger Games, which releases on DVD soon. I lauded her work in the scifi dazzler a while back in this blog.
The Winter's Bone is so great, in my mind, that it defies superlatives. The plot is threadbare, so I can reveal it without being a spoiler: a seventeen year old living in poverty (probably in the Appalachias) must find her father, who fled after he posted bond for a crime, putting up his house as collateral.
Not very interesting? Wait! This film is not at all about a plot. It's about flavor! Not since Deliverance has a film taken us so convincingly into the backwoods, where disgruntled, coarse, illiterate folks struggle to make ends meet and interact with cold detachment.
With the "twang" of the midwest hills, and a vernacular replete with the word "ain't" and double negatives, the hillbillies (yes, the perfect use of the word) engage in dialogs that sear deeply into the viewer's psyche.
The destitute heroine, who valiantly steps into the role of mother to her two very young sibs, goes out in search of her father. In doing so, she meets the inhumanity of neighbors and eventually experiences the brutality of life in a world where there's little food on the dining room table and everyone is desperate.
As in The Odyssey, the burdened teen ventures out and faces obstacles wherever she goes. She's skilled at survival. She's a tough, empowered girl who lives in a dog-eat-dog place where only the strong and thick-skinned can make it.
Oh, don't miss the very woodsy bluegrass scenes too. As a banjo player, I loved those film moments. BUT: Please do not get the wrong view of bluegrass. Between the music in Deliverance and this flick, folks might visit one of my banjo jams and deem me a "good ol' boy!"
Yes, this flick is a marvel. It's one of a kind. You will never, ever forget a backwoods world that exists right here in this rich country of ours.
If you see one film this year, this is it!
Nicely said, David.
ReplyDeleteI avoided this film a bit when it came out, not because it didn't sound interesting, but because it sounded so painfully depressing. But a good film is a worthy film, and your endorsement draws me to it.
I plan to check it out.
Thanks, hope you enjoy it. My spouse also refused to see it, and frankly I do not like to do depressing films (although as a reviewer and film buff, I often do). I did not find the work at all depressing, but instead truly uplifting. Maybe there's something wrong with me! I forgot to mention some really woodsy bluegrass in the film and I might go back right now and make that addition!
ReplyDelete