Starring Jennifer Lawrence and John Hawkes
Written by Deborah Granik and Anne Rosellini
Directed by Deborah Granik
Production year 2010
Running time 100 minutes
This grungy, gritty, dark detective story is set among the community
of the Ozark mountains in the central United States, one of the poorest
and bleakest regions in America and a side of that country we very
rarely see on film.
Winter's Bone is based on the novel by Daniel
Woodrell - one of a number of crime stories that he has written in a
genre he has himself dubbed 'country noir'. It tells the story of Ree
Dolly, the seventeen year old daughter in a dysfunctional family and her
search for her father who has disappeared after being bailed on a
charge of manufacturing meth-amphetemine. To find what has happened to
him she must risk her life among the deprived, addicted and violent
members of the local community.
Jennifer Lawrence, one of the
brightest talents in film acting today, first came to prominence in this
film. Her playing of Ree is understated and powerful as she portrays
her character's quiet determination to save her family home in a very
hostile world.
This intelligent, involving and emotionally resonant
movie is one of the best independent American pictures for a long time -
echoing the spirit and uncompromising drama of some of the best films
of the 1970s like Deliverance, Fat City and The King Of Marvin Gardens.
Winter's Bone won major prizes at The Deauville and Sundance festivals.
