We were engaged for 100 minutes by this nearly laugh-free drama about a teenage girl, sole caretaker of her young siblings and mentally ill mother, who has to find her father because he put up their home for his bail and then disappeared. Winner of the Sundance Grand Jury Prize, it boasts gorgeous gray shots of Ozark Missouri (by cinematographer Michael McDonough) and terrific performances by actors of whom we've seen little in the past. Starring as Ree Dolly, 20-year-old Jennifer Lawrence is in nearly every scene, which she can totally carry off. In supporting roles we have, among others, John Hawkes (Me and You and Everyone We Know (2005), American Gangster (2007)) as Ree's uncle Teardrop, Garret Dillahunt (plays the young grandfather in the very funny new comedy Raising Hope, created by Greg Garcia) as the sheriff, and Dale Dickey (who played Patty the Daytime Hooker on My Name is Earl, a now-canceled comedy by Greg Garcia) as the scary neighbor Merab.
It also won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at Sundance for director/co-writer Debra Granik and co-writer Anne Rosellini (they adapted from a novel by Daniel Woodrell). There will be inevitable comparisons to Frozen River, due to its chilly, rural setting, its female-led cast, its mid-fall release, and its Oscar buzz. We saw it in its last days at the dollar theatre, having avoided it due to the downbeat nature of the subject, and were glad we finally saw it. It's available now on netflix. Don't turn it off at the beginning of the credits because, rare for a drama, there's a tiny little bonus at the end (I think. We saw this over 10 days and four movies ago). Check it out and watch Raising Hope afterwards to raise your spirits. And also watch Greg Garcia's acceptance speech at the 2008 Emmy Awards.
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