Reviewed by Kate Rodger
The snowballing response to this small-budget independent has reached the door of the Academy - Oscar buzz is growing and there’s no question it’s well deserved.
Winter’s Bone is the adaptation of the Daniel Woodrell novel.
Director Debra Granik penned the screenplay, then with a light hand and a powerful vision, guided this tale through to its emotional and potent finale.
This unflinchingly bleak and gripping film is held together by the central performance of newcomer Jennifer Lawrence and it has certainly put her on the movie map - remember her name come awards season..
In a Missouri landscape ravaged by bitter weather and human habitation and an isolated rural community ravaged by despair and drugs, Ree is struggling to care for her two siblings.
Her mother, wasted by depression, needs Ree's care too.
Ree's father has descended into the desolate mire of the local drug trade, cooking crystal meth to fuel his addiction and everyone else’s.
His absence becomes a living hell for Ree. She is forced to embark on a mission to find him and deliver him to the sheriff before her family loses everything they have.
Call me a sucker for punishment but I find myself drawn to these harrowing tales, and Winter's Bone is certainly one of those. But the subtle human thread which binds it, a young woman's love for her family and her hope for a better life, makes this a film to remember.
Four and a half stars.
Winter's Bone
:: Director: Debra Granik
:: Starring: ennifer Lawrence, John Hawkes, Kevin Breznahan, Dale Dickey, Garret Dillahunt, Shelley Waggener
:: Running Time: 100 mins
:: Rating: R13 - contains violence, drug use, offensive language
:: Release Date: October 28, 2010
:: Trailer: Watch here
source: newshub archive
