Winter's Bone (2010)

Director: Debra Granik
Writer: Novel: Daniel Woodrell Screenplay: Debra Granik, Anne Rosellini
Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, John Hawkes, Dale Dickey
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller

Winter's Bone follows in the mold of movies like Frozen River, Snow Angels and all the way back to the Coen brothers success Fargo. We got the normal protagonist with real problems, we got an excellent backdrop in her landscape and we got a story which never turns to unnecessary action sequences or cliches to get its point to the center of the frame. In fact. This is quite possibly one of the very few movies ever made that tells a story very similar to a couple of the stories I would be telling if I made movies. I can easily recognize acquaintances in Ree Dolly, Teardrop and the rest of the characters.

Jennifer Lawrence takes on the part as Ree, and does so with a stunning performance. I can't wait to see more of this actress. Neither her, nor the director, feed the overused need of making Ree go all in, and the subtle ways of our protagonist is a main contribution to both why we stay interested and to why the movie works so well. Add very good performances from both John Hawkes (as Teardrop) and Dale Dickey (as Mareb), and you got yourself a solid glimpse of their lives portrayed excellent. The rest of the characters are also done well, and each of them brings us closer to the community's rules and order, as we take the walk with Ree on the wild side of society. Director and co-adapter Debra Granik have done brilliantly in making their society a main character in the story delivered, without it ever feeling forced or patronizing.

Winter's Bone is one of those movies I could go on and on about, but the important message to get out there is this: Highly recommended, a must see, film making the way film making used to portray life more than fantasies and fairy tales.