And now to close out talking about last year (unless I feel like it again) with what was easily the best film of 2010, Winter’s Bone. In case you don’t know by now, and you may not since you’re stupid; Winter’s Bone is a film about the organized crime culture in the Ozark mountains. The culture in question isn’t sensationalized. This isn’t a gangster film. If Dave Simon brought all the insight and skill he brought to bear on The Wire to crystal meth in the Midwest instead of the white powders on the East Coast; he might have had a story like this.
The premise is a 17 year old girl (Jennifer Lawrence), to whom it has fallen to raise her young brother and sister, is facing homelessness if her former meth cook father isn’t located. He apparently skipped bond and put their home up as collateral. The police cannot locate the man, though they have been trying in earnest. When this matter is brought before the girl, she answers ,”I’ll find him.”
What follows is a descent into the crime world of the Ozarks. The movie builds tension masterfully and will not let go. As in every crime movie, since most characters are criminals, they are separated into those with a code and those who are animals. Which is which isn’t easy to tell.
What I love most about this film is that it doesn’t ever stray from its own reality. There’s no ghost in the machine. There’s no cavalry. Nobody is coming to help you. Problems don’t have easy solutions and where there is no choice, often one must be carved in blood. The solution to the problem may be more horrifying than the problem itself.
Deadwood fans will recognize John Hawkes as Teardrop the brother of the missing. John couldn’t be playing a character more different than Sol Star this time. He’s utterly believable as The Guy You Don’t Want to Fuck With. And Jennifer Lawrence deserves all the praise she’s gotten for this film.
I loved this movie. 8 of 10.