Winter's Bone (2010) User Reviews

There'd better be some Oscar nominations coming for this little gem.

[lewiskendell · 8/10 · 14 November 2010]

SPOILER: "But I can't forever carry them kids and my mom, not without that house."

Winter's Bone is a stark, almost documentary-like movie about a poor teenage girl named Ree in the Ozarks who supports her near-catatonic mother and two younger siblings during her meth-cooking father's many brushes with the law. When he disappears before a court date and the family's home is at risk if he doesn't show up, Ree (Jennifer Lawrence) investigates amongst the locals to find out where he might be. But, some people don't like the questions she's asking, and her life may be at risk, along with her family home. 

The plain, unobtrusive way that the camera observes events really helped draw me into the movie, to the point where I honestly forgot that I was watching a movie, at all. This effect was heightened by some excellent performances; especially from Jennifer Lawrence and John Hawkes (Teardrop). Lawrence had a star-making (and award worthy) performance, in my opinion. Ree is probably my favorite movie character of the year (well, perhaps next to Hit Girl), and Lawrence plays her with a realism and stubborn toughness that makes you believe that this seventeen year-old girl wouldn't wilt under the kind of circumstances that would overwhelm most adults. Her love for her family seems completely genuine, and there's never a word or a glance where she seems like she's "acting".  It's all very natural, and I was beyond impressed.

The plot was quite tense and engrossing, as Ree pursues the mystery of where her father is with a dogged intensity, despite the fact that it leads her into some very dangerous (and violent) situations. The sparse, beautiful winter settings are a perfect backdrop for the story. It's been a while since I've seen a movie that does as good a job as this one in communicating a sense of place.

Winter's Bone may not be for everyone, though. There are no shoot-outs or florid romantic scenes. The moments of happiness are small, fleeting, and poignant; like a gift of generosity from a neighbor who knows you're in need, or the quiet assurances of an older sister to her younger siblings. In Winter's Bone, our world is never in danger...but one family's certainly is. I liked the movie the first time around, enjoyed it even more the second, and heartily recommend it if you're interested.

An engrossing slice of backwoods American life

[Miakmynov · 7/10 · 20 June 2010]

Just back from seeing this at the Edinburgh Film Festival, and at the Q&A afterwards, the director, Debra Granik (refreshingly eloquent and well beyond the usual wanting to thank the world and his wife for being here at EIFF) described her film's subject matter as 'hard scrabble'. Although she wasn't referring to a Russian Roulette version of the popular literacy board game (now there's an idea for a film...), it was an evocative description of the tough slice of backwater American life served up here. The basic storyline – a teenagers plight to save her dependent family from imminent homelessness because of the actions of an errant and now-absent father – felt both authentic and compelling, as did the way the local community closed in around her, meting out both violence and support in equal measure.

Using grey and oppressive colour tones, the entire film is shot in a bleak wooded landscape, where the grizzle-bearded men all look like they've just left the set of 'Southern Comfort', and the straggle-haired, world-weary lined faces of the women add to the unspoken sense of the harsh reality of life here. I doubt they see many tourists in this neck of the woods, and at the same time, the film steers well clear of the 'and if they did, they'd probably eat them' stereotype. I liked the sparse and effective use of bluegrass-folky-type music, which cut through, and gave some relief to, an otherwise fairly unremitting sense of hopelessness.

Although the subject matter is an uncompromising reality-check to much of the superficial Hollywood drivel that fills our multiplexes, this is not a hard watch. At its' heart, it's a good story, well-told, with excellent central performances (particularly John Hawkes and Jennifer Lawrence) and an open-hearted sense of the local community here, in spite of their bread-line existence. 7/10.

Americana

[LeonLouisRicci · 8/10 · 26 October 2013]

You can tell by the Title that this is going to be Cold and Hard. Add to that, Bleak, Despairing, Ruthless, and Sneering. There is Barely a Smile in this Study of the Backwoods with its Hypocrisy of Clannish Detachment. It is a Chilling Atmosphere that is Void of Sunshine and has Very Little to Offer in the Form of Empathy.

Outstanding Performances Inhabit this Unyielding Environment that is Captured by the Camera with its Unforgiving Truthfulness. There isn't much to Uplift the Spirit in the Film or the Audience. it is Realism through the Prism of Unflattering Faces and Unclean Milieus. It is a Slice of Life Without Spice.

When Our Heroine is asked by Her Uncle, offering Methamphetamine, "Have you gotten a taste for it yet?", She answers "Not so far." When She is skinning a Squirrel and Discards the Guts, Her little Brother asks, "Are we going to eat those?" She answers "Not yet."

This Demonstrates just how close to Total Surrender and Defeat things are. She is 17 and is Forced into a Situation beyond Her Years. She is Virtually Alone, on Her Own with Two Young Siblings Hanging in the Balance. This all is Interwoven with sort of a Mystery, but that is not what is going on Here. It is not so much a Story as it is a Reflection of Resolve and a Test of the Human Condition.

This one is not for Everyone and is an Independent Film that Tries Hard not to be Artsy but it is Despite Itself. The Characters, Dialog, Environment, and Story are Nothing if Not Beautifully Barren Americana.

Outstanding, if you like ultra-realism

[Bob-45 · 7 January 2013]

While I have seen many more entertaining film and certainly more profound, I cannot remember the last time I saw a film so realistic I felt I was there.

The very realism of "Winter's Bone" undercuts its pacing and dramatic impact. The film opens slowly and my wife nearly lost interest before the story engrossed her. Perhaps given my "country cousin" roots, I was immediately taken in. As a writer I was astounded at how many times I could not predict what would happen next. Yet, every scene flows naturally into the next.

While I found some of the dialog unintelligible, the "natural sound" so accentuated the film's atmosphere I didn't care. Certainly, I had no trouble understanding all the necessary interchanges.

While all performances are "pitch perfect," Jennifer Lawrence and John Hawkes certainly deserved their Oscar nominations and numerous awards. Likewise, writer/director deserved her Oscar nomination for writing. She should have received one for directing. In any event, she is one to watch and, in my opinion, a much better director than Oscar winner Kathryn Bigelow.

There are no really "big" messages here. Nonetheless the "small" messages of humanity,community and personal honor shine like a beacon. I give "Winter's Bone" a "10".

Dangerous People in a Poor Area

[claudio_carvalho · 7/10 · 2 July 2011]

In a wilderness and poor area of the Ozarks, the seventeen year-old Rhee Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence) raises her younger siblings Sonny (Isaiah Stone) and Ashlee (Ashlee Thompson) respectively and takes care of her catatonic mother alone, since her father Jessup Dolly is absent in prison. When the local Sheriff Baskin (Garret Dillahunt) arrives at her poor house, he tells that his father, who is a meth cook, put their house in collateral for his bail and if he does not appear in court, the family will lose the property. The determined Rhee decides to find her father and walks to the houses of his father's friends, relatives and associates but is advised to stop snooping around. Desperate, Rhee tries to enlist the army to get US$ 40,000.00 for five years service but she is minor and needs the agreement of her parents. Rhee discovers that her father might have been murdered by his dangerous associates, but she is unable to find his body. When Rhee is hopeless to keep her real estate, she receives visitors that offer her father's bones.

"Winter's Bone" is a powerful drama about a teenager that supports her sick mother and her two siblings and has to face dangerous people in a very poor area in the United States of America to know the whereabouts of her father. It is impressive the courage and maturity of Rhee in a very realistic story. This low-budget film is supported by magnificent performances and Jennifer Lawrence is awesome. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Inverno da Alma" ("Winter of the Soul")

Haunting, Grim, but somehow Optimistic

[Loving_Silence · 10/10 · 8 August 2010]

Winter's Bone is about a 17 year old girl name Rolly Dee set out to find her father who put their house for his bailbond and then vanishes. If she doesn't find him, her family will be turned out to the Ozarks. Challenging her outlaw kin's code of silence and risking her life, Ree hacks through the lies, evasions and threats offered up by her relatives and begins to piece together the truth.

Let me, just begin by saying this movie is perfectly acted. Jennifer Lawrence gives an Oscar Worthy performance as Rolly Dee. I was surprised how excellent she was, because I was sceptical of her in the "The Bill Engvall" show. But she turned me to a believer and boy, she can REALLY act. Her performance actually surpasses some of Meryl Streep's performances. Hopefully the Academy will recognize her and give an Oscar nomination or maybe even a win! The film is well directed by Debra Granik and is easily her best work yet. She definitely has potential to become the "new" Kathryn Bigelow. Anyways the film is really bleak and powerful, but it still has a tone of hopeful in it. Very interesting and mesmerizing movie to watch. It is a bit slow at times, but trust me it never gets boring or dull.

10/10 Highly recommended.

A fine, fine film; an instant classic which is not to be missed.

[dvc5159 · 7/10 · 13 December 2010]

Rarely do I have the privilege to see a film that is so raw, so real, that it takes over your senses and becomes much more than just a great movie - it becomes an experience or an event. "Winter's Bone" is the little movie of 2010 that does just that - it takes over your senses because what is happening on the screen is unabashedly and uncommonly real and not-Hollywood like that you become immersed in this rarely- explored world of the Ozarks.

Using a novel by Daniel Woodrell, director Debra Granik and co- screenwriter Anna Rosellini crafts a stark tale about a teenage Ozark girl who is forced to find her missing father before she and her two siblings get thrown out into the wild, due to dad putting up the house as a bond for his bail. The script is beautifully written, with very natural dialog throughout, you'll feel like you're there watching them. Every line has a meaning and is not without purpose, the main characters fleshed out in detail without excessive dialog overshadowing the character itself. The story is logical and extremely believable, and makes for a tense experience during the film. There are no clichéd Hollywood subplots and the story couldn't be more direct than a bullet to the heart. This is neo-noir at its finest.

I can't say more about the actors, because they are all excellent in their own unique way. Especially and most notably Jennifer Lawrence as the protagonist Ree Dolly. Now Ree's father is missing and mother gone sick, and she has to take care of her two siblings all by herself. To make matter worse she has been taking some flak because of her family name's notoriety due to her father's mistakes, but she remains steadfast and strong, unmoved like a rock. She learns how to be responsible and independent all by herself, and she is a tough character whose spirit shall never be broken, however hopeless and desolate her situation is (perhaps that is what built her character in the first place in absence of her parents). If Ree knows what to do, she does it. If she doesn't, she'll ask someone for help. She's being honest and not just smart. Keep in mind that this is an Ozark girl we're seeing on the screen, but there has very rarely been a hero(ine) that is so daring, brave and real, that the audience is firmly placed on her side as soon as trouble starts brewing. Ree has to face both the Ozark wilderness and the shady underground, both of which can cause serious trouble for her (and she does get into it). All Ree wants is to make sure her brother and sister have a roof to sleep under every night. To me, that selflessness and the love of her family that drives her makes her one of the most memorable and greatest female film heroine of recent times.

Which comes back to Jennifer Lawrence. She is absolutely terrific and perfect as Ree, a real knockout of a performance. She perfectly displays a balance of emotions and expresses her feelings with her face and not just explaining everything straight out of her mouth like so many hero(in)es. This is a true blue breakout performance for her and I honestly think she deserves many Best Lead Actress awards for her performance, and not just Best Breakout star. I've seen many movies and Lawrence's performance beats many previous Oscar winners' performances hands-down. Kudos also to other supporting actors, especially John Hawkes as Ree's uncle Teardrop, who delivers a guilt-ridden, burnt-out depiction of a nearly lost soul.

The Ozark landscape in the movie is beautiful to watch, but it emits a haunting, bleak presence. Something dark and mysterious but at the same time so simple and real. It is astounding the way Granik films these scenes to deliver the raw power and authenticity these images can deliver. It's like looking at a painting that comes to life. The interior of the buildings (and around them) are quite messy at times but it shows just how bleak the situation these people have to face every day. Not a pretty thought for us "normal" people, but then again what is normal when all Ree wants is to keep her family safe and nothing more? Kudos to the production designer and cinematographer for creating and/or choosing a unique setting that not all moviegoers can experience everyday. The atmospheric, ambient music pulls you in even further into this strange yet quietly dangerous world.

2010 has been a dull year for mainstream movies, but among the little known ones this could very well be the best one. I really hope the Academy doesn't overlook this like so many unfortunate movies before. It's a bit too soon for me to say but this may not only the film of the year, but also a true American masterpiece of a landscape that is nearly neglected by the public. A must see.

Overall rating: 94/100

Bread and Butter

[ferguson-6 · 9/10 · 27 June 2010]

Greetings again from the darkness. A double award winner at the Sundance Film Festival, this film is based on Daniel Woodrell's novel and is directed by Debra Granik. It's opening sequence slaps the viewer with the bleak unforgivingness of life in the backwoods of the Ozarks. This is land of people that time has passed by.

The basic premise of the story is that 17 year old Ree Dolly (played by Jennifer Lawrence) is responsible for raising her brother and sister and caring for her mentally-blank mother while maintaining a mostly positive outlook on the present and future. Reality strikes again when the local sheriff arrives to inform her that her missing, meth-lab running father has an upcoming court date. He used their land and house as collateral for his latest bond. If he fails to show, they will lose their home. Instead of breaking down, Ree pledges to find him and starts out on a hazardous journey, unlike we have seen on screen.

This community of mountain people are distrusting of outsiders, but stunningly, are just as paranoid around insiders and even family members. Their way of life seems to depend on pure independence, even though they all seemed intertwined in the same illegal activities and daily quest for survival. Some kind of odd code exists - ask nothing, give nothing and get rid of any obstacles.

The driving forces of the story are Ree and her constant hope and courage, and her bond to her dad's only brother, Teardrop played chillingly by John Hawkes. Teardrop tries to toughen up Ree and get her to accept her plight, while Ree constantly shows his there is reason to plow forward.

The film is very well written and the local filming brings a harsh reality that was crucial to the film's success. Additionally, I was stunned at the fierceness displayed by Jennifer Lawrence as Ree. Her performance reminded me of my first exposure to the talents of Meryl Streep (The Deer Hunter) and Evan Rachel Wood (Thirteen). Talk about powerful and exciting ... what she did with this role vaults her immediately into a very small group of actresses who can carry a movie with their presence. I am anxiously awaiting her next appearance - a Jody Foster project.

I also want to mention the music in the film. The vocalist, Marideth Sisco, is also the vocalist in the living room band who makes an appearance in one scene. Her voice truly captures the balance of hope and acceptance of plight. This is not a movie for everyone, but it is fascinating and hardcore.

Atmospheric but stumbles over the line

[tr91 · 7/10 · 6 August 2014]

Winter's Bone is a good film. The plot is quite simple but still manages to be very gripping to watch. The atmosphere is tense and edgy and I really was intrigued all the way through the film.

Winter's Bone is about a teenage Ozark Mountain girl, Ree, who is in search of her father. She is caring for her younger siblings as well as her mother who is sick. There is some trouble with her missing father and unless she finds him she is at risk of losing her home. We see Ree go to extreme lengths to protect her family and try and get to the bottom of things.

The atmosphere is very tense and the film is shot beautifully. Jennifer Lawrence gives another fantastic performance (well worthy of that Oscar nomination). My main problem is that the ending seemed a bit abrupt. From the description I read about the film I thought there would be a lot more to the story about her father. All in all a good film though.

7/10

A rich, satisfying film

[howard.schumann · 9/10 · 27 June 2010]

It is quite astonishing what people are capable of when their survival or way of life is threatened. In those moments, they are somehow able to employ a level of courage, perseverance, and high intention that they never knew they had. Such is the case for young Ree Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence) in Debra Granik's The Winter's Bone, winner of the Jury Prize for dramatic competition as well as the Waldo Salt Screen writing Award at the Sundance Film Festival. Newcomer Lawrence, a Kentucky native, is completely convincing as the 17-year-old Ree who has endured much in her brief lifetime and has plenty of obstacles yet to overcome. Living in poverty in a small house in the rural Missouri Ozarks, near the Arkansas border, she has to cook, chop wood and do whatever is necessary to care for her twelve-year old brother Sonny (Isaiah Stone) and her six-year old sister Ashlee (Ashlee Thompson) as well as look after her mother who is catatonic.

Based on the novel by Daniel Woodrell and co-written by Granik and Anne Rosellini, The Winter's Bone depicts how young Ree's life is changed when the local sheriff informs her that her dad, Jessup, on the run after being arrested for "cooking" methamphetamines, has put the family's house up as bond and that, unless he is found and convinced to turn himself in, Ree's family will lose their house. Insisting to the sheriff that she will find him, the young girl begins a search among friends, family members, distant relatives, and the community of small-time crooks, dope dealers, and kingpins that dominate the male-dominated rural society. No one wants to talk and Ree is met with silence, hostility, and even violence. One neighbor tells her that her questioning is, "a real good way to end up et by hogs." When someone asks her, "Ain't you got no men folk to do this?" the answer is an emphatic "no." (at times, the film seems to be challenging Juno for the most quirky one-liners).

Ree's main antagonists are her father's terrifying older brother Teardrop, played by John Hawkes, and Merab (Dale Dickey), the wife of Thump Milton, one of the local bosses. The performance by Dickey conveys an overbearing sense of intimidation that is both real and frightening. As Ree navigates through this hostile environment, we grow to admire her determination and her willingness to confront danger in order to protect her siblings. Winter's Bone is a film about poverty and desperation but it never exploits its characters or engages in manipulation or sentimentality. Though it can be hard to watch at times, it is not as some critics have said "poverty porn." There are lighter moments as well that include authentic Ozark folk music sung by Marideth Sisco and scenes of Ree teaching her brother and sister to spell, count, and perhaps more important for survival, how to shoot a rifle. She also tells her younger brother about the culture in which they live saying "Never ask for what ought to be offered."

Though I was riveted by the unfolding story, perhaps because of the film's high degree of stylization, I stopped short of full emotional involvement and was often conscious of the fact that I was watching a movie. Yet The Winter's Bone is a rich, satisfying film that more than deserves the accolades it has been receiving. Though it is stylized, it has an authenticity derived from using local residents as actors and from the director having immersed herself in the culture for two years before shooting the film. Jennifer Lawrence conveys a stoic and hard-edged individual, yet one with integrity who has somehow avoided getting sucked into the soul destructive way of life that seems to be endemic to the area. In Ree, Granik has created one of the strongest female characters in cinema in memory, one who, by her sheer will, suggests what could be accomplished if all of us could live each day as if our life depended on it.

Every year another overrated snooze-fest sneaks its way into Oscar contention

[islandhunter07 · 6/10 · 30 November 2010]

I do not usually do reviews, but I read one too many 10/10 reviews. Guys, I'm gonna level with you. This movie is a well written, well directed and well acted snooze fest. This movie is terribly overrated.

I'm all for indie movies, but come on people. What does this movie bring to the table? Maybe I'm just not a fan of dark/grim movies that you tell from the first 5 minutes is not going to bode well for the heroine.

This movie has a similar feel to 'The Road' which I also did not like, so maybe I'm biased to this genre. I've already seen 200+ movies this year and the hype of this movie is sickening. I can think of 50 I would put well above it.

If you go see this flick, do yourself a favor and bring a pillow and a red bull.

Oscar material

[trescher · 10/10 · 15 April 2010]

This is an excellent film, the casting was perfect and, filmed on location in the Ozarks, it's depiction of poor rural mountain life in the South was thoroughly authentic. In another generation, it was moonshine that put these people on the wrong side of the law. Today, it's methamphetamine and OxyContin. As the plot moves forward through this drug subculture, the pride, family loyalty, code of honor and toughness of the people are revealed. Three performances stand out. Jennifer Lawrence never hits a false note as Ree Dolly, the 17 year-old protagonist who takes care of her little brother and sister and her mentally disabled mother. She learns that her father, who cooks methamphetamine, had been arrested and put up their house and land for bail bond. If he doesn't show up for court, they will lose their house, and she must find him. John Hawkes, cast as her uncle, Teardrop, quietly develops his character from someone who is initially menacing and untrustworthy into a man you can faintly admire. And Dale Dickey, as Merab, manages to convey a woman who is tough, mean, capable of violence, yet also honest and reluctantly sympathetic to Ree.

Low-key, slow-burning noirish thriller with strong performances and powerful scenes.

[barnabyrudge · 7/10 · 27 October 2010]

Mainstream Hollywood of late seems to have gone down the route of big spectacular action films, broad mass-appeal comedies, sci-fi blockbusters and soulless remakes of older (and better) films. Those of us yearning for more low-key and character driven films – let's call them slow burners with a degree of artistry – must look to the indepedents for our kicks. Winter's Bone was one of the leading independent films of 2010. The critics showered it with accolades and awards, while small pockets of the public championed it as a understated masterpiece. I don't quite find it the amazing, life-changing experience that it has been hailed as in some quarters… but on the whole I'd say Winter's Bone is a unique, original, well-made and frequently riveting "country noir".

In the Ozark Mountains, the Dolly family – 17 year old Ree (Jennifer Lawrence), her younger brother and sister, and their mentally incapacitated mother – receive word that they may be about to lose their home. The absentee father, Jessop Dolly, has put up the family home as a bail bond to guarantee his appearance at a court hearing… if he fails to turn up, the house will be taken from them. Ree desperately tries to locate her father… but she is just a young girl treading through a close-knit community where men and elders call the shots, and the intrusions of a kid – a female at that – are not deemed acceptable. Aided by her edgy and dangerous uncle Teardrop (John Hawkes), Ree presses ahead with her search and enrages other members of the family who are determined to keep Jessop's affairs – and, indeed, his fate – a secret.

Winter's Bone is perhaps most effective for its sense of authenticity – the ramshackle houses, the perpetually secretive and suspicious characters, the harsh living conditions and the extreme measures required to eke out an existence in the Ozarks, are all captured very convincingly. The scene where Ree teaches her younger siblings how to kill, skin and cook a squirrel would come across as gross and exploitative in most other films, but here it's done with a sense of detached matter-of-factness which beautifully complements the film's authenticity. The performances by the largely unknown cast are uniformly excellent, especially Lawrence as the resourceful girl who breaks every established code of her people to do what's best for her family. There are moments where the dialogue is rather unclear and others where the narrative builds to a head but then stubbornly refuses to provide a pay-off. However for most of its duration Winter's Bone is a very sure-footed and intriguing film which rises to some particularly memorable moments.

A plodding bore

[CineCritic2517 · 1/10 · 10 February 2011]

A girl is searching for her presumably dead father in order to prevent her house from being seized by a bondsman. The father turned out to be murdered in a community effort to prevent him from talking to the police about the neighborhood's little drug operation. The claustrophobic atmosphere in the film is accompanied by dry local dialog which won't exactly make you spin in your seat. By the time the film is over, you have gained nothing in terms of entertainment or a better understanding of what the hell it is that makes these people tick. The film just kind of drags on for 100 minutes and then ends. It's not a poorly made film by any means, it just begs the question why anyone would bother to create it in the first place.

Adheres too rigidly to the indie formula

[tieman64 · 14 July 2010]

More poverty porn from Sundance and the indie film circuit, a trend which started with David Green's "George Washington" (though some cite Harmony Korine's "Gummo"), reached its peak with "Shotgun Stories" and seems to be fizzling to a conclusion with "Winter's Bone".

Typically, all these films belong to the Southern Gothic genre, involve semi mythic story lines, Grecian family tragedies, take place in poverty stricken areas, involve rednecks or poor characters and hinge around the promise of some third act moment of violence. In other words, these films are all designed around their budgets: how to make cheap, dramatic films which take place in environments sufficiently alien to affluent white audiences and appealing to left leaning American critics. "Alternative film" has become as formulaic as the stuff it pretends not to be.

Which is not to say that "Winter's Bone" is a bad film – I'll take it over any other Hollywood mega-production currently in cinemas – but one can't escape how drearily formulaic indie cinema has become. That the only way for budding directors to guarantee critical success, let alone distribution, is to hop on board the indie conveyor belt. Now every major studio seems to be courting these films, releasing redneck flicks like "Hounddog", "Undertow", "In The Electric Mist", and "Black Snake Moan" (and similar fare like "Precious", "Ballast", "Sherrybaby", "Million Dollar Baby", "Napoleon Dynamite" and "Slumdog Millionaire").

All these films serve the same purpose as such reality TV shows as "Wife Swap" or "How Clean Is Your House", the horrified bourgeois gazing at the undisciplined classes, the films fetishizing hick culture, their cameras dwelling on rust, junk, derelict vehicles, poor kids, catatonic women, grime, poverty and destitution in a world populated by bearded, gun toting mountain men. Every year, Sundance serves up the same thing.

The irony is, all these "Southern Gothic indie films" have their roots in those affluence-centric films of the 90s ("The Ice Storm", "American Beauty" and more recently "Revolutionary Road" and "Little Children"). Indie cinema used to be all about rich people moping about, then killing somebody. Now it's the same trend: only with supremely poor people instead (examining what caused this shift will take an essay in itself).

But unlike the films of the British and French new wave or the Italian neorealist movement, no attempt is ever made to explore the worlds or social context of these poor characters. This is British "kitchen sink" drama of the 60s stripped of everything but the aesthetics of grime. Critics bought this when Green's grungy "George Washington" was released, but time – and Green's subsequent output, which demonstrated him to be completely without a world-view – has revealed the entire genre to be vapid. This is grime as an aesthetic choice and story as nothing but a skeleton upon which to hang the filth. Wow them with poverty porn and then cash in, a career trajectory which Green and every successful modern indie director exemplifies (Green's last film was "Pineapple Express").

In terms of plot, "Winter's Bone" is a Southern Gothic thriller which revolves around 17 year old Ree Dolly's search for her methamphetamine-cooking father, Jessup. Jessup has disappeared, failing to show up for a court case, and so unless Ree finds him, the family home will be repossessed.

Ree thus becomes a private investigator of sorts, bouncing from location to location, all in the search of her father. She confronts family members and inbred cousins, who live scattered amongst barns and cabins in the hills. We're treated to banjos, gutted squirrels, dilapidated homes, leaking pipes and an assortment of hicks, Ree given the cold shoulder by most. "Don't you have any men folk to do this?" one of them asks. "No," comes Ree's curt reply.

At its best, "Winter's Bones" is the slick love child of "Deliverance" (why are hillbillies always shown to be clannish, violent, territorial and vengeful people?) and "Little Red Riding Hood", a coming of age fairy tale in which little Ree navigates the evil forest all on her lonesome, bravely doing what must be done to keep her family together (her mom is catatonic and she has 2 little siblings). There exists also a slight feminist undercurrent: women are partially to blame, director Debra Granik says, for not challenging the status quo.

At its worst, however, "Winter's Bone" is as mechanical, cold, hollow and cynically calculated as a summer blockbuster, Sundance and the indie circuit churning out - or aggressively marketing - the same "prestige fare" for the past 9 years. And like all these films, it owes its style entirely to David Green.

Green's first feature was made after Terrence Malick (a fellow Texan) released "The Thin Red Line", a film which Green cites as a huge influence on his own aesthetic style. When Green made "George Washington", he opened the door for virtually every Southern Gothic director copying this "new Terrence Malick" style and applying it to their own low budget thrillers. What is this "new Malick" style? It's essentially Malick's usual aesthetic (fluid shots, ethereal music, elliptical, non-linear editing etc), only now shots of nature are replaced with rusty, dilapidated environments whilst moody shots of contemplative characters are replaced with brooding hillbillies, poor people, kids and idiots. Essentially, Malick's highbrow style added instant "street cred" to both low budget indie flicks, and a sub-genre that was getting increasingly stupid and exploitative.

7.9/10 - Why is Bree an anomaly in her own environment? Given her circumstances and upbringing, why is she a figure of such grace, beauty, integrity and self-sufficiency? While the best noirs use the genre to paint a picture of the society in which they take place, this film makes no attempt to flesh Bree, or any character, out. Instead, Bree functions solely as an audience surrogate, taking us window shopping through a grotesque carnival of freaks and oddballs. We stare, they menace us from their cages, and we go on home.

Very solid drama

[jose-cruz53 · 7/10 · 20 January 2013]

I found it a very solid drama that appeals to a wide variety of age groups. The main character is played by a quite attractive girl as well, which adds to the enjoyment of the film. Overall, highly recommended but don't expect it a life altering masterpiece.

The plot is very simple: it is about a girl who needs to prove that her dad is unable to pay his debs so that she can remain in her home with her two younger brother and sister.

I found interesting the depiction of poverty in the United States. As a Brazilian I didn't know that such extreme poverty also existed in the United States.

Neo noir, with a twist of white trash.

[shreke2003 · 10/10 · 1 February 2010]

This shockingly diverse film offers numerous delights to the viewer. Beginning with simple title credits, and ending in a beautiful display of foliage. Winter's Bone will grab your attention and never let go.

Based on a novel of the same name, it's the story of a seventeen year old girl who is searching for her missing father. Sound like something you've seen before? Well it's not! The basic premise surrounds itself with remarkably new idea's and situation's. A feeling of noir envelopes the screen and each character and action leads you on a most enjoyable journey. The Actor's and more importantly Actress, are dug so deep into their characters that there isn't a single fake second.

Debra Granik does an amazing job in the director/screenwriter role. Her vision entangles the story together and propels it forward to the unforgettable climax. The world that is shown through this film is one i was unfamiliar with, but after seeing it all i can think about is the life those characters lead. And how different it is from my own.

A film that deserved the grand jury award at Sundance and one which I plan to see again. Winter's Bone is a film for everyone, be you young, old, or in the middle. Just walk into the cinema with an empty plate and you will leave filled.

well done movie based on the book

[googlinit · 7/10 · 9 February 2019]

Another movie of the 'strong girl' variety with the best of men sorely lacking. (familiar tune today). However, its a well done story of a slice of gritty life in desolate places. No wasted, superfluous filming, everthing is necessary to the story, based upon the book. So I give em an 8 in movie production.

Brilliant Genre Bender and Thematic Cauldron

[dalefried · 10/10 · 25 September 2010]

Watching this film the first time you will see one of the most accessible, compelling, and almost entirely straight narrative films this year. As a film snob, I tend to like them more visually challenging and time bending. Nonetheless, I was entirely blown away in my first viewing and simply could not get this movie out of my mind for the rest of the film festival I was attending.

In quiet repose, the vapor trails coalesce around two things when you try to explain Winter's Bone to others. From the view of genre it goes everywhere: mystery, noir in gray tones, gangster, thriller, almost horror and a brilliant, stark family drama. Then there are the themes that rage quietly behind the scenes: hopelessness in poverty, good transcending almost demonic evil, an unbridled feminist treatise, nobility free poverty, drug culture ripping social fabric asunder, and family is your trump card for everything.

This really grasps you like a whirling dervish in a cauldron, so powerful it takes your thoughts so many places so quickly.

The source of all this is a startling story and screen rendering by one who may become a great young female director. The performances, likely coaxed by this great director, stun you silent.

Plus it contains possibly the greatest role model for the young ever put on film, performed in true star making brilliance if seen beyond the art houses where characters like me reside.

In the end, after five viewings, it stands as my favorite film seen since American Beauty, therefore placing it in my favorite ten all-time. Please see this before it shocks you when its name appears on year end awards lists.

Where the Family Tree Don't Fork

[mephotography2001 · 7/10 · 3 February 2014]

I found it interesting, gripping, suspenseful to a point, yet slow and boring through a good part of it (a better score would've helped), and overall the film had a heavy depressing feel which makes sense, considering the subject matter. The trailer made it look much more of a thriller than it ended up being, which was probably my biggest disappointment. The acting was superb which is most likely what earned it many awards, as the actors made a lot out of a simple "a young woman trying to track down her bond-jumping father to save the family homestead" story. There was a significant subplot about southern family ties that I personally couldn't grasp, but it was believable within the context of the film. It does not follow any standard structure, leading to a rousing climax and a satisfying payoff, but that fits the story quite well, though we are definitely left wanting more, like losing a book with 10 pages left to read. 7/10

Shades of Deliverance, deja vu

[bobbobwhite · 8/10 · 21 June 2010]

This film tells the sad story of inbred, poverty-stricken, Missouri Ozark hillbillies trying to scratch out a living on poor soil and even worse personal resources, so it was no wonder meth production was embraced as a life-changing profit center that had the illegal potential to change their lives for the better. Their poor lives before meth had a certain dignity in the hard struggle for survival in an uncaring world that had passed them by or never allowed them to catch up, either or both, but cheap and dangerous drug production leading to fast but risky money took these unfortunates down a road that surely few would have chosen if they had a chance beforehand to see any of the personal and social harm it created in a society already at great risk of decent survival. What great harm it did was shown and acted brilliantly, as it pushed these already at-risk people lower down the chain of life than before and surely even lower than the wild animals they had to kill for food.

A young girl of 17, seeming older than her years, beaten up and beaten down, wary of those around her but needing their help, and with 2 young siblings and a helpless mother to care for, she learned that her drug-making, drugged-out father disappeared and missed a court date for a drug arrest, and the most important task of her life then became finding her father before they lost their meager home to bondsmen, as that sorry home place was all they had in the world but it was home and she intended with all her heart and soul to do whatever it took to keep it and her family together. The acting throughout was appropriately serious to deadly, with hardly even a smile to be seen, and left us thankful as seldom before for whatever our own lives give us compared to those in the story.

Such a grim and foreboding task the daughter had, with imminent harm threatening around every corner she turned and behind every door on which she knocked, even those of relatives. Determination can get you far, but only so far unless you get a few breaks, and that long quest for a decent break was what kept viewer's eyes glued to the screen until it all played out in the end as could be expected in that dire situation.

Bleak, stark, harsh, mean, cruel...all those tough adjectives were present in full force throughout her search, but present also was her eternal fire of human spirit and family duty that would never quit. When actual survival is at stake, this story showed well that some of us truly can find the right stuff to survive when no better choices are possible.

I could understand why there were so many nominations but

[margineanvladdaniel · 7/10 · 1 February 2022]

Not for me. Of course, young Jennifer is always pleasant to the eye, but for me wasn't that impressive. If the story helped, surely she would have delivered. I haven't seen the ladies category, but I don't think she was worthy of the nomination according to the story and what she acted on it. John, the same, he doesn't touch Geoffrey, I really hope Christian Bale will deserve the oscar or I will be pissed. Per total, fhe story was linear, boring, not exciting, leading to nothing in the end. Definitely not worthy of the best picture od the year.

"Winter's Bone" chills you with its authenticity

[chuck-reilly · 9/10 · 13 July 2010]

Deep-seated suspicions and clan hostilities run deep in Debra Granik's backwoods Ozark country tale "Winter's Bone." Taken from the novel by Daniel Woodrell, the story involves the odyssey of seventeen-year-old Ree Dolly (a great Jennifer Lawrence) who is desperate to find her wayward Meth-addicted father. He's due in court in less than a week and he's already jumped his bail after putting his ramshackle house up as bond. If he doesn't turn up, dead or alive, the family will be thrown out into the fields. To make matters worse, Ree's mother is nearly catatonic and the teenager has to tend to her two younger siblings or else they'll starve. Adding to her dilemma is the fact that her father recently attained notoriety among his clan members as a snitch to the local police. They'd just as soon prefer to see him dead as to give out any information regarding his whereabouts. It doesn't take Ree long to find out that she's up against a proverbial stone wall and that her own life could be in danger just for asking a simple question. Her father's younger brother called Teardrop (John Hawkes) eventually decides to aid her search, but he seems more bent on revenge than anything else. And he obviously knows a lot more about Ree's father's fate than he's letting on. "Winter's Bone" examines an area of economic plight and downright poverty that hasn't been seen in an American film in years. The picturesque Ozark Mountain scenery is abandoned for a bird's eye view of blown-out Methamphetamine labs, seedy bars, and dilapidated homes. Ree's sole purpose is to provide for her family, even if that means taking a vicious beating for asking the wrong questions at the wrong time. Her quest to find her dear old dad takes quite a few tragic detours; but what doesn't kill this young heroine makes her that much stronger.

The fine cast includes Garret Dillahunt as the local sheriff who's more interested in Uncle Teardrop's violent activities than cracking down on illegal Meth labs. Their face-off duel near the end of the film is one of the highlights and a pivotal scene. Dale Dickey, looking like an Ozark version of Madame DeFarge, is the menacing Merab. Her grim-reaper face is enough to scare away any stray animal or traveling salesperson. Lauren Sweetser (Gail) provides some comforting moments for Ree, but they're too few to make much of a difference in her tragic search for the truth. Like everyone else in this neck of the woods, Gail has her own problems to contend with. Anne Rosellini co-wrote the adapted screenplay with director Granik and they're sure to win at least a few nominations when the awards season rolls around. "Winter's Bone" is one of the best movies of the year and certainly the most original one by a country mile.

Sort of Deliverance Meets Stand By Me: The Darker Sides of American Life in the Ozarks

[classicalsteve · 7/10 · 23 April 2016]

While a lot of the big-budgeted studio films funded by Hollywood show us fantasies about the American experience, "Winter's Bone" does not. It's a gritty and disturbing look at rural America in the Ozarks, the mountainous, foothill and wooded region between the Appalachians to the east and the Rocky Mountains to the West. This is definitely hillbilly country where people listen to blue-grass music, hunt wild game for food, and live in simple houses and drive cheap cars and trucks. They also have strange intertwined relationships. Some of them engage in behavior which would make the upper-crust of mainstream America cringe, but they don't snitch on each other because this would be considered disloyal to their community. This self-contained bubble is the setting of "Winter's Bone".

Ree Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence in her first acclaimed performance prior to the "Hunger Games") is a 17-year-old forced by circumstance to be the care-giver of her siblings, 12-year-old Sonny and 6-year-old of Ashlee. Ree Dolly has to be parent, head-of-household and bread-winner for her family. Their mother is sick in the head, unable to deal with family problems, and their father Jessup is long-gone. He's been accused of being a methamphetamine ("crystal meth") "cooker", and he put up the family's small log cabin as bond collateral after he was arrested, and he has a pending court date. The trouble is, no one knows where he is, and the family could lose the house if he doesn't appear in court.

On top of her other duties as the current head-of-household of her family, Ree has to find the whereabouts of her father. She then goes around her "neighbors" who know her family, some of them part of meth production and dealing, asking what happened to her father. These members of this community, if community it can be called, are all tight-lipped about her father, all claiming they either don't know what happened to him or they know and yet have no intention of letting her or anyone else know the fate of her father.

The only adult member of her extended family who is functioning reasonably well is her uncle Teardrop, her father's brother. We get the sense that he also may have cooked meth. He makes up a story about what happened to him with some physical evidence, but she doesn't buy it. Early in the film, Ree Dolly tried to speak with the "godfather" of the locals, Thump Milton (Ronnie Hall), who probably oversees much of the meth production and dealing, but she's turned away. Then she realizes she may have crossed some kind of unknown line when she returns to the Milton residence only to be taken into their barn by force.

This is quite an interesting yet not exactly entertaining film. Jennifer Lawrence shows early on why she became an A-list actress with an Academy-Award nominated performance. The story is entirely from her point of view, and her acting is as compelling as the natural landscape. Aside from the grim but compelling storyline, one aspect should be celebrated: this film has some of the most amazing shots of the Ozarks region I've ever seen in a narrative film, probably the best since "Deliverance" which takes place in the neighboring Appalachians. The broken-down cars and unkempt houses are certainly not sites for sore eyes, however, the landscapes of trees and foothills, especially during the twilight hours when a soft mist coats the scenery are breath-taking. Maybe the point of the story, which is not exactly touchy-feely, is that these people live in a beautiful part of America and yet live very dark and shabby lives. If their lives could improve and be closer to the beauty which surrounds them, maybe their lives could be more beautiful too.

Winter's Bored

[Meven_Stoffat · 3/10 · 28 March 2011]

OK, starting off, you see my star rating for this movie? That rating means I thought this movie has a few good points and, *gasp!*, a good deal of bad points. And I'm not a cinema elitist who disregards every blockbuster ever made and thinks every indier-than-thou flick is by default great. I rate films out of honesty, and this is what I honestly think of Winter's Bone.

First off I can't deny this film is gorgeously shot. There's some great and nifty camera work in the movie and the scenery is just pure eye candy. I loved the opening shots and ominous, dark tone... and then the characters started talking. Seriously, the dialogue is so overblown and tacky. I was laughing at pretty much 80% of the lines spoken in the film. How this was up for Best Screenplay is against me.

What very little plot there is relies on the protagonist being ten times as stupid as the characters in most movies today. It's about a girl at risk of losing her home searching for her father. What feels like an hour of the film is devoted to silent footage of the protagonist walking through the woods. If you cut half of the "walking through the woods" out, the movie would be an hour long. And again, there was a lot of buildup but NO ENDING... it just ends.

The actors do a pretty good job given the script, but this film is a massive bore. I don't even think hobos with shotguns could save this film. I honestly don't get all the praise this gets.