I just stumbled across a short review I did of Winter's Bone last year. We went to Cornerhouse to view it with the rest of our critical studies group. It's an excellent film that kick-started the now flourishing career of Jennifer Lawrence, who has since starred in X-Men: First Class and The Hunger Games.
Click here for the official trailer.
Analysing and evaluating films as works of art: Winter’s Bone
(CAUTION: CONTAINS SPOILERS!)
The culture which is
explored in the film reveals a tough, poor way of life. They are almost like a
forgotten race, surrounded by the haunting beauty of rural America, where the
law is ignored and the people live off the land. In contrast to the usual
society revealed by American cinema, the characters find value and purpose in
little but their family and their homes. The importance of family is evident
throughout the film, e.g. in the way Ree’s presence is often only accepted when
she announces she is the daughter of Jessup Dolly, a man whose name is infamous
because of his dangerous involvement in the local drug trade. Her loyalty to
her father is also subtly evident, despite his abandonment of his family.
Analysing and evaluating films as works of art: Winter’s Bone
(CAUTION: CONTAINS SPOILERS!)
The synopsis of the film highlighted the predominantly
negative themes, and after reading it I was worried the film would be so
depressing that it would be an entirely unpleasant viewing experience. However,
the story had a surprisingly enduring sense of hope, and the determined struggle
of the protagonist, the hardened mountain girl Ree Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence), was
completely absorbing, along with the beautifully shot landscape.
The story centres around Ree’s desperate effort to support
her family, who have been abandoned by their ‘crank’ manufacturing father and
face the loss of their home if he fails to show up in court. Seventeen year-old
Ree faces the daunting challenges of acting as a mother for her younger
siblings as well as a carer for her incapable, emotionally withdrawn mother.
Now she also faces the quest to find her father before his absence ruins
everything.
Most
of the characters in the film begin by showing a ‘tough love’ attitude towards
Ree. The locals are mostly all aware that Jessup has been killed, but try to
protect Ree from finding out. In her various visits around the mountain people,
she encounters intimidating and violent characters, which gives the film an
imposing sense of danger and unpredictability e.g. when Ree visits Teardrop
(Jessup’s brother) he becomes violent towards her and his wife upon Ree’s
insistence that he help her find Jessup.
In the opening scenes a muted, naturalistic colour scheme is
quickly established, reflecting the barren and cold atmosphere which is shown
literally, in the mountain terrain setting, as well as the grim, sombre mood of
the film. The main colour which stood out from the mise-en-scene was a cool
blue, e.g. blue cars, blue clothes, water. Blue can be symbolic of depression
and coldness, two words which are extremely relevant in this context. It can
also be associated with knowledge, something which Ree is searching for in the
form of her father’s whereabouts. There is also a fair amount of warm yellow,
suggesting the natural glow of firelight, mostly in indoor scenes.
There was very little non-diegetic sound, in-keeping with
the rural natural feel of the film, although it was sometimes employed to
intensify what was happening on screen, which worked particularly well in
dramatising events because of the general lack of music.
The end scene of the film was in my opinion the most
poignant. Teardrop shows his tender side as he visits Ree and her family, and
plays them a tune on his brother’s old instrument. He indicates to Ree that he
has found out who his brother’s killer was, and in the quiet understanding
between him and Ree it is suggested that he is going to avenge Jessup, and in
that case may never see them again.
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