Every year, independent film makers try to flood the art house theaters with "gritty" and "realistic" portrayals of people, yet most of them don't quite succeed in feeling authentic (I'm looking at you Noah Baumbach). It's a relief then, that "Frozen River", although quite flawed, manages to at least feel authentic, in spite of the unusual story taking place. Ray (Melissa Leo) has just discovered that her husband has run of with most of the money the family was going to use to buy a new mobile home. Though at first you don't know why, the opening shot of Ray smoking and quietly crying in her car does help to drive home the fact that she and her two sons are now in trouble; this is where the movie earns its credibility. Almost 15% of Americans live in the sort of state that Ray does, living from pay check to pay check, struggling to find money to give her kids for the school cafeteria, renting out items because they can't pay for them upfront etc... However, things potentially change when Ray has a run in with a Mohawk teenager who helps smuggle immigrants across the Canadian border into America. At first reluctant, when Ray hears that the pick up and drop off of each pair of immigrants will earn her $2400 up front, she slowly gets sucked in, in part because they cross the border on a stretch of frozen river that is on Mohawk reservation territory, and therefore not under border surveillance. Helping to set the tone for the film are stunning landscape shots of snow, ice, and the gray sky punctured by light from the sunrise. Tension is low key but well maintained, and the runs across the border never feel repetitive; each one is done economically, save for one heartstopping one. However, in this heartstopping moment, the flaws begin to surface. Looking back, the heartstopping moment in which Ray and Little Wolf must return to the river after a drop off is brought about by an action that is explained via dialogue, but not entirely believable. Also, the film's subplot involving Ray's 15 year old son as part of a fraud phone call service (or something like that) adds next to nothing save for the ability to set up a heavyhanded moment in which the son (aka The White Man) apologizes to the one woman he tried to con; guess what? she's Native American. However, inspite of the weaknesses, the one thing that does stand out is Leo's performance. Leo has a perfect face for these types of roles, and director Courtney Hunt knows it, making frequent use of close ups. However, Hunt's writing at times undermines Leo's acting, and the performances don't always acheive the impact that they should. All in all, a solid Indie film made worth while by nice photography, an interesting story (which, by the way, skips out on a neat and tidy ending; kudos) and a beautifully subtle lead performance (though it's not the master class of acting it's touted as). It could have been truly great, if only Frozen River had allowed its characters emotions some room to thaw a little.
Grade: B
Nominations: Best Actress - Melissa Leo(#3)
Number of 2008 Films Seen: 28
Top 10 of the Year:
1. The Dark Knight
2. WALL-E
3. The Fall
4. In Bruges
5. Vicky Cristina Barcelona
6. Tropic Thunder
7. Iron Man
8. Frozen River
9. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of Crystal Skull
10. The Bank Job
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