filmbore pick of the week - Frozen River

Frozen River 

Director: Courtney Hunt
Screenplay: Courtney Hunt
Starring: Melissa Leo, Misty Upham, Charlie McDermott
Year: 2008
Language: English
UK rental release: October 2009

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I predominantly review non-English language films on this site, but for the last two weeks I've discussed pictures in the language of "Blighty" with the UK indie modern classic Made In Britain and the excellent recent Irish release, What Richard Did. So, I thought that, before venturing back into the realms of feature films not of my native tongue, I should pop over the Atlantic to the United States and take a peek at another English speaking drama of worth. And the first that came to mind was the cool and moving Frozen River.

Ray Eddy (Melissa Leo, The Fighter, Red State) is desperate. A working class mum from a trailer park near the US-Canadian border, she's struggling to provide for her family. And, with hard times ahead and Christmas just around the corner, she wants to give her loved ones more than just a good yuletide season, but a better life.

Her husband has disappeared without a trace. A new double-sized trailer is due for delivery, but as man with a gambling problem he's gone off with all of the money required to pay off what's left to receive their new home. Ray's eldest son, T.J. (Charlie McDermott, from US TV series The Middle fame) is still in school but he wants to drop out to get some work, feeling as man of the house that he should do whatever he can to help their financial crisis.

Ray is goes out to try and do her best to locate her husband. While on the trail to find him she chances upon Lila Littlewolf (Misty Upham), a local Mohawk from the nearby reservation. Lila is driving her husband's car around, claiming the key's were in the ignition. In trying, unsuccessfully, to claim the vehicle back, the pair of them team up in an attempt to smuggle an illegal immigrant across the border from Canada to the US. And the best way to achieve this feat...is across the frozen river of the reservation!

Ray's first smuggling mission goes swimmingly, and she's overawed by the money she can earn. She goes back to Lila and makes a pact with her to keep crossing the ice to bring in more people over from Canada. But each time their tires set foot on the ice, they're getting closer and closer to catching the attention of the local border patrol.

But there's more going on in Lila's life than appears at first. A secret that she cannot bear to admit, sometimes even to herself, fuels a fire in her Ray. And as the trafficking gets trickier for the pair, Ray will walk over fire and ice to do what's right. 

There's undoubtedly one key drive to this entire film in my opinion...is all about the realness. Courtney Hunt (who now works more in TV) breathes such authenticity in this, her debut as a writer and director.

Shot with plenty of hand held action, the picture is personal and intimate. There's a vein of honesty strewn throughout the tale thanks to Hunt's great script writing, and the excellent performances from the cast, yet the true reason for this story's effortless journey to the centre of your soul is carried through the weight of it's direct, sometimes simple and minimalistic method of filming. Soft tones, jarring mid shots, and locked off wide shots of the landscape of the reservation, there's a persona in the images themselves.

This sturdy, characteristic template is fed further through the sheer blinding white of the ice, and the cool, blue surroundings. Even though it's set near Christmas, there's an autumnal feel throughout thanks to the slight lighting and tone used in every shot, generating warmth through the lens while still recognising a barren quality; both vibes typifying our lead's sense of love for her family, but loneliness and despair through her hardship. 

Melissa Leo is sensational in this. Receiving an Academy Award nomination, from this performance you could see that she would earn the gong some day (of which she did, rightfully so, for her stellar portrayal in The Fighter). With one glance, or a brief word, she is able to encapsulate an array of emotions at such microscopic levels, drawing you in to her execution of Ray Eddy from her initial fretful close up to her last stand as the strong mother is. 

Even though she is the heart and pain of this tale, the rest of the cast are tremendous too. As a young actor, Charlie McDermott is touching as T.J., trying to stand up as the man of the house, while still too personally affected by the mess left behind by his missing father. But the winner here is Misty Upham, who delivers the character of Lila with many layers. In parts she appears young and naive, switching to cold and tough survivor, then wise and caring friend. The gentle but absolute way in which she delivers Lila adds extra heft to the dynamic between her and Leo, which is vital to the chemistry that pins this tale together.

The relationship between Ray and Lila is cataclysmic at first, each of them distrusting of the other's motives. Yet, their connection morphs subtly as the story progresses - not so much in a form of sisterhood but through airs of respect for each other. This seems a more genuine and believable approach than the obvious way in which other dramas butter-coat friendships that emerge through strife. Both are born fighters, dealt a poor hand in life, so as a unit their mutual understanding allows them to push further into the seedy world of trafficking, and in crossing the iced river with more courage at each attempt.

This frozen beast that separates the two countries represents more than just an unnoticed pathway for immigrants to enter the US border. The fragility of ice represents the risky nature of what they're involved in. Yet, on a deeper level it stands for so much more than that. It endures as a barrier between Ray and Lila's need for a better future, while mirroring the coldness of their actions and the starkness of their situations. And where they brave the river with less caution after each mission, the river appears less ominous every time. Their unlikely accord strengthens them both as individuals.

Through our two female leads, even though from different cultures, the film addresses their mutual loneliness and struggle to survive, all fuelled by their maternal instinct to provide for their children at whatever the costs. When struck by hard times, it makes you question the lengths you will go to in order to protect and care for the ones you love.

In an industry where we are overwhelmed with a plethora of dramas to choose from, it's sometimes difficult to see the icy wood for the fur trees. Frozen River is one of those personally affecting films that, unfortunately, slips by unnoticed. However, if you are one of the fortunate few who have seen this wonderful piece, or hopefully will be soon after reading this review, you'll be hard pressed to find a film out there like it. And, in a period where the movie is chock full of sci-fi, comic book and fantasy, sometimes we just need to feel something real...and Courtney Hunt couldn't have made this any more real if she tried!

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