This is absolutely frightening. Scarier then Jason, Freddie or Mike Myers. Seriously. I was so damn nervous watching this movie about two women repeatedly driving a car across a frozen river, that I was positively beside myself. Do you think this sounds like a personal problem? You could be right.
This is not an easy little movie. And, it certainly has it's faults. But, it is a promising first film for screenwriter/Director Courtney Hunt...a woman, yes. I can't tell you how nice it was to watch a film that has an honest to God female perspective.
Melissa Leo plays Ray Eddy. Her performance garnered Leo a Best Actress Oscar nomination this year. There's no doubt she belonged in the group of nominees, but I doubt she was ever in danger of winning. She's great. But, the character is....difficult. And by that I mean....complicated. And by that I mean...she's not likable. Except when she is. I mean, she didn't get to the store on time to buy her son a Christmas present! Although, it was because she was out trying to make enough money to buy him a house. Okay, let's face it, Ray has been dealt a fucked up hand of cards, and she is damn sure not going to fold without a fight. Ray is hard as nails, and like I imagine most women would be in her circumstances, tired of taking "no" for an answer.
I know, you think you've seen this already. It does sound familiar. But, no, I don't remember seeing Ray Eddy before, or, for that matter, her literal partner in crime, Lila.
Lila is Mohawk. A native American who lives in a camper on the reservation. Lila holds a shitty hand too. But, for different reasons. She lost her husband to the river. Yes, that very same frozen river. You see, Lila is a smuggler. An illegal alien smuggler on that other border that we don't talk about much. Lila and her husband made regular runs across the river into Canada, where, after loading a couple of Chinese or Pakastani people into the trunk, they drove them back into the United States. Until, one night, while her husband made a run without her, the ice cracked and Lila's husband went down with the ship...so to speak.
Lila has lost more then just her husband. The baby she delivered after the death of her husband has also been taken from her. Lila is almost numb. The occasional glimpse of her child, seemingly, the only thing keeping her going. While Lila still mourns her lost man, Ray would have been better off if her husband had drowned. But, no, he just took off with every penny they had. Leaving her to feed their two sons on popcorn and Tang. She's not going to lie down and whimper. She's going after what life owes her come hell or...high water.
When fate brings these two together, you just wonder which one is going to kill the other one first. What happens instead is the heart of the film. It's what happens when two women, who may be polar opposites, recognize each other. Both mothers now become willing to sacrifice themself, to save the other.
I might have given this film a C+, but for giving me a relationship between two women that didn't involve shopping, lunching, dating, wondering if he's into you, wedding dresses, or Manolo Blahnik shoes, I'm going to give it a B-. And I'll look forward to more to come, from Courtney Hunt.
No comments:
Post a Comment