The illegal immigrant dispute between the U.S. and Mexico has been such a hot-button topic lately that I never think about illegal immigration being a problem between the U.S. and Canada.
"Frozen River" uses that very issue as a backdrop for its story about a desperate single mother (Melissa Leo) in upstate New York who turns to illegal smuggling as a means for making money to buy her and her two sons a new home. It's a sombre, indie-vibe film, one of those movies where the color scheme is predominantly gray and brown and the action is set in some location you can't ever quite believe summer visits. Just in case we didn't understand the significance of the film's title, director Courtney Hunt inserts shots of a literally frozen river periodically throughout the movie. The whole thing is probably authentic but it's also pretty depressing.
I'm thrilled that Melissa Leo received a Best Actress Academy Award nomination, because she's a hard-working actress who's appeared in a number of striking roles that have gone without recognition. But while I thought she was very good, I wasn't wowed by her. The film's final moments, in which Leo's character finds redemption, felt false to me. I guess the movie needed something uplifting to balance out its bleakness, but I didn't buy that this mother, whose actions throughout the entire movie were motivated by the instinct to provide for her children, would then agree to leave them in the hands of someone she barely knows while she goes off to spend four months in jail.
Misty Upham, who plays Leo's partner in crime, gives a quietly remarkable performance.
Grade: B+
"Frozen River" uses that very issue as a backdrop for its story about a desperate single mother (Melissa Leo) in upstate New York who turns to illegal smuggling as a means for making money to buy her and her two sons a new home. It's a sombre, indie-vibe film, one of those movies where the color scheme is predominantly gray and brown and the action is set in some location you can't ever quite believe summer visits. Just in case we didn't understand the significance of the film's title, director Courtney Hunt inserts shots of a literally frozen river periodically throughout the movie. The whole thing is probably authentic but it's also pretty depressing.
I'm thrilled that Melissa Leo received a Best Actress Academy Award nomination, because she's a hard-working actress who's appeared in a number of striking roles that have gone without recognition. But while I thought she was very good, I wasn't wowed by her. The film's final moments, in which Leo's character finds redemption, felt false to me. I guess the movie needed something uplifting to balance out its bleakness, but I didn't buy that this mother, whose actions throughout the entire movie were motivated by the instinct to provide for her children, would then agree to leave them in the hands of someone she barely knows while she goes off to spend four months in jail.
Misty Upham, who plays Leo's partner in crime, gives a quietly remarkable performance.
Grade: B+