Winter's Bone (2010)

Winters Bone is a morbid drama directed by Debra Granik, that tells the story of 17 year old Rea (Jennifer Lawrence in her film acting debut), trying to discover the truth behind her father’s disappearance. Standing in her way is an entire small town that will do anything to prevent her from knowing the truth and the fear of losing her home that she desperately needs to help take care of her younger siblings and a mother silence by mental illness. Amidst the dark hues of the cinematography, swirling mass of blackened clouds in the sky and unfriendly faces greeting our protagonist at every turn. You instantly strike up a warm affinity for Rea, because regardless of her surroundings and anguishing pain weighing heavily on her shoulders, when you look into her tear tinted eyes all you see is a girl who loves her siblings dearly and would do anything to make sure they are well looked after, even if its in sacrificing of her safety and her desire to join the army. As you can already tell, the profile of the character is rather difficult to even contemplate the level depth needed for it, but yet at only 19 Lawrence demonstrates a firm grasp a character who is planets apart from the life of a Hollywood starlet, whilst still have the acting clout to still be able to add her own personal strokes of the paint brush to the rich portrait that is Rea. What I also loved about the Winters Bone was its truly gritty rawness; at times it didn’t even feel like you were watching a film, rather as if you were sat watching a David Attenborough documentary with the commentary turned off. This style of filmmaking reminded me greatly of Beast of the South Wild, which also deals with a small section of the American community you don’t get to see a lot of the time and is generally the last thing you think of when you think the American Dream. For that reason both films were truly eye opening and greatly educational and I will recommended each of them to you if you are looking for a new profound viewing experience.