Tag: Debra Granik

LEAVE NO TRACE – Review


Writer/director Debra Granik, whose 2010 art-house hit WINTER’S BONE introduced us to Jennifer Lawrence, has far less success with her follow-up LEAVE NO TRACE, a plodding and forgettable war-at-home  drama. Ben Foster stars as Will, an Iraq vet who’s given up on a conventional lifestyle and lives in the woods, away from the burdens of civilization. Though the audience is given few details about his past, it’s clear Will and his other forest-dwelling friends suffer from PTSD and just want to be left alone. The problem is Will has his 15-year old daughter Tom (Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie) living out there with him, and though he may want to raise his daughter his own way, the authorities have other ideas. Will is a decent teacher for his daughter, teaching Tom to fend for herself in the wild and she is being educated, but what she’s lacking is any peer companionship. Another problem is that they’re living in Forest Park, a wilderness preserve near Portland, Oregon, so he’s not as far off the grid as he needs to be, making it fairly easy for the police to track them down. The pair is placed in ‘society’, with structure and responsibility and everything suddenly changes for Tom. They find housing on a Christmas Tree farm but it’s not an adjustment that Will can make and he decides, for both, to leave the security and resume their former life, but that plan stalls when he suffers a serious injury.  Tom is taken in by a commune of strangers and while her dad recovers, she is embraced by the simple life and affection of its members.

Based on the novel My Abandonment by Peter Rock, LEAVE NO TRACE has been made with obvious devotion and sincerity, but I found it overly-familiar and meandering. Granik gives her actors and story more than enough room to breathe by adopting a calm, observational shooting style and allowing scenes to run naturally and find their feet. It’s just that they never do. It takes two-thirds of the film for any scene of real emotional truth or power to emerge – and by then, I’d lost interest. I never felt any true father-daughter chemistry between the two leads, or the strong feeling of trust and affection that illustrate the love of a parent and child. Ben Foster excels at playing these tightly-wound combustible types, but his Will is given little dialog so the actor must express himself through pursed lips and haunted eyes. This works for a while, but eventually Will emerges as a rather one-note character. Ms McKenzie has received a lot of praise for her performance here, but to me Tom is just another of the type of overly-wise youth we too often see in film. The actress is fine but the script is weak and the character doesn’t ring true. LEAVE NO TRACE is a well-meaning film that never quite pulls itself together and I can’t recommend it.

2 of 5 Stars

SXSW Review: WINTER’S BONE

WINTER’S BONE, quite possibly, is one of the top five best films to see in 2010. Based on the novel by Daniel Woodrell, the film is co-written and directed by Debra Granik, a New Yorker who has taken great care in meticulously ensuring an authentic and honest portrayal of the Ozarks region of Missouri, the people and culture and the struggle beset upon the impoverished families.

Jennifer Lawrence (THE BURNING PLAIN) plays Ree Dolly, a resourceful and determined 17-year old girl living in the rural Ozarks, caring for her sick mother and two younger siblings. The Dolly family has a history with the law, a reputation Ree wants no part of as she takes care of her family in the absence of her father. The dilemma for Ree is that her father placed their small house and land up as collateral for bail and if he doesn’t show up for court Ree and her family will lose what little they have.

Debra Granik (DOWN TO THE BONE) sticks surprisingly close to Woodrell’s book, capturing the details of life in the Ozarks with amazing accuracy. The language, the relationships, the traditions… its all there to illustrate for audiences the fully encompassing picture of what life can be like in the region. Granik maintains an emotional and suspenseful razor’s edge throughout the film as we follow Ree through her desperately fearless quest to find her father before its too late. On this journey, we’re introduced to hardship, the scope of family ties and the devastating yet unfortunate necessity that homemade meth labs have grown to play in the lives of some Ozark families.

Filmed using a RED One Camera, WINTER”S BONE is an indie film that features HD quality cinematography from Michael McDonough (DIGGERS, QUID PRO QUO) while also maintaining a brilliantly cinematic feel. The images appear as though shot on film, allowing the texture of the wooded setting and the earthy tones of the otherwise gray and brown land and sky to pop with depth and detail.

Lawrence delivers an outstanding performance as Ree, a young woman driven by her moral compass and sense of duty to her family. Ree persists in her efforts to find her father, despite warnings from family and neighbors not to pursue this dangerous inquiry. WINTER’S BONE presents a conundrum for Ree, relying cautiously on the same family ties as are putting her in danger. The existence of meth labs and trade as income is no secret, but to pursue her father is synonymous with Ree exposing their secrets in an unwelcome way.

The intensity given on screen by Jennifer Lawrence is matched only by the frightening performance from John Hawkes (DEADWOOD, AMERICAN GANGSTER) as Teardrop, Ree’s uncle and brother to her father. Teardrop is a strong and intimidating character, one that few of the locals dare scrap with, but Hawkes manages to also fully envelope the softer side of Teardrop buried deep within himself, a connection to his family responsibility that slowly forces its way up to the surface.

While WINTER’S BONE is an entirely different movie from O BROTHER WHERE ART THOU, traditional music from the region plays a crucial role in the film in much the same way, setting the place and tone of the story. The incredibly beautiful folk and bluegrass music in WINTER’S BONE digs deep into the soul of the audience. The film features original music by Dickon Hinchliffe (COLD SOULS) and a mesmerizing onscreen performance by Marideth Sisco as a participant in a group pickin’ session that Ree encounters.

Overall, WINTER’S BONE is a powerfully dramatic story that plays in a subtle enough fashion to maintain its realism. The story evokes mystery, placing Ree in the role of the meddling detective, while Teardrop takes on the veil of the anti-hero. There’s a clear parallel to classic film noir structure without becoming cliché. The dynamics of the characters throughout the film are well played, admirable considering many of the characters onscreen are non-actor locals. WINTER’S BONE is a film that can be enjoyed and appreciated by all, a sincere telling account of real life ordeals.

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 stars