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Jennifer Lawrence, John Hawkes, Kevin Breznahan, Dale Dickey, Garret Dillahunt ... see more see more... , Sheryl Lee , Tate Taylor , Lauren Sweetser , Ashlee Thomson , Isaiah Stone , William White , Shelley Waggener

Her family home in danger of being repossessed after her meth-cooking dad skips bail and disappears, Ozark teen Ree Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence) breaks the local code of conduct by confronting her kin ab... read more read more...out their conspiracy of silence. Should she fail to track her father down, Ree Dolly, her younger siblings, and their disabled mother will soon be rendered homeless. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Flixster Users

74% liked it

40,482 ratings

Critics

94% liked it

159 critics

R, 1 hr. 40 min.

Directed by: Debra Granik

Release Date: June 11, 2010

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DVD Release Date: October 26, 2010

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Stats: 4,410 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (4,410)

  • itsjustme2004
    November 30, 2011
    itsjustme2004
    Slow, independent drama, with a great performance by Jennifer Lawrence. A look at a way of life that most of us wil never see. Really unnerving that families are put in the position of having to live the way this movie portrays, but it's all so true. Well done film. Good cast.
  • jamers2011
    November 5, 2011
    jamers2011
    Great movie. Drags a little at times but overall this was really well done. Jennifer Lawrence is fantastic.
  • FilmFanatik
    October 1, 2011
    FilmFanatik
    Winter's Bone does several things very well. It contains great performances from both Jennifer Lawrence and John Hawkes, it has some nice strong direction and contains a compelling plot that is wound tighter than a Swiss watch. As the minutes tick by we're taken deeper and deeper... read more into the mystery and intrigue, experiencing the drama through Ree's eyes. However good the first two acts of the film, they do no make up for the lackluster final act which seems more like the plot is trying to get itself over with. With how tight things are wound it seems way too easy and ends too abruptly. The first two acts excuse it though and winds up being a very dramatic little thriller.
  • fb701560354
    August 17, 2011
    fb701560354
    Debra Granik has made one great piece of work here. Winter's Bone is so genuine I almost forgot it was a movie. It's haunting, chilling, suspenseful and hopeful but what made this a true pleasure to watch were the performances by Jennifer Lawrence, John Hawkes and Dale Dickey.
  • djdemersseman
    August 17, 2011
    djdemersseman
    A good-yet-unremarkable film with a simple yet somewhat perplexing, often slow plot. It's almost as if, not just the cast but the entire film, was built as a supporting cast to give Jennifer Lawrence a shot at the Oscars. And it's a good performance, probably a decent projection ... read moreof what we can expect from her in the future, but I don't think she'd have gotten as much attention if she weren't such a looker. Needless to say, I won't mind watching her evolving as an actor in future films.
  • fb1576983399
    August 9, 2011
    fb1576983399
    A decent altogether movie with good acting and writing. However, the movie as a whole is a little too bland and dry for my liking.
  • fb1672039553
    July 7, 2011
    fb1672039553
    David and Goliath, only David is a high school girl trying to take care of her mom and siblings and find her father, and Goliath is a large Americana family -- something very much like a backwoods mafia -- who's being prodded with a stick. Simple, but exotic and heavy, and its ea... read moresy to admire and sympathize with the incredible Ree Dolly.
  • TheDudeLebowski65
    June 26, 2011
    TheDudeLebowski65
    As far as independent films are concerned, Winter's Bone has got to be one of the best films that has come along in a long time. The films story is quite bizarre, a girl's father who is a meth cooker is missing, and the police need to see him or their house will be repossessed, s... read moreo his daughter needs to find him. Thats the basic idea of the films plot. Winter's Bone is superbly acted and directed. Director Debra Granik adapts Daniel Woodrell's novel of the same name beautifully to the screen. Winter's Bone is a bizarre film, and I may need to rewatch it, but for my first viewing, I thought it was one of the best films of 2010. Actress Jennifer Lawrence had amazing screen presence, and the rest of the cast delivered as well. Winter's Bone is a powerful story, and it becomes a lot more dramatic as it unfolds. The fact that this film is independently made proves that sometimes the best films, are ones that are made with a small budget, and a good little cast. What you have in Winter's Bone is a gem of film that will probably take time to find a wider audience, but given time and word of mouth, Winter's Bone will surely become a classic. A wonderful drama that iseccentric and bizarre, this is a film that will stick with you, and demand another viewing. A terrific and well acted film.
  • shiftyeyeddog
    June 19, 2011
    shiftyeyeddog
    A dreary, depressing snapshot of life in the Ozarks, Winter's Bone comes across as some kind of "Redneck Sopranos." It's a well-enough made film, and the acting is strong across the board, but I'd be lying if I said the film itself deserved Oscar consideration. It all builds to... read more a pretty anticlimactic ending, then it just fizzles out from there.


    Still, this is one of those films that is a showcase for its main actors, and the best of the bunch is John Hawkes. His nomination is well-deserved, and it's nice to see him get some attention after years as a great character actor.
  • fb528166828
    June 16, 2011
    fb528166828
    There were only two Best Picture Oscar nominees from last year that I didn't manage to see in theatres, so today I decided to catch up on one of them, Winter's Bone (The other one being The Kids Are All Right). Winter's Bone was something of a sensation on the festival circuit la... read morest year following it's debut at Sundance last year, scooping a bunch of awards and making a star of the previously unknown Jennifer Lawrence (soon to be seen in X-Men: First Class and the adaptation of the Hunger Games novels). It's a solid, moody film which is unfortunately hampered by a somewhat dull and unfocused story, a problem I see in a lot of independent drama.

    The setting of a small American community seemingly under the control of methamphetamine dealers makes for some beautiful and haunting imagery which matches the bleak tone well, and a feeling of cold seeps through every desaturated frame of the film. Ree (Lawrence) is a teenager struggling to raise her young brother and sister and care for her mentally ill mother, while also searching for her absentee father to ensure he makes a court appearance so the family won't be turned out of their house. She's something of a wonder-kid, selflessly juggling all of these difficulties, and it just seems a little far-fetched. In the hunt for her father, Ree visits various acquaintances to gather clues, adding a nice element of mystery to the story, but again the realism of the film's construction and performances doesn't extend to the story as Ree runs afoul of the higher-ups of the town's drug hierarchy. There is no satisfying explanation offered for why so many people react to Ree with such hostility, but the implication is that asking questions leads to trouble. However, Ree's claim that she is a "bred and buttered" member of the community surely extends to a knowledge of its pervasive drug influence, and the idea that a young girl would be treated so badly by so many stretches the limits of believability a little too far, and reeks of emotional pandering.

    While this type of overly melodramatic plot is sadly quite common in American independent productions, the quality of the acting does go a long way to redeeming Winter's Bone. The film works as a character study with Lawrence shining in every single scene, and the massively underrated John Hawkes (Me and You and Everyone We Know, Deadwood) is typically excellent as Ree's uncle Teardrop. Working with a fairly small part, Hawkes injects such humanity into the character, and he's by far the best part of the film. Lawrence is well on the way to becoming a huge star, but hopefully the success of Winter's Bone will also allow us to see more of Hawkes in future, as he's truly a class act who needs to be in more films.

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Critic Reviews

Roger Moore
July 28, 2010
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

This unblinking look at America's Red State Crystal Meth Belt is an instant Southern Gothic classic. Full Review

Bill Goodykoontz
July 23, 2010
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic

Winter's Bone is a genuine triumph, a great movie with astounding performances so natural, so genuine, that you forget it's a movie. Full Review

David Denby
June 28, 2010
David Denby, New Yorker

What we've been waiting for: a work of art that grabs hold and won't let go. Full Review

Amy Biancolli
June 25, 2010
Amy Biancolli, San Francisco Chronicle

With Winter's Bone, Granik has morphed from a director worth watching to one who demands our undivided attention. She's got mine. Full Review

Tom Long
June 25, 2010
Tom Long, Detroit News

The result is a film and a character of unusual strength. Pity Ree, question her decisions, wonder about her future. But the girl does not quit. Full Review

Lisa Kennedy
June 25, 2010
Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post

Jennifer Lawrence gives a stirring turn in a gift-of-a-lifetime role. Full Review

Chris Vognar
June 25, 2010
Chris Vognar, Dallas Morning News

A masterpiece of sparseness. Full Review

Colin Covert
June 24, 2010
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune

In an impeccable act of sympathetic imagination, director Debra Granik has entered into the soul of debt-ridden Appalachia. Full Review

Rick Groen
June 18, 2010
Rick Groen, Globe and Mail

This is a world out of time and, despite the trappings of flinty realism, the film too unfolds like an elemental myth from the stormy past -- a Greek tragedy driven by dark fates and struggling toward... Full Review

Peter Rainer
June 18, 2010
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor

For Jennifer Lawrence, she's probably the most gifted actress of her generation. How wonderful that, so young, she has already found a role worthy of her talent. Full Review

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Facts

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    • Teardrop: I already told you once with my mouth.
    • Ree: What I really can't stand is the way I feel ashamed... for dad.
    • Teardrop: Well, he loved y'all. That's where he went weak.
    • Ree: Never ask for what oughta be offered.
    • Ree: 'd be lost without the weight of you two on my back. I ain't going anywhere.
  • Talking Just Causes Witnesses
  • survival, ozarks, meth, noir, suspense
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