Review of Frozen River (2008) by Wendy S — 13 May 2009

What a revitalizing breath of fresh air amongst the polluted and shallow overkill of Hollywood junk.

The movie is impecabbly constructed; there are no weaknesses. The plot is a bit dark, and even darkly funny, and the ending helps one survive intact the despairing overtones. The dialogue is succinct, cohesive, clever and realistic; there's never a moment when the viewer stumbles. Acting from all players is top notch; even the youngest son produces a completely believable and endearing performance.

Various overused Hollywood stereotypes and character types (read: young, thin, beautiful, two dimensional, female submissive/secondary roles) are missing in this film; and I felt like I was on a long-awaited vacation.

Thank you, producers, editors and writers who conceived of and made this film happen! It gave me faith that there are still real artists out there.