USAToday
Claudia Puig
A Sundance hit that is both absorbing and bleak, Frozen River is anchored by powerful performances, believable scenarios and excellent writing.
Melissa Leo is superb as Ray Eddy, a desperate single mom whose addict husband has gambled the family's meager savings and abandoned her and their two sons. Living in a battered trailer in a particularly bleak section of New York near the Quebec border, Ray tries to keep it together. But her earnings working part time at a discount store barely keep them afloat.
As she searches for her husband, Ray comes across Lila Littlewolf (an appropriately low-key Misty Upham) absconding with his car. Both are single moms, financially down-and-out, but strong in resolve. Lila is a young Native American woman living on the Mohawk reservation. Already widowed, she yearns to retrieve the infant son her in-laws took from her.
The two women form a shaky alliance that involves smuggling immigrants crossing the Canadian border into the USA. The uneasy bond that develops between the two women is fascinating. Neither is completely sympathetic, yet it is hard not to feel compassion for them.
Leo is an under-appreciated character actress whose role as Benicio Del Toro's wife in 21 Grams was low-key but Oscar-worthy. This is another stellar, nuanced performance. She is one of the rare actresses unafraid to look weathered and beaten down and is completely believable in the part of a decent but ill-tempered single mom.
Ray's only joy seems to come from hearing her 5-year-old son's sweetly innocent comments. She spends much of the movie looking distracted and scowling. She is too rough on her 15-year-old son, T.J. (Charlie McDermott), who blames her for his father leaving. But she lights up at the sound of her young son's voice.
The simple setting is evocative. The gray iciness of northern New York in December is unremitting, ideal for the film's mood.
Both women live in battered trailers. There is black ice on the St. Lawrence River. Christmas morning arrives, but it couldn't be further from a Currier & Ives winter wonderland. T.J., a good kid who watches over his little brother, has put up an artificial tree, which looks more depressing than festive.
Frozen River is a story about dire circumstances and family bonds that relies heavily on believable characters. The supporting performances are strong and authentic, but Leo stands out for her remarkably honest and compelling portrayal.
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