Critics, Users? have you lost your minds? Boring boring boring. I must use 150 characters to write a review but this film has left me so numb that I have nothing to say. The wife was smart and left the movie after 10 menets,

A dangerous neighborhood, a mentally-illed mom, two little siblings, and a meth-cooking dad, Ree has got a lot on her mind. While trying to track down her druggie dad to get help with their house, Ree has to take care of her mother, a brother, and a little sister. The story demonstrated more than just a normal life of a poor family, it showed us that without giving up, there was always hope for Ree. Winter's Bone is touching and thrilling at the same time, but its main element was the performance of Jennifer Lawrence. Unbelievably real and melodramatic, Jennifer Lawrence is becoming a star as we know it. OscarBuzz: Best Picture (longshot from winning but guarantee a nod), Best Actress (same as Best Picture)… Expand

"Winter's Bone" is memorable for the solid performance of Jennifer Lawrence as well as the ready-to-explode tension director Debra Granik maintains. But the problem is, that's all the movie has.

The best movie I've seen this year.

The modern hillbilly doesn't make moonshine. He lives in poverty-stricken places like the Ozarks and cooks meth for his money. He lives in a paranoid, violent world where everyone's related and all live by a social code that excludes the law and outsiders. Director Debra Granik creates a viscerally real setting as she tells the story of a girl who has to challenge this social order to save her family. Jennifer Lawrence, outstanding in the lead role, is supported by uniformly strong performances and writing. Winter's Bone isn't a lot of laughs but it's one of the best movies of the year.… Expand

If you want to see a movie about rural poverty see "Shotgun Stories". This movie was just plain flat. I don't get what the deal was with all of the rave reviews. I could barely sit through it. And to call this a "thriller" is irresponsible and misleading. The only redeeming quality was the performances of Jennifer Lawrence and the almost unrecognizable John Hawkes.

Wow! I can't believe the high reviews for this awful movie. This movie was extremely boring and pointless. I will say that the two main characters were good actors and the scenery was good, but everything else was just either boring or silly. I was born and raised in the Ozarks and this is just not a fair or realistic representation of the people that live there. Regardless, please please please don't waste your time with this farcical and boring movie. I want my $1 back from redbox.… Expand

Jennifer Lawrence gives a star making performance and it has a gripping story even though some of the cast gives bad performances and its low budget makes it suffer. I give this movie 82%.

Just saw this at the Edinburgh International Film Festival where it was warmly received by all. A compelling and fresh story that is carried along by the strong female character of Ree Dolley who was expertly portrayed by Jennifer Lawrence. The film is not a happy one, but it feels more truthful than its hollywood counterparts and there is something about the film that rings authentic and makes this film stand out from others.… Expand

Saw in LA, the best movie i've seen this year.

A wonderfully moving story of life in the ozarks.It is well written and superbly acted.There are many young women living in this culture with the outstanding resolve of Ree and the burning desire to protect and provide for their loved ones.Not surprised that the 2 negetive reviews can from New YOrk Critics as they have no grip on reality.

Great film, definitely see it! A rare look into the dingy corners of America. Young Ree Dolly faces adversity and heartbreak and stubbornly refuses to give in to it. The characters ring true. Interesting study of how poor times cause people to restrain their emotions in their relations--they simply can't afford to let them loose. A low budget gem.

Saw it today. This a great movie. The seamless and elegant portrayal of modern American rural decay through an apocalyptic Greek Mythic narrative is stunning. Hard people making hard choices while dealing with ancient codes of blood loyalty or blood betrayal. First rate, and a wonderful performance from Jennifer Lawrence.

A glacial chunk in the midst of this summer's movie choices, Winter's Bone is an unsettling bad dream, a grim tale that becomes mythic. It features the must see performance of Kentucky-born Jennifer Lawrence (The Burning Plain). In Ree Dolly, Lawrence reveals a scrappy 17-year-old who shepherds her family on the brink of losing their home.

Winter's Bone, which won Sundance's Grand Jury Award, reveals "another America": a land of poverty and ignorance, an Ozark mountain hell. The young adults of Ree's world can escape this ghetto only by joining the Army or setting up a meth lab.

Drug-dealing Jessup jumps bail one day, leaving the family home as collateral. The sheriff arrives. Unless Jessup can be found, the law wants to repossess the home where Ree lives with her catatonic mother and younger siblings Sonny and Ashlee (Isaiah Stone and Ashlee Thompson).

Ree decides to fight impending disaster. "Iâ… Expand

Jennifer Lawrence is a remarkably talented young actress who carries most of the film on her shoulders which coupled with the inspired direction of Debra Granik, bring us one of the most significant films of the year. A strong contender for the awards.

Winter's Bone combines some of the best elements of the survival story, murder mystery, and southern noir genres, yet still fails to generate any real heat. I appreciate the brutal and uncompromising attempt to capture the harsh reality if the heroine's situation and the director does a brilliant job at this. However, I found the plot shockingly dull and the pacing simply cloying. Many critics are praising Jennifer Lawrence's performance, but while I found it to be solid, I wouldn't consider it to be extraordinary.… Expand

Maybe this was just way overhyped before I saw it, but I was completely underwhelmed. I did think Jennifer Lawrence was great and look forward to see what she does next, but the story ultimately did not resonate with me. I can't remember a time in which critics and audiences were so enamored with something, while I was so indifferent.

A pretty mediocre movie with a decent plot, only the writer makes a mess of this and in the end we find a girl who is beaten, torn and humiliated for being nosy. Not to mention she's an inbred.

Bleak and at times very intense Drama that moves at its own pace through the cold and desolate Ozarks. Outstanding performance by Jennifer Lawrence as Ree Dolly. She carries the movie like few could.

If someone could take a simple idea, it would probably explode into a never ending story that would snowball out of control. Well, Director Debra Granik definitely keeps a simple idea simple. With a plot that is simple as "Where's my father?" And strangely, the entire movie is about that. Might seem boring for someone who is used to major confusing plots, but what drives the film is the pure dramatic aspects which aren't sugar coated in any way. It's as if you were walking around with the 17 year old daughter, which her mother has a drinking problem, and will never talk to her. And her father is nowhere, in which we find out he has had some trouble with the law, which makes the entire family being put in jeopardy of losing their house if he doesn't return. Not only that, but she also has to take care of her two siblings. Times are tough for her, and by the end rolls around, you can get a sense that hope and greatness for her is a long time away. So it's depressing, but a masterpiece!… Expand

One of the greatest movies of all time. Debra Granik and the entire cast are first rate. In spite of it being made for only two million I hope it gets consideration at the Oscars for Best Director (Granik), Best Actress (Lawrence), Best Supporting Actor (Hawkes), and in fact the whole cast. DougN.… Expand

This was by far the best movie of the summer. To elaborate in this film you have the setting of simplicity innoccence a place away from urban polution. Then You have the plot of problems of Americas lower class scraping the bottom of the trash for a meal so that even the courages have to regurgitate and again swallow their dignity. Finally the characters are a what happens when you pit a child in a box for 2 years let him out into the ghetto then make his biggest role model a snitch do a corrupt cop. Yes these people in the mountains all survive through ignorance and some perverse excuse to live. And that foundation is what makes this a good movie.… Expand

Winter's Bone has managed to create a hero who is 100% grit. Ree Dolly is potentially one of the greatest movie heroes ever; completely solemn and brave as hell, only thinking of her family and has no hesitations as to do so or not. Jennifer Lawrence deserves an Oscar and John Hawkes, at least a nomination. The setting was perfect and the cinematography was very well done. This movie wasn't that tense, to me, but the overall performance of the cast and the great writing proved this film to be greatness.… Expand

Jennifer Lawrence unleashes a mammoth performance in a beautiful, real, haunting story. No special effects, but 90 minutes will pass and you'll sit back in your chair and wonder where the time went. This is a special movie that deserves to be remembered.

I would love to have rated this film higher, with its toughness and a strong lead performance and authentic locale, but the first half hour to forty minutes are not good You've got to have more creative inventiveness than to just play the same scene over and over of a determined young girl facing yet another tough and creepy hillbilly before returning home and seemingly losing her determination. The story finally gets going (although it still suffers from several stalls) and you can enjoy yourself for the most part. I also felt a bit ripped off in that it claims to take place in the world of backwoods meth labs, but there's not one true portrayal of a meth addict.… Expand

"Winter's Bone" left me wondering what kind of people there are in the world. Yes, Ree is definitely a hero that one does not find quite often nowadays. She provides for her family when everyone else fails her, her family as well as society in general. She makes you feel with her, due to Jennifer Lawrence's excellent performance, making it one of the more memorable performances of the year.
However, everything else about the film is rather strange. At the end of the day, the film left me wondering why the whole thing happened, why did the woman end up helping her in actuality, why did they beat up a 17-year-old girl and what the point of this whole adventure was. It is not a bad film by any means, but it is not a good one, either. Some great acting is present, but the problem here is the story - not maybe whether the screenplay is good or bad, but whether stuff like this really happens in the world. It is a sad place where things like these happen, and I am not quite sure how to feel about the film. Underwhelmed - no. Overwhelmed - definitely not. Just confused and questioning.… Expand

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Drug money bought those little ones that trampoline; drug money bought the hay for the horse, the potatoes, the laundry blowing in the wind, the squirrel gun, the deer gun, the derelict house that mom never vacuums, the plot of land, as everything under Ree Dolly's Ozark sky, rest assured, was paid with her missing father's money he had earned from his meth lab. Welcome to "The O.M.", holmes, where the **** drive pickup trucks and will beat your lily white ass if you poke around where you're not welcome. Adapted from the Daniel Woodrell novel, "Winter's Bone" is film noir gone hillbilly, a noir with clotheslines instead of venetian blinds, femmes milking cows instead of femme fatales; it's a "white trash" Nancy Drew mystery, the story of a teenaged girl's search for her dad, feared dead, in the rural hood of the Ozarks. But that's half the movie; that's just the trappings of genre, hard-boiled...eggs, farm fresh, shadows cast by livestock, a nightmare propagated from iniquitous circumstances, the bedrock which is fundamental to any film noir, regardless of geography. And yet it doesn't take a detective to diagnose the real nightmare, the socio-economic nightmare of poverty, as it's the latter-half of the genre binary(the genre associated with real locations and real people) that's the galvanizing force which coalesces the tropes of noir with the tropes of neo-realism. When categorizing "Winter's Bone", the moviegoer might want to start with ethnography, albeit it's a faux one, since some of the actors have professional backgrounds, even though you'll be hard-pressed to differentiate them from the Missouri locals. It's a seamless mix, just like the genres, as film noir serves as a backdrop for neo-realism, the latter being the stuff of real nightmares. Ree Dolly will never get to Orange County, or anywhere but here, the boonies, because the army dreamer has her hands tied; she can't leave the Ozarks, not with two younger siblings and a zombie for a mom. Long after her father's hands return from the crime lab, the young girl, with little education and no career prospects, will probably start a meth lab of her own. It's a future mountain ballad that would bring a tear in the banjo player's eye.… Expand

The film, while presenting an authentic portrait of the Ozarks and its inhabitants, nevertheless feels quite inert and slack in its pacing. The plot is of little significance. Instead the focus is on the ties that bind closely knit Appalachian families and the consequences of failing to honor the family code. It's not a terrible film, but critics wildly overrated it perhaps due to its gritty realism and honest depiction of its subjects. Only the performances of Jennifer Lawrence and John Hawkes keep the whole thing from sinking under the weight of its own sense of self importance.… Expand

A masterpiece of elegiac bleakness, yet somehow not entirely hopeless. It's well-acted, though the faces have a sort of blankness when compared with the goofy mugging overacting we're used to in a lot of movies and on TV. (You'll recognize the numb expression if you've been around people who've just about hit rock bottom.) It's all filmed on location in Missouri and might remind you of the TV show "Justified," which has a gritty Kentucky setting. As with many well-done books and movies, you wonder whatever happened to these people -- even though you know the story is fiction.… Expand

Just watched it. Dear God in Heaven, what a painfully overrated film. Bland, stark (in a bad way) and boring. It might have been a much better production as a short film. The story failed to grab me once. A tale of backwoods trash that takes a tiny amount of real sentiment and spreads it so thinly along its narrative that your attention WANTS to go elsewhere. Missable. Very missable.

If the film lacks a certain pinch of mesmerizing drama, it makes up the difference with an exquisite lived-in quality. A frightening, yet crookedly poetic realism. http://www.sonara.net.

Jennifer Lawrence is a star-there's no getting around that.She's attractive yes-but it will be her great instinctive acting that will keep audiences coming back for more.

And so it is said... The thing I like most about this movie is that it dared to be different. Not trying to draw us in with bikinis or expolisions but to drop us in a situation that has us wishing nothing but the best for this girl and her family...as we watch from a distance and ask ourselves would we have the strength to endure such a situation for the ones we love? The actress is magnificent.

this movie a bit slow and rather heavy without a lot of scenes to stop breathing, this pasabale and most notable is the acting of Jennifer Lawrence getting cold and strong sense of a young fighter in search of a better future for their brothers

I loved the bleak-yet-hopeful atmosphere, and Jennifer Lawrence plays her part wonderfully. Pretty heavy though, so don't watch it if you're looking for light fare.

The realism of the movie is what makes it so interesting. Jennifer Lawrence did an amazing job and she deserves the Oscar nomination that she had, I wonder if she is going to win... Great writing, great actors, great story, clearly a must see. Visit CriticSpot - http://critispot.blogspot.com - blog for more of these reviews.

Lawrence shows off many the skills in her acting arsenal The film seems to drag along most of the time. The best part of the film is the authenticity of the setting in rural missouri.

Since I've seen it was nominated to 4-oscars including Best Motion Picture and Best Leading Actress I though ''whoa, must be that good'' but... is not what I was looking for. Actually maybe I'm not fair with Jennifer Lawrence because the role counts to judge how good was she... or not. What I can say is not an Oscar-winning acting. Maybe in another movie. The actor nominated in supporting role, John Hawkes deserves an award rather than her. Besides I've seen a good movie I can tell, well done. What I can anticipate, just in general, is... is not what you expect for a Motion Picture of the Year-nominee. Generally a good movie, good scenery... nice landscapes... but the beginning says ''is gonna happen something incredible'' and... and... and... nothing happens next. Actually, let me say this the sensation I had been having the whole movie...… Expand

I really couldnt believe how high rating this movie got. 1 hour I wont ever get back. Movie is so boring and slow, I much rather read the book than sit though this worthless movie.

I really don't understand why this film got such high praise! I get that gives us a realistic look at the lives of poor people living in small tow, USA. Even though Jennifer Lewis deliveries a very convincing performance as Ree the 17 year old small town girl dealing with a lot of issues, this still was just a boring, and pointless film!!! They have made better TV movies! Bottom line, this film was a waste of time so don't bother!!!
Acting: Great
Storyline: Weak
Characters: Boring… Expand

Great drama with smooth and fine acting. Intriguing story about life and customs in part of America that we dont see very often. Maybe an Oscar potential...?

Very strange movie, people are really strange, weird people, barely seen, the place is also very strange, must be horrible to live in a place like this, especially with so many problems like the protagonist. She is a great actress, it gives a lot of penalty see all the suffering, makes you want to get her to care for and give a lot of affection, the film has a heavy atmosphere, cruel, hard, life is very unfair to some, The movie is pretty slow, but I also think that the movie does not nothing, is so incredible so far as to gain as much attention and winning an Oscar for example, is a sad and sentimental movie but after all is a good movie.… Expand

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. "He ain't here."
"He ain't anywhere."
"He's somewhere."

This stirring interaction between Ree (Jennifer Lawrence) and her uncle Teardrop (John Hawkes) transpires as they search a graveyard for evidence of the body of Ree's missing father. Winter's Bone is not a film one would call rich with dialogue. Set as it is in the poverty of the rural Ozarks, there isn't much call for verbose discourse. Unfortunately, the movie fails to offer much by way of compensation.

Winter's Bone is ultimately a bore. Ree must find her father (or evidence of his death) in order to save her home and keep her family together. While I sympathize with her plight, I cannot muster up any enthusiasm so as to concern myself with the outcome of her quest.

You see, it seems that Ree's father probably crossed the wrong people and got himself killed. The mystery of his disappearance purports to be at the centre of this story. The problem is that the success of any mystery is contingent on having at least a modicum of interest in seeing it resolved. Winter's Bone contains a motley assembly of rednecks who probably killed Ree's dad. But who cares? It's not like this is a complex organized crime syndicate that Ree endeavours to bring down. We're talking about a bunch of toothless hillbillies whose reluctance to lead Ree to the body is likely only because they can't remember where they stashed it.

Jennifer Lawrence's performance as Ree is good, but it is not ground-breaking. Her character spends most of the movie wandering around in something of a daze. Director Debra Granik does a reasonably good job of maintaining an atmosphere of brooding menace, but she does not explore anything more than the superficial. This couldn't be more clear than in the macabre climax to Winter's Bone. This scene, in which Ree discovers her father's corpse, merely underlines the literally shallow depth at which most of the film operates.

The film concludes with a shivering Ree seated with her younger siblings on the front steps of the shack she has managed to save. "I ain't going anywhere," she reassures the kids. Unfortunately, there is nothing self-conscious in this scene. In this line, Ree articulates what should have been at the foundation of Winter's Bone. That, despite the successfully concluded digression into the mystery of her father's disappearance, Ree's life will remain one of abject poverty and struggle. Winter's Bone has nothing to say about this reality. I simply can't explain this profound disinterest in its own characters.… Expand

I thought the movie was very good until the end. Jennifer Lawrence did an absolutely fantastic job, and is deserving of consideration for an oscar for her performance. The movie itself built i suspense and then all of the sudden it was over. I would have appreciated a more developed resolution.

"Winter's Bone" is an emotionally gripping, well-paced drama. As many have pointed it, this film proves one can have suspense and intrigue without overblown action sequences, or stock characters. Jennifer Lawrence, only age 20, definitely commands the screen with nuanced courage and a piercing gaze. A well deserved Oscar nod. Hawkes is also impressive as her uncle. I think the representations of rural working class culture are also well done and not overblown; the film is definitely more about the plot than the setting, which is good because it allows us to get enveloped in it. My only negative thoughts are at times it moves too slow, and the ending was not my favorite (don't want to spoil it). In general, I enjoyed this movie and could see myself watching it again.… Expand

Pros: A groundbreaking performance by Jennifer Lawrence; overall, cleverly written and directed; some of the most beautiful cinematography to date. Cons: A bit narratively dull.

I was really looking forward to this movie after the glowing critic reviews and those of a couple of friends. Unfortunately, I found this movie to be dull and without purpose. Everyone raves about the acting but I found the performers seemingly disinterested in their plight. I didn't care for any of the characters nor could I admire any of the performances so there was nothing to hold my interest. I like slow-paced movies but this was deathly dull. A real letdown.… Expand

I read some of the reviews on here and IMDB and thought that at the very least this was going to be a watchable movie. Man was I wrong! It was terrible. Boring, turgid, dreary and anyone who says the story is believable needs to get there brain examined. I wanted to like this movie, but it proved impossible.

When the cause itself slips off of the context from the real problem, it starts to fall away, since its only matter is the subjectivity for grieve. So, distancing pain from the objective matter is what really counted on the resolution over the problem... It's extremely terrifying to deal with the fact that hands are held back every-time she seeks for them, and the only person she's got to fill the empty hole inside of her is no one other than herself, … Expand

Lawrence gives a very believable but subued performance, which is why it is great. Beautifully filmed, great intensity coupled with humanistic fear...the story is gripping. Unfortunately, it begins to slag in the second act, and fails to deliver anything gripping in the third, and instead resorts to a hacking.

Fantastic movie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Beautiful, an absolutely beautiful movie. It illustrates the care-free nature of childhood and the larger than life problems we adults get into to, all the while giving us a herione that's somewhere in between the two, thrust into a situation that she has no control of. Jennifer Lawrence gives an Oscar worthy performance as Ree, and Debra Granik directs it perfectly.

In all honesty, the main reason I sat through this movie was because the protagonist, Bree (Jennifer Lawrence), managed to look simply stunning in every shot. Acting is pretty good and the story isn't all that bad but it feels anachronistic. It's definitely not set in the 60's because you can tell from the fire-arms and cars but it might as well be given the conditions these people supposedly live in. This struck me as unrealistic. The story moves along at a snail's pace and although there is closure at the end, most character's motivations are never really explained. I couldn't help but be reminded of shows like MTV's Teen Moms. I'd recommend if it you're a fan of movies like Deliverance infused with some MTV drama.… Expand

Some great performances from Jennifer Lawrence and John Hawkes. The movie, however, is a little too minimalistic for my liking and the pacing is slow. I absolutely love the whole tone and feel of the movie.

Its slow-pace may be a problem for some people. But if you are patient enough you will be delightful by both its engaging plot and talented lead actress.

While the plot was not particularly exciting, the characters (and the actors who played the characters) made the story interesting enough to hold together quite a bit of pleasantly evocative cinematography and music selections. Also, while the mood was predominantly depressing, just enough hope, strength, and courage exhibited by key characters helped to balance out what were otherwise pretty dire straits.… Expand

Unsettling, yet beautiful. Winters Bone is truly heart-breaking at times. Granik captures every emotion perfectly showing the characters diverse fall in the struggle to cope in a rural and dangerous world. It proves that a low budget can actually provide such poignant film-making. Not to mention a superb and mesmerizing performance is offered by Jennifer Lawrence.

It sports a good performance from Jennifer Lawrence but where the hell is the pure cinematic artistry in this????? It's supposed to be a thriller, well it's boring as hell! 2/4 stars.

Winter's Bone won best film at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival and was also nominated for 4 Academy Awards including best picture. While it was an outstanding story, it defiantly didn't deserve 3 of the 4 nominations. The film is very dark and slow moving, with lots of unnecessary dramatic pauses. Randomly they jump into country music and shots of hillbillies, it was all very odd. While I really enjoyed this movie, especially the storyline, it gave new meaning to the words "white trash". The only Oscar nomination that was warranted, is that of Lead Actress, Jennifer Lawrence. I've never seen her in anything before, but god was she impressive. In a world of darkness, drugs, murder, and despair, Ree stood out, everyone who came in contact with her knew she was special and so is the actress who played her. Normally movies like this aren't for me. It was the story that attracted me to this film, but it was Lawrence's performance that made this film worth seeing.… Expand

This movie is really amazing, the story in Winter's Bone is interesting, and the better is the performance of Jennifer Lawrence is fantastic. This indie movie is fantastic.

Winter's Bone is to put it kindly a bore. it is an almost failure of a film except for the semi solid performance of jennifer Lawrence. It is a tale of backwoods trash that takes a tiny amount of real sentiment and spreads it so thinly along its narrative that your attention wants to go elsewhere but the problem is your mind can't and you end of wondering why am i sitting here?

Nobody should underestimate just how talented Jennifer is. A rich and profoundly grim realistic tale of the dark sides of society. It has suspense and mystery in this heroine's journey.

One of the best thrilling films out there on the market. The films possesed such authenticity of haunting experience and encourages the viewers faith towards the "right" action and not to be blended by any external powers beside from ourselves. It's a riveting social-realist drama that will grip you throughout the whole journey of this young girl. A Powerfully Heroic Film.

This film was extremely well thought-out and executed but lacked the pacing which I enjoy in a film. It was very slow and monotonous, in the same way as No Country for Old Men, which I am sure was done on purpose but just stops me from giving this film outstanding marks. It was also acted brilliantly, with John Hawkes stealing the show. Debra Granik did well in her first 'big hit'.

Winter's Bone is a genuine triumph, a great movie with astounding performances so natural, so genuine, that you forget it's a movie ,With Winter's Bone, Granik has morphed from a director worth watching to one who demands our undivided attention. She's got mine.

Great movie. Drags a little at times but overall this was really well done. Jennifer Lawrence is fantastic, worthy of every praise she got; it's plain to see why this turned her into a mega-star overnight.

A very powerful film. the acting brought me to my knees but there was no finishing blow. It confused me why I didn't love it but it just didn't capture a good ending for the movie in general.

This review contains spoilers. The story felt so real that I almost forgot it was a movie. The journey of a girl who has to prove her own father's death for her family's living felt so chilly and realistic. Jennifer doesn't show her own emotion easily but deliver her urgency 120 percent. We should recommend this movie to our friends who thinks she can meet a handsome vampire if she move to the state like Phoenix.… Collapse