“All she wanted was to make a living. Instead she made history.” So reads the tagline for the newly released film ‘North Country.’ Honestly, this sums up the entire story with perfection, minus a few details of course.
Inspired by a true story, this film is a heart wrenching tale of a young woman who is in an abusive relationship. Josey Aimes’ (Charlize Theron) only desire is to protect her children at any cost. In the hopes of a better life, Josey packs up and leaves. She moves in with her parents, Hank (Richard Jenkins) and Alice Aimes (Sissy Spacek).
Josey takes a temporary job as a hairdresser but soon looks into being a taconite miner. However, there are a couple problems with this. Her dad does not want her working with him, and she is entering a predominately male atmosphere.
Sadly but expectedly, Josie and the other females she works alongside of are forced to endure sexual abuse, both verbal and physical.
Taking these issues to the head of her company, she gets turned away and is pretty much told to toughen up. Josey does not let this slide though. She ends up hiring a lawyer to fight for her cause.
More details from her past are slowly revealed, and her life story truly begins to reveal itself. Josey is an exceptionally strong woman that does not give up in the face of hardship. No matter how difficult things may seem, she perseveres through it all.
‘North Country’ definitely has several phenomenal performances, especially from Charlize Theron. Her character is believable, and she makes it easy to relate to her feelings. In fact, she makes you want to fight even harder for her. The things that she has to face make you down right angry.
Also, this film is told in flashbacks. This method is highly effective, especially in the case of ‘North Country.’ It gives the film a sense of mystery and questioning. You keep hoping that everything is going to work out, but that question is not answered until the very end.
This touching story could possibly be Oscar material, but the answer to that will have to wait awhile. Until then, ‘North Country’ is a highly recommended film to those wanting to see a top-rate film.