The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio

Posted by Tara Settembre (tara@filmschoolrejects.com) on March 15, 2006

Release Date: March 14, 2006

The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio stars Julianne Moore and Woody Harrelson and is based on a true story and book, The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio: How My Mother Raised 10 Kids on 25 Words or Less, which describes the focus of the movie.

The Film
Evelyn Ryan (Moore) is a devoted housewife and mother of 10 in the 1950s; A time period perfect for Moore since she looks so classic and has played a 50s housewife in Far From Heaven and The Hours. Her husband (Harrelson) can’t seem to make ends meet, especially since most of his paycheck goes to liquor. The mortgage payments and putting food on the table falls to Evelyn, defying conventions of the day. She continually finds a way to keep her family together by applying her resourcefulness and wit to winning poetry contests and writing jingles for prize competitions. She wins a supermarket shopping spree and other contests that provided washing machines and numerous other appliances the family couldn’t afford to buy on their own. The contests even delivered small sums of cash to pay the milk man. The film focuses on the era general sweepstakes that were open at the time and a common pursuit/hobby among housewives. This was interesting to me since I didn’t realize how almost every brand offered sweepstakes in order to entice consumers.

The film starts a little weird with Moore talking directly to the camera, but I enjoyed the television commercial like feel to the audience address, which is what the film focuses on anyway–late 50s advertising and women’s roles.

Harrelson who I’ve admired ever since his theater appearances in Rainmaker and An Average Day, does a good job playing a jealous and hapless 50s husband. Although it gets really annoying that they call each other ‘mom’ and ‘dad,’ I hate that, but it’s a true story so I guess they have to ;-). Prepare to get annoyed at the father’s destructive character, but Harrelson plays the part well, and that’s how he is able to draw that emotion out of you.

Moore meanwhile is good in anything, so I don’t even have to go there. Her character is so perfect that I was often annoyed at her turn-the-other-cheek persona, however it’s also very admirable, as is her wit and endurance. The story was written by her daughter, which explains the films sensitivity and child like look of awe when discussing Evelyn Ryan.

The film is sentimental and aims to pull at the heartstrings, not enough so to make you weep or anything, but it is cute and enjoyable none the less.

The Extras
Since this film didn’t perform well at the box office, nor was it properly advertised or backed by Dreamworks, I didn’t expect any special features and for good reason, because there aren’t any. Again it’s not surprising given the fact that it’s an independent film.

The Delivery
The DVD is available in 1.85:1 Full Screen format only and has subtitles in English, Spanish and French. Available Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo).

The Upside:
Enjoyable slice of life picture that gives an interesting female look into the past.
The Downside:
It is slow at times due to the lack of action.
On the Side:
Laura Dern has a brief supporting appearance in the film as a fellow female sweepstake completer.

Making the Grade:
The Film: B
The Delivery: B
The Extras: F
Overall: B-

Click Here to buy The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio on DVD from Amazon.

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Technorati: Movie, Film, Classic, Independent, 1950’s, Cinema, Movie Review, DVD Review

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