The Prize Winner Of Defiance Ohio

[George Bellefontaine]

Yep, another one of those films that it seems like only my wife and I watch. Well this is the story of a real life mother of 10, Evelyn Ryan ( played by Julianne Moore) who had to come up with some way of raising a large family while putting up with a nasty drunk of a husband, Kelly ( played effectively by Woody Harrelson) who spends all his money on booze. It's the 1950s and tv is the answer with all the commercial advertister contests. All she has to do is finish off an ad jingle and the best answer wins. Well she wins and wins and wins. And through all the misey her husband causes her, she remains happy and positive in her outlook. But when she learns that hubby has emptied the bank account so he'd have money for booze, threatening the loss of the one true thing she holds dearly ( her house) , Evelyn begins to unravel. She will have to come up with $4K in order to save the house. She enters a big contest that could save the day, but can she win ?

Julianne Moore is a delightful actress and she does a marvelous job of portarying the real life Evelyn Ryan. And Woody makes you despise him while still feeling sorry for his weakness. This looks like a little indie film with a small budget. PQ is not all that great. But the story is intriguing and holds you from start to finish. The film is based on a book written by one of the daughters.

Probably not of interest to most HT Guide members but you may be surprised if you give it a rental. You just may like it.

:T :T :T :T

[Chris D]

I had never heard of the movie, nor would I have ever considered watching it, based on the title, until I was watching "Ebert and Roeper". Roger recommended it as his pic of the week for DVD, noting that it had "surprisingly" bombed in the theater.

So, I rented it, and liked it. I didn't think it was as fantastic as Roger had said, but nice. Very interesting that it's a true story. I thought that the daughter had actually over-dramatized her father's actions, though. She (the author) seemed to be somewhat a man-hater.

Still, I'd recommend it if there's no blockbusters on your list that you want to see.

[wkhanna]

Thanks George!

This is exactly the type of movie my wife would realy like, so I will make sure to rent it for her.

[George Bellefontaine]

I thought that the daughter had actually over-dramatized her father's actions, though. She (the author) seemed to be somewhat a man-hater.

Yeah, I quite agree, Chris. Now I didn't read the book so I don't know if the screenplay was embellished for the sake of drama or not. But given the fact that all the Ryan real life children were shown at the end, including thre author daughter, I'd have to say that even if it were embellished, the daughter and the rest of the children must have agreed with it.

Wkhanna, you know you may even enjoy watching this along with your wife.

[Danbry39]

I remember the glowing reviews of this film, so I'll rent it. Anything with Julianne Moore is usually worthwhile. She's a really fine actress.

Thanks for the reminder, George.

Hey, did it have any extras with the real family on it?

[George Bellefontaine]

Keith, I had only rented it and didn't look for the extras. The real kids do make an appearance, though, at the conclusion of the film.

Wow, I'm surprised so many here are interested in this nice little film.

[Danbry39]

Thanks George.

I checked out the ad over at Amazon. It has stills and commentaries, but doesn't appear to have a special feature on the true family. That's the kind of extra I love.

[Danbry39]

Still gonna see the DVD though.

[George Bellefontaine]

Still gonna see the DVD though.

Good :T

[wkhanna]

Wkhanna, you know you may even enjoy watching this along with your wife.

Sorry George, didn't mean to imply that I wouldn't. Looking forward to seeing it myself, and thanks again.

[George Bellefontaine]

Aw,great, wkhanna. I think you will enjoy it.

[wkhanna]

The wife, my daughter and I watched this one last night.
It actually made the perfect movie for seeing on Mothers Day (second Sunday of May in the US)!

While being characterized as a “feel good” class of movie, it still incorporates real emotional highs and lows, hard drama, realism, and even the humor was portrayed in a real life, (yeah, that has happened to us, too) style. Very well done, as was all the acting of all the characters. Being a fan of Woody Harrelson, I was not disappointed by his role; real, true and gritty at times, but oh so believable.

One of the more poignant aspects of the film was its faithful representation of the male dominant social structure typical of the era. Think Ossie and Harriet and Leave it to Beaver, for those of you old enough to remember, but then add the reality of sex discrimination and the institutionally accepted view that a ‘woman’s role was in the home’ exclusively. The point was well made, and with all the diplomacy of a Hessian mercenary, as it added just one more obstacle for main character to surmount.

By the middle of the movie, the main character’s perpetual optimism seemed so over the top it was nearly unbearable and affecting the realistic tone set by all the other personalities, but even this was addressed by the storyline, and pulled it all together, resulting one very enjoyable film.

Obviously, don’t expect to give your audio system a workout with this one. Editing, production and all the other aspects were on par for the genre, but this film is about the ‘story’, and in this aspect, it took main stage, as it should have.

Great pick, George! Thanks!

[George Bellefontaine]

Glad you liked it. I agree with your comments, too.

[FlashJim]

Thanks for the tip, George. It's on my must see list for this summer.

[George Bellefontaine]

Thanks for the tip, George. It's on my must see list for this summer.

Hope you enjoy it, Jim.

[Danbry39]

George, just finished watching the DVD and thought I'd hop directly to HTG to drop you a note.

First, all you manly men take a step away from your computer...

Don't tease me!!!!!! :M I'm just like Jack Bauer, so watch it!!!

Okay, George, now that we're alone, I can best tell you how much I liked the film by a little anecdote:

Toward the end of the film, my wife asked me a question. I told her I couldn't answer, because I was crying like crazy. She said, "I am too."

I was totally absorbed by this film. I know it's not for everybody, but it is great. Beyond the obvious (wonderful acting, editing, sound track, directing, etc.), it really had such an amazing sense of time and place. The houses, cars, neighbors, everything put me right back to my childhood, especially the great clips from TV shows from back there.

Highly recommended for teddy bears like me...and George.

[George Bellefontaine]

Highly recommended for teddy bears like me...and George.

Yeah, Keith, no question, I am a Teddy Bear just like you . :P I'm glad you liked the film.