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North Country

A worthy but absorbing drama dealing with the sexual harassment of female workers at a Minnesota mine in the late 80s.

A worthy but absorbing drama dealing with the sexual harassment of female workers at a Minnesota mine in the late 80s.

The film is a fictionalized account based on the first class-action sexual harassment lawsuit in the United States and is directed by Nikki Caro, fresh from the success of 2003’s Whale Rider. An impressive ensemble cast featuring Frances McDormand, Sean Bean and Woody Harrelson is headed up by Charlize Theron. Like her Oscar winning turn in Monster, she has traded in her glamorous looks for a more serious role and once again has been nominated for a golden statuette. Her performance here has the same noble grittiness but this film has a richer and more rewarding narrative. Although the portrayal of male miners is perhaps a little too one dimensional, the film manages to convey the bleak realities of sexism and the difficulties faced in making a stand when livelihoods are on the line, even if the courtroom drama scenes don’t always ring true. A solid and powerful social drama in the tradition of films like Norma Rae and Silkwood. (Warner Bros, 15)

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