Analysis Of The Film Frozen River

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Courtney Hunt’s film Frozen River reveals the economic struggles that two single mothers face. Both these women live in upstate New York near Quebec. Lila Littlewolf a young single Native-American mother lives in the Mohawk reservation between the Canadian and American border. Although it is difficult for her to distinguish between the two borders, this also presents an enticing opportunity to become involved in the business of human trafficking. Ray Eddy an older white single mother finds herself coincidentally crossing paths with Lila while searching for her lost car. The poverty-stricken lifestyle and unfortunate circumstances both mothers endure causes them to take a chance as human traffickers. Lila and Ray are intrigued by the illicit, …show more content…

In the film Lila and Ray become reliant on the business of human trafficking with the intentions of supporting their families. Additionally, the film presents the social issue of human trafficking along the Canada-US border. Canada’s border issue has become pervasive and among one of the worst. It is considered to be one of countries with the highest human trafficking rates, “estimates indicate that between 1,500 and 2,200 are trafficked from Canada into the United States every year” (Barnett, 5). Ray’s conflicting involvement along the border occurs as a result of overcoming her ambivalence that is portrayed through “aesthetic reflections upon experiences of liminality and deterritorialization” (Raussert, 5). Due to the border issues that are prevalent throughout the film, the genre of the film has been categorized as a “border film”. These issues remain relevant throughout the film, but unravel with the social issues that cause the viewer to part ways. This allows us to sympathize and become concerned with what will become of the struggles the family faces throughout the film, while disregarding the social issues that remain pervasive. Ray and Lila’s struggles become the center of the film and a concern to the audience of whether they will be able to overcome their own crisis. Ultimately, this leaves out the victim 's fate and makes it …show more content…

In the film Frozen River Ray’s misfortunes affect the well-being of her two sons. The trailer that Ray’s family lives in has poor insulation, causing them to suffer through the harsh winter. One night as Ray is out making her trips smuggling her son realizes that the pipes of the trailer are frozen. Frustrated by the situation he goes out of his way to unfreeze the pipes under the house. Without the consent of Ray, he uses a blowtorch to unfreeze the pipes of the trailer. The portrayal of this scene is crucial in understanding the level of poverty that Ray’s family is deeply entrenched in and why Ray is in desperate need of a new trailer. This scene allows the viewers to empathize and justify Ray’s actions in taking on the dangerous endeavour of human

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