Feels almost like a documentary, inviting us to experience these people's lives with them while sharing their desire for escape.
Comment
10/30/08
Ballast (2008)
88
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:48
Fresh:42
Rotten:6
Average Rating:7.4/10
Consensus: A searing debut by director Lance Hammer, this subtle and contemplative Mississippi set drama lingers long after its conclusion.
Theatrical Release:Oct 1, 2008 Limited
Synopsis: Winner of numerous prizes at prestigious film festivals all around the world, including Sundance, San Francisco, and Buenos Aires, BALLAST is a stunning, emotionally powerful feature-film debut... [More]
Starring: Michael J. Smith, JimMyron Ross, Tarra Riggs, Johnny McPhail
Director: Lance Hammer
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Reviews for Ballast
a small gem of humanity brought into sharp focus without sentiment
10/28/08
Rating high in the unvarnished truth department, "Ballast" does not bring enough entertainment to the table to merit the price of admission. A commendable exercise in plainness does not constitute a reason to see this film.
10/25/08
A doleful movie that often has a lump in its throat, but it's also a poetic and illuminating movie that earns its attitudes and effects, including the lumps.
10/22/08
An impressive and courageous filmmaking debut that screams Sundance for all the right reasons.
10/18/08
Top CriticBallast reminds us that you can find poetry in the unlikeliest and the saddest of places.
10/18/08
Both the script and the performances keep audiences at a distance; Hammer deliberately avoids scenes or moments that would make sympathy or identification easy.
10/18/08
Hammer, whose blunt name belies the movie's many subtle touches, has his own distinct style. He also has an enormous trust in the audience to sort out this wounded family's miseries without the assistance of narration or even a musical score.
10/18/08
Top CriticBallast is truly a winter's tale, set in a bleak and rainy corner of the Mississippi Delta and recounting the story of three African Americans teetering on the edge in just about every way.
10/17/08
...marks a new talent to watch, but this one is for patient art house audiences willing to overlook story development in favor of tone and mood.
10/16/08
The audio is occupied by only the sounds the characters make ... moments of silence open up an emotional void.
10/11/08
It's an impressive directorial debut that will leave viewers speechless at the end--not necessarily in a good sense.
10/08/08
Ultimately, it's a satisfying character study, even if it ends much like far too many Romanian movies without a real conclusion or resolution.
10/03/08
There's a terrific short film buried in Ballast.
10/02/08
Hammer's script is spare and pertinent, without a wasted syllable, giving his characters believable voices against the bleak and grey canvas of the Delta farmlands, stunningly photographed by Lol Crawley.
10/02/08
As the movie comes into focus, you feel the lives of the characters echoing backward through time.
10/01/08
Top CriticBallast (another Frozen River, wallowing in the miseries of the underclass) is designed to provoke bourgeois moviegoers’ pity.
10/01/08
Ballast has a potential that few Sundance movies even approach.
10/01/08
Ballast is a serious achievement and a welcome sign of a newly invigorated American independent cinema.
10/01/08
A slice-of-life adventure featuring a principal cast of non-professionals whose gritty naivete manage to imbue the production with a palpable sense of super-realism, even if in service of a Bill Cosby-infuriating display of black on black dysfunction.
09/30/08
Latest News for Ballast
January 03, 2009:
Awards Daily Top Ten: Stinging emotional truth and raw grit, stark in its simplicity. But captivating to behold, as these wounded lives flow into ours with all the natural, unassuming spontaneity of strangers we come to know and to care about enormously. 
More...
December 08, 2008:
Roger Ebert Ranks 2008's 20 Best Films
December isn't even halfway over yet, and many of us have already had our fill of year-end lists -- but Roger Ebert's list of the 20 best films of 2008 is one worth making an... More...
December 03, 2008:
Independent Spirit Award Nominations Announced
The Independent Spirits have announced their nominations for this year's awards. Frozen River, Rachel Getting Married, Ballast, Wendy And Lucy and The Wrestler are all up for... More...
December 03, 2008:
Gothams Dive Into Frozen River
"Frozen River" was the big winner at Tuesday's 18th annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, taking home two of the six prizes, including best feature. More...
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