Ballast (2008) User Reviews

Finely directed modern American drama

[rasecz · 8/10 · 30 March 2008]

This is very much a modern American drama. Though issues such as drugs, gangs, broken family relations, violent poorly managed schools, unemployment, and financial breakdowns play a role in steering the lives of the principal characters, the primary emotion is sorrow. The suicide of a twin brother is the trigger that brings three characters -- the brother of the victim, the ex-wife and son -- to clash.

Given the fine performances of the three principals and the supporting cast, it is hard to believe that those roles are played by non-professionals. The director picked them from the local population, deep in the Mississippi Delta. Certainly there is talent here, the woman especially. But credit is due to the director who expertly calibrated the acting, mixing the right doses of melancholy, anger and disappointment. The same can be said of the environment. The wintry landscape with its scattered naked trees, resting agricultural land, and gray skies add to a sense of continual sadness.

Thankfully the director spared us from a musical track. The sounds are natural. The light as much. The plot linear. The Dogma rulebook applied.

The end is abrupt. The beginning is almost as abrupt. The past can be guessed. The future is an open question as it carries conflicting emotions. How you choose to continue the story in your mind depends on whether you are an optimist or a pessimist.

Real life in the Delta

[lastliberal · 8/10 · 19 November 2009]

Life is hard for a pimp. It is also hard for a poor mother (Tarra Riggs) to deal with after the suicide of her husband.

The twin/brother-in-law (Micheal J. Smith Sr.) is so depressed that he might just follow his brother, and her youngest (JimMyron Ross ) is heading in the wrong direction. They have a lot to deal with, and the film is about real people and how they deal with life and it's problems and setbacks.

The bleak cinematography really fits this film, as does the lack of a score. There is nothing to dance about, so why have music.

The inexperienced actors really shine, and writer/director Lance Hammer has much to be proud of in his first film.

Truly one of the best films of 2008.

Slow, but confident

[jimcheva · 6/10 · 25 January 2009]

I took a while to trust this film, since it is one of many new indies to start very slowly, with much that is unexplained and not only minimal sound effects, but in fact even minimal ambient sound. There's a number of new films that start this way and never get anywhere after that. Here however there's a slow but inevitable build, and much of what's unexplained becomes intuitively clear as the film progresses. The uncle's first few encounters with his nephew are beautifully set up and played, with their undercurrents clear early on. The story at one point becomes a bit predictable, but nonetheless engaging. The characters are very rich without any surface effort or telegraphing. I'm iffy on the ending, and I don't know that I'd want to watch a number of films like this in a row. But it has definite authority, and shows immense promise.

An intense debut shot with love and conviction in the Mississippi Delta

[Chris Knipp · 9/10 · 13 May 2008]

First-time LA-based director Lance Hammer's powerful, naturalistic film seeks to capture what he sees as the prevailing sadness of the Mississippi Delta landscape through its concentrated portrait of a little black family torn by terrible grief and gradually struggling from despair to reconciliation and hope. Ballast begins with a shaky camera shot of a flock of birds flying away across a plain in the Mississippi Delta, then to violent events too fast to grasp completely. A white man, John (Johnny McPhail), comes to the door of a little house to ask Lawrence (Micheal J. Smith Sr.) what's wrong. He won't speak, goes outdoors and a shot rings out. He's shot himself. John calls 911 and Lawrence is rushed to the hospital. For a while this almost looks like an episode of "Cops." The hand-held camera throws the viewer in the heart of all this action with a palpable documentary-style intimacy.

Things cool down a bit as the camera moves over to the house nearby on the same lot where a mother, Marlee (Tara Riggs), lives with her teenage son James (JimMyron Ross). Marlee works in a lousy job cleaning latrines. James is on break from school and pays visits to young drug dealers he owes money to. Rudderless and confused about his dead father, a recent suicide and Lawrence's twin, who never visited him, James turns to desperate and risky behavior that he tries to hide from his mother. The drug dealers pay a threatening visit to James's house.

Back from the hospital Lawrence remains so paralyzed by grief over his brother's suicide perishables are going bad in his little convenience store and he can barely speak, let alone reopen the store and resume normal life. Marlee gets fired from her job and there's no money. James wanders the fields, his only friend perhaps the family dog, the half-wolf Juno. Slowly, the three let out their grievances and begin reconciliation and a solution that involves the property the twins' late father left them and an uneasy cooperation between Lawrence and Marlee.

Hammer's film-making, which got him consideration at the Berlinale and two top prizes for directing and cinematography at Sundance in early 2008, involves a strong camera and meticulous natural sound (with no music), but above all the director's own commitment to humanistic integrity. His various models include Mike Leigh, Charles Burnett, and the Dardennes--Leigh for the attention to family conflicts, Burnett for truth about African-American life, the Dardennes for a method in which the camera literally dogs the footsteps of ordinary people in crisis.

This isn't digital but 35 mm. Technicolor in widescreen, by Lol Crawley, edited by Hammer. Dolby Digital sound designed by Kent Sparling of George Lucas' Skywalker Sound and edited by Julia Shirar (who's worked with Sofia Coppola and Noah Baumbach) was designed by Sam Watson, a Mississippi native, all with close, committed involvement in the project.

Essential to Hammer's approach was to use local people in the main roles and a screenplay whose dialogue was frequently rewritten by the actors who embellished their scenes with improvisation. Even when James' dialogue at some points is nearly inaudible, the sound crew kept that. Though this may be a dubious nod to authenticity, the film is so involving that it hardly leaves the viewer time to think. If this is the Dardennes, it is the Belgian brothers working in top form--save for the ending, which is no resolution or even a question mark, just an abrupt blackout. However, the whole second half of the film is a struggle toward resolution that gives a surprise sense of hope slowly emerging out of what middle-class viewers in particular might tend to see as an utterly hopeless situation.

Seen as part of the San Francisco International Film Festival 2008. To be distributed by IFC Films in late August 2008.

Hammer Time on sad times in Mississippi

[meeza · 7/10 · 28 November 2009]

"Ballast" is an independent film which many critics went "ballistic" with and was even nominated for several Independent Sprit Awards last year. Did it deserve it? No. Should it be ignored? No. "Ballast" stars Tarra Riggs as Marlee, an impoverished black mother living in rural Mississippi trying her best to make ends meat to raise her tweenage son James. James is a young drug addict who goes to extreme measures to support his drug habit. Example: James nonchalantly enters his Uncle Lawrence's home and holds him up at gunpoint to obtain money to purchase the drugs. Lawrence, "The Man From U.N.C.L.E. himself, depressive nature does not make him fight off the rebellious immaturity of James. Lawrence is profoundly grieving the suicide death of his twin brother Darrius, who was married to Marlee and is James' papa; even though Marlee & James despised Darrius because of his desertion of them both. Marlee eventually discovers James unrighteous ways and even loses her job. The desperate Marlee has no choice but to seek the assistance of neighbor Uncle Lawrence even though she has loathed him also because of his brother's actions. What happens next is a commending story of the power of connectivity of people going through harsh times and letting their unforgiving nature behind for the betterment of a child. Therefore, the central fixation is on sacrificing hang-ups in order to help a boy alter his self-destructive habits in order for him to have a promising & hopeful future. The performances of Michael Smith as Lawrence and the aforementioned Riggs as Marlee were authentically solid. Especially Smith's work, who spoke volumes with his non-verbal acting on the internal emotional pain of losing a loved one. JimMyron Ross as James was mediocre at best, but there were signs that with some more thespian training, the young Ross could have a successful acting future. Writer-Director Lance Hammer did nail the character development of the protagonists residing in poverty-stricken small town Mississippi, but I think Hammer screwed it up a bit on orchestrating too many stale & elongated scenes. Kudos does go out to the film's thematic & symbolist cinematography. "Ballast" is a mostly melancholy story which I do not think you will have a "ball" with, but it is a reliable moral narrative on the human nature of resiliency that deserves to be experienced. *** Average

Ballast a must see

[ephes3 · 10/10 · 14 May 2008]

A movie about life after suicide can be very hard to depict, Ballast brings out the reality of life after suicide and the consequences of those actions. Filming in the South was excellent. The realness of what can happen after suicide was depicted in James' character. So many kids who loose a parent (especially a father) turn to the rough side of life. Marlee and Lawrence's characters were so real. Both of them should be commended for their acting skills. This is a must see film. The entire cast was very good. Lance Hammer did an excellent job in writing, directing, and producing this film.I was wondering if this was written from true accounts? The plot is so real to what is happening today, especially in the south. James and Lawrence's characters were very believable. Using local non-professional actors was risky, but all of them did an awesome job. There is so much talent in the south. Kudos to the entire cast including those who spoke only by body language.I hope this film wins lots of awards. I hope to see more of Lance Hammer's work.

Ignore the negative comments here, this film is amazing.

[may-25 · 14 August 2009]

If I want to spend a few hours out of my day to get to a cinema and spend my money to watch a film, any film, then I want it to be worthwhile. Believe me, Ballast I would have paid for twice, it's that good. And I'll be buying the DVD too.

During the Glasgow Film Festival this year, this (to us) obscure, indie film played at a multiplex and my husband - who actually met the director at the London Film Festival - urged me to see it. Why? Because I'm also a filmmaker, so I share with the director, Lance, the desire to eschew the commercial imperative when it comes to telling straight stories.

Lance, if you read this - I adored this film. It's everything - flaws and all - that I want to see on screen. The integrity of the cast, no matter where you found them, the screen craft - the photography, script, design, sound, edit, costume, makeup - or judicious lack of - all fell into place. It's what they say about making films - so many get made, but so seldom do the planets align to make a beautiful one. This to me is the bomb. I love it.

I wish you every success in your future projects.

May Miles Thomas, Elemental Films, UK

Impressive quiet drama

[ArizWldcat · 6/10 · 24 January 2008]

We saw this at Sundance 2008, and found it to be deliberately slow, but also quite thoughtful as it told the story of a man whose twin brother's suicide devastates him. The story extends to the dead man's ex wife and son and explores the aftermath of the suicide and its effects on these three characters. What makes this film impressive is that the actors involved in almost every role had never acted before. The director revealed to us at the Q&A session that he had gone to churches in the Mississippi Delta and recruited people to be in his film. Also notable is the sound, or lack thereof. Instead of a busy, noisy soundtrack, this was a quiet film with very little music, relying instead on the ambient noise of the area in which it was filmed. We enjoyed the film and wish the director and the actors much success.

Carefully crafted character study

[timmy_501 · 8/10 · 13 November 2009]

I first became interested in Ballast when I heard about its setting: it's very rare to find a film set in the Mississippi Delta. It's also quite rare to find a serious drama with mostly black characters. I was afraid that this would either be a sappy melodrama or an attempt to make some "profound" point about how racism exists and is, like, bad and stuff. Thus I was quite pleased to find that this film manages to have a uniquely Southern setting without resorting to clichés or caricatures and that making some grand social statement is evidently the last thing on the mind of first time director Lance Hammer. Instead, we have a deliberately paced character study with a nicely handled mise en scene.

The film opens with the attempted suicide of Lawrence, a shopkeeper distressed over the (extremely) recent death of his twin brother/partner/only friend. Lawrence's recovery is complicated by his brother's will which indicates that the recently deceased man's ex-wife and teenage son are entitled to his share of the store and part of the property the brothers had co-habitated. Things start off tense due to the boy's involvement with some disreputable older boys that he owes money and stay that way due to Lawrence's troubled partnership with the boy's mother. This is a quiet, contemplative film for the most part and it offers no easy resolutions. Instead, it manages to realistically capture some unique characters in a woefully ignored section of American society.

Good intentions

[kosmasp · 6/10 · 3 August 2008]

Another reviewer compared the technical making of this movie, the look of it to the Dogma style. You can say that, but it doesn't stop there. The story as it is, the pacing of the movie, the characters etc. are all kept with a minimum amount of "action". Of course this serves the overall appeal of the story (drama) very well and the director does a fine job here.

It still will leave a few people wanting more excitement, something more magical, something more active. Because to call the main character of the movie active, would be a very big stretch of the word! While I do liked his performance and the movie overall, I struggled with the vote ... I could also have given it a 7 (or a very stretched, for me at least, 8), but I decided against that, because I do think that the movie could have used a little bit more "spice" (something extra)

Lacklustre and flat

[natureguy · 3/10 · 17 February 2009]

The idea for the film was interesting and had a lot of potential, however, I thought it was lacking in many ways.

The acting was very good, especially for actors who were not professionally trained and the shots were very interesting. However, the plot didn't seem to build or develop and frankly, I got bored. The end really came out of nowhere and certainly did not bring resolution to the story. I left the theatre feeling dissatisfied. The concept of having no written music was interesting, however the sound effects used sometimes overpowered the speaking and I wasn't always able to understand the actors.

Personally, I wouldn't recommend it to a friend, however, it looks like I am alone in this, as it is getting very good reviews!

Mending Broken Fences

[druid333-2 · 10/10 · 25 October 2009]

'Ballast' is Lance Hammer's first feature film (he also directed the film short,'Issaquena'--unseen by yours truly),and is a quiet,powerful portrayal of three damaged souls & trying to pick up the pieces,heal and move on. The story opens as Lawrence (played by Michael J.Smith,Jr.)is living in a comatose state of shock,after his twin brother had committed suicide sometime earlier. His nephew,James (played by new comer Jim Myron Ross)is a 12 year-old youth that is just a breath away from mixing with the wrong crowd & is potentially embarking on a life of crime,and is not surprisingly angry with life in general. His embittered Mother,Marlee (played by Tarra Riggs)is divorced from Lawrence's brother & carries a chip on her shoulder the size of the Mississippi Delta itself (where it was filmed in the dead of Winter,to give the film it's bleak look). It seems that the two brothers once had dreams of making it big in radio,but ended up co owning a convenience store. There is bad blood between Lawrence & Marlee (she tells James to stay away from his Uncle,but sneaks away to see him--'tho not for always the most honorable purposes). It's up to these three to make amends for what has happened and try to find a way to move on from the past. Lance Hammer writes,directs from his own original screenplay,as well as edits this small,quiet story of desperation & redemption. I really admired the use of cinematographer,Lol Crawley's hand held camera work,which conveyed the sense of perspective. The near,non existent use of music also worked well for this film (no original music score---only a few snippets of music appear in the background,generally on television or radio). The film's slow pacing may tax the patients of some who can't deal with a film that isn't fast paced,with scenes only lasting no longer than ten seconds. This small film won praise at the 2008 Sundance festival. It's easy to see why. Seek this one out. Not rated by the MPAA,this film contains pervasive strong language,a bit of non graphic violence,and much smoking.

No Wrap Up

[MikeyB1793 · 6/10 · 30 November 2010]

Melancholy is an apt description of this film. It takes place in Mississippi during the winter. Its' about a woman with her son whose ex-husband has just died (from suicide). His twin brother also attempted suicide.

These 3 main characters (mother, son and ex-brother-in-law) slowly undergo a transformation during this film for the better. Initially the young boy is mixed up in the wrong drug crowd and is giving his Mom a tough time. As the film moves along, she re-opens the store that her ex-husband had and the boy is gaining some equilibrium. We get to know a lot of what is ailing the mother and son, but there is not much revelation as to why these suicide and attempted suicide took place. There is also not much to explain the combativeness between the mother and her ex-brother-in-law.

So the story moves along until….

It abruptly ends.

I thought there was something the matter with the DVD. Did they run out of money? Was it a budget cut?

Good Direction? Yes. Good movie? No

[flankkks · 3/10 · 13 January 2010]

The Director certainly did a wonderful job of putting this film together. He used very short scenes, avoiding a lot of editing that would come about with long scenes and poor acting. Great job of getting the audience into the mood of the film with very frequent cuts as people move about in the film and interact with each other.

These frequent cuts can also be annoying to some viewers.

The actors aren't very good and although the very short scenes hide this fairly well, the scenes with a lot of dialogue have a very flat and rehearsed mood. This is especially true when the boy is speaking to the main character about suicide, while holding him at gunpoint. The flat, uninspired acting works well for the guy who is dealing with the suicide, but not so well for the other characters.

I am surprised this film has nominations and wins for acting. Though not too surprised to see some nominations for new director.

Overall, I thought the directing was solid, making maximum use of minimal talent.

Storyline is cliché, but still OK.

This is what it's all about

[BobMustgrave · 10/10 · 15 January 2009]

A lot of people sidestep traditional methods when it comes to film-making, and even film releasing these days, but it takes a film with quality to truly buck the system and make it a viable option for future filmmakers.

This is that film.

Slacker did it in '91.

Head Trauma made some serious waves in '99

Four Eyed Monsters took a step in the right direction in '06.

But this is the first truly cinematic American Indie to make a serious case for maintaining creative control.

Worthy of the criterion treatment I'd say (heck, George Washington got one).

Conveys a sense of immediacy that gathers momentum as the film progresses

[howard.schumann · 9/10 · 20 December 2009]

Winner of cinematography and director awards at the Sundance Film Festival and nominated for the Jury Prize at Sundance and Berlin, Lance Hammer's Ballast is an American original. Performed by non-professional actors and shot with a hand-held camera, the film looks at the lives of three distraught people in the Mississippi Delta, conveying with passion their ability to discover their own humanity and transcend the circumstances of their life. Using only the ambient sounds of nature, and portraying events in an elliptical manner that forces us to fill in the blanks, Ballast is reminiscent of the minimalist masterpieces of the Dardennes' and Charles Burnett, but has a unique rhythm all its own.

Shot on 35 mm along the Mississippi Delta, it is a film that quickly establishes mood and suspense and creates an emotional range that travels from anger and sadness to hope and joy. As the film opens, 12 year-old James (JimMyron Ross) chases a flock of birds in an open cotton field during the winter. The camera then shifts to a distraught man, Lawrence (Michael J. Smith, Sr.) sitting alone in his living room in the house next to his sister-in-law, Marlee (Tarra Riggs). The man is paralyzed with depression and unable to communicate due to the death of his brother Darius who, as discovered by a neighbor John (Johnny McPhail), has died in his bed of a self-inflicted overdose. Sullenly, Lawrence responds to the tragedy by going outside and shooting himself in the lungs. Rushed to the hospital, he is badly wounded but recovers after several weeks in the hospital.

In trouble with dope dealers, young James keeps his working mother from discovering that he owes $100 for crack cocaine, but it is revealed when James' TV is taken by the gang and both mother and son are assaulted in their cars. James, who owns a scooter, rides to Lawrence's place and demands his father's money at gunpoint. Things seem to hit rock bottom when Marlee is fired from her job cleaning toilets and Lawrence, still in shock, is unable to reopen his small food market. With nowhere to go but up, the three begin a long process of discovery of their indelible connection to life and to each other.

Unfolding like a documentary, Ballast conveys a sense of immediacy and a lyricism that gathers momentum as the film progresses. Accents are difficult to fathom (the film wisely provides English subtitles), yet there is a naturalism and authenticity here that keeps us engaged throughout. While none of the actors have ever acted before, you would not know it from the power of their performances, especially from Tarra Riggs and young Ross. It is a film, however, that definitely requires patience from the viewer. There are no markers to tell us what we are supposed to feel about the people we see on the screen, yet we remain tuned in to their struggles as if they were our own and in many respects they are. As they discover that who they are is larger than their circumstances, we discover a similar truth in our own life.

Real

[Zoooma · 8/10 · 25 September 2014]

Independent film set during the bleak wintertime in the Mississippi Delta. It was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Film and won Best Director and Best Cinematography Dramatic at the Sundance Film Festival. All three actors playing the main characters made their acting debut right here and only one of them has acted since. The film starts off slow with choppy editing and takes a while until all the pieces come together. Direction is stark, there's no background music or score at all. It's a struggle for these people trying to survive poverty and drugs and being a single mom in a world with very little hope for a better future. Nothing new in that tale. There's a true sense of tragic realism here which doesn't help the story so much. The characters never rise above and give us something truly interesting or hopeful. It's almost like watching a depressing documentary with no rainbow at the end. Rainbow not needed, of course. What sets this apart then, if anything? Location and the basic simpleness of it all. There's no wow, just life portrayed honestly. That's not enough, perhaps, for all viewers, but engaging enough for others.

7.4 / 10 stars

--Zoooma, a Kat Pirate Screener

Another Stereotype

[gettyisrael-1 · 1/10 · 20 February 2009]

I have seen the stereotypical depression and desperation of poor black people, particularly single women, too many times on film; consequently I simply can't get excited about this film. There is nothing new and fresh about the characters or their plights. The isolated location is the only thing new and different. Usually this story takes place in a poor urban environment. As a single black mother with a 12 year old son who resides in Mississippi, I demand something more promising and hopeful.

It would be great to see a story that transforms this group of people or that focuses on an aspect of their lives that is positive and uplifting. I'm fed up with being reminded of the agony of being a black woman in the South.

Solid Film Suffers Only Slightly from Indie-Movie Clichés

[evanston_dad · 8/10 · 7 July 2010]

"Ballast" takes a while to draw you in, and you might give up on it before it does, but it's a film that rewards patience.

The three characters at the film's focus are Lawrence, Marlee and James, all eking out existences in the Mississippi Delta. Marlee is a single mom whose wayward son, James, is flirting with drugs, guns and other anti-social tendencies. Lawrence is the twin brother of Marlee's late husband, who has committed suicide as the film opens, and Lawrence himself is fighting depression and his own thoughts of suicide after the loss of his brother.

This bleak scenario does not become clear all at once. It takes time to figure out who these people are and what their relations are to one another. And even then, the film isn't forthcoming about everything. Marlee and Lawrence clearly have a contentious past, and we get the gist even if we don't ever learn the details. The three form a kind of tentative bond as they realize that they're all the family any of them have, and as Marlee and Lawrence begin to partner in running the convenience store the two brothers inherited from their father.

"Ballast" is one of those indie movies that makes wherever it's set look like the most depressing place on earth. There are long static shots of mundane images, like trains passing or birds taking flight, and I do have to admit that much of it felt like indie-movie cliché. But it boasts an interesting premise and a collection of good little performances, and it's certainly worth a look.

Grade: A

Verité, yes. Engaging, no.

[Stephen_W · 4/10 · 19 February 2009]

While the plaudits for truthfulness are well-deserved, I found myself yawning more than a few times during "Ballast." I really wanted to give this film a chance -- the characters had so much potential to tell us an engaging story. The real tragedy in this tale of near-tragic realism is that the pacing and atmospherics, which for some may bolster the sense of realism, only serve to deaden any spark of story these characters have to tell us. The performances are spot-on, and, with the exception of diction problems on the part of young James, they are technically flawless. But movie characters are not real characters, and when they move through events with the slow and seemingly random momentum of real people in the real world, they fail to engage our interest. While there is much to be said for the film-making -- the cinematography, sound and production design are wonderful -- I can't help but feel these talents were squandered.

Artistic but Depressing

[gorgeouschocolateness · 3/10 · 7 September 2012]

Hand held camera, over amplified traffic noises, mumbling dialogue. This movie has artistic merit and is worth watching if gritty depressing, but sometimes beautiful films are your cup of tea. It is interesting to see what actors with no formal training came up with, and some of the picture shots are impressive. I found myself working hard to find things to like about the film, but the overall impression is one of poverty, bleakness and disconnection. There are a very few moments of hope, colour and love. The ending made me laugh. I felt hoodwinked - what? I just sat through That for This? Incredulous! But sometimes thats what life is like - a dull and depressing ride with no meaning.