Charlize Theron lights up the screen as Josey Aimes. Josey has two kids, a sh*t job, a husband that beats her, and a family that doesn’t want anything to do with her. Like any good American woman, she goes after a job that will pay the bills and take care of the kids. That job just happens to be at the Minnesota iron mines. The trouble is that the men at work show more respect to a whore than to a REAL woman. Well, she isn’t gonna take sh*t from anybody. Oscar worthy acting and storytelling result.

I had absolutely zero desire to see Charlize Theron in another trailer trash role about something I could care less about. Once again, I was wrong. Not only did Theron act both her and my pants off but the emotional effect it had on me made me stand up and shout at the screen! There is one scene in particular that in my mind should run in the all time great scenes of all time, where Theron stands up for her rights in a building full of people that hate her guts. It’s thrilling and can’t be described but should be experienced. You could just FEEL the energy bursting from the screen.

The movie also warmed up to me by having Sean Bean and a hockey player-turned-lawyer Woody Harrelson defend this chick. Awesome. A cool Frances McDormand and very badass Richard Jenkins co-star. Seriously folks, this movie should not be missed and I feel it’s a keeper. I never thought I was going to say that about this film or about a movie that is about sexual-harrasment but it rocked. It just goes to show you I shouldn’t have doubted the hot Theron or the director of WHALE RIDER.

Video >> 2.40:1 > The transfer is pretty solid. There is some natural film grain that comes through, but in my opinion that only added to the grittiness of the film. The colors are a little bleached and muted but I also gather that too is intended.

Audio >> Dolby Digital 5.1 > The Dolby sounds good too with the dialogue coming through as well as some nice natural sounds. Nothing amazing but not bad.

Stories from the North County >> 16 min > This is a brief EPK that shows the story of the real woman behind the story and her battle and winning of the first class-action sexual-harassment lawsuit.

Additional Scenes >> 11 min > These aren’t bad and they definitely add to the story but they also would have increased the film’s run time. They are fine as deleted scenes.

There is also a Theatrical Trailer.

NORTH COUNTRY is one hell of a good drama that summons some of the most basic elements of humanity. It sparkles with high energy and features a great cast at their best. This is one drama that this here schmoe recommends.

Final Diagnosis >> A healthy BUY