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Special Features
- Additional scenes
- Making-of documentary: "Stories from the North Country"
- Theatrical trailer
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
A sterling cast and vivid direction give North Country an emotional heft to match its political convictions. Charlize Theron (Monster) plays Josey Aimes, who goes to work at a Minnesota steel mine after splitting with her violent husband.
But the job proves to be almost as harrowing as her marriage; the male miners, resentful of women taking jobs, verbally abuse and play humiliating pranks on the female miners. After being physically assaulted by a coworker, Josey tries to fight against the harassment, but none of the other women will join her case for fear that things will only get worse. North Country, directed by Niki Caro (Whale Rider), makes the women's experience palpable for the audience without overdoing it. But the lawsuit is only part of the movie; the gut impact of North Country comes from the devastating effect the lawsuit has on Josey's family, friends, and coworkers--thanks to an incredible ensemble cast that includes Sissy Spacek (In the Bedroom), Sean Bean (Lord of the Rings), Richard Jenkins (Six Feet Under), Woody Harrelson (The People vs. Larry Flynt), and the always powerful Frances McDormand (Fargo, Mississippi Burning). The courtroom histrionics don't always ring true, but the family conflict is riveting and deeply moving. Based on the book Class Action: The Story of Lois Jenson and the Landmark Case That Changed Sexual Harassment Law. --Bret Fetzer
 Frances McDormand and Charlize Theron in North Country. |
Product Description
When Josey Aimes (Academy Award winner CHARLIZE THERON) returns to her hometown in Northern Minnesota after a failed marriage, she needs a good job. A single mother with two children to support, she turns to the predominant source of employment in the region - the iron mines. The mines provide a livelihood that has sustained a community for generations. The work is hard but the pay is good and friendships that form on the job extend into everyday life, bonding families and neighborhoods with a common thread.
DVD Features:
Deleted Scenes
Documentaries
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
75 of 83 people found the following review helpful
By Joe Sherry
I really hate the tagline of North Country. "All she wanted to do was make a living. Instead she made history." It's terrible and doesn't at all capture what North Country is. Well, I suppose on one hand it does because that ultimately is the storyline of the movie but it's a tagline that makes me want to run away rather than buy a ticket. But enough about that.
North Country is based on actual events at the Eveleth Mines in Minnesota's Iron Range. Women were first allowed into the mines in the late 1970's and the stories that North Country deals with occurred all throughout the 80's and into the first class action sexual harassment lawsuit in the early 1990's. Director Niki Caro (Whale Rider) spoke with some of the women miners and had one, Lynn Sterle as an advisor for the film.
Charlize Theron plays Josey Aimes, a fictionalized character who comes to work at the Pearson Taconite mine where her father works and where her friend Glory (Frances McDormand) works driving truck. Josey is trying to raise her two children after leaving her husband and the mine will pay six times what she was making elsewhere. Glory tells her that Josey is going to have to deal with taunts and crude behavior and that the men do not want them at the mine. She believes, but she doesn't know. From the first moment she steps foot into the mine it becomes clear just how little they are wanted. The HR representative tells the new women that he doesn't want them there and if it wasn't for the Supreme Court, he wouldn't have hired them. But he'll give them a tour anyway and show them what the work is. The other workers call them crude names and Glory warns Josey that she may find degrading things in their lunch pails. Names are written on walls and lewd drawings are made. In general, the women are not made to feel welcome even though they are also members of the same union with the same rights as the men. But this is a boy's club and women are not welcome.
Josey complains to HR and he tells her that nothing will happen. She continues to complain about the behavior and things get worse. Much worse. They are threatened, attacked, degraded and I can only believe that what is shown in the movie is only scratching the surface as to what really went on in the mine. Finally Josey has had enough and finds a lawyer (Woody Harrelson) and decides to sue. But even the women are not supportive.
North Country mixes Josey's experience at the mine with footage from the lawsuit (preliminary hearings is my guess as it wasn't yet class action) and also makes the connection with Josey's story with the Clarence Thomas/Anita Hill hearings that were going on at the same time.
This is a moving film that deals with an incredibly ugly subject matter. One would think that by the 1990's such behavior would not occur and that it wouldn't be put up with, but it did. The movie itself is well acted by Theron and the supporting cast. In particular the other women miners do a great job in showing toughness in the face of such degradation and why they would not want to speak up and how they can deal with the harassment.
Well made, well acted. I don't feel that North Country was especially manipulative. All film is manipulative and has a viewpoint and an agenda. The questions are: does the movie work? Is it any good? Does it feel true? Yes, to all. North Country is not a feel good movie by any measure and it isn't one that I can really say I enjoyed, but I enjoy any good movie and in that sense I did.
Some may feel that this is nothing more than Oscar bait with the poor woman overcoming degradation and rising to accomplish something big, and that it is touching the buttons that need to be touched to get awards...but that does not lessen the fact that the movie is rather good and that Theron will deserve whatever nominations she receives or awards she wins. She does an excellent job as does Niki Caro, Frances McDormand and the other actors. The movie only hits one note that felt like too much (what happened to Glory), but even that isn't a major point against it. Just something that felt off. It's the only thing that comes to mind.
North Country is based on actual events at the Eveleth Mines in Minnesota's Iron Range. Women were first allowed into the mines in the late 1970's and the stories that North Country deals with occurred all throughout the 80's and into the first class action sexual harassment lawsuit in the early 1990's. Director Niki Caro (Whale Rider) spoke with some of the women miners and had one, Lynn Sterle as an advisor for the film.
Charlize Theron plays Josey Aimes, a fictionalized character who comes to work at the Pearson Taconite mine where her father works and where her friend Glory (Frances McDormand) works driving truck. Josey is trying to raise her two children after leaving her husband and the mine will pay six times what she was making elsewhere. Glory tells her that Josey is going to have to deal with taunts and crude behavior and that the men do not want them at the mine. She believes, but she doesn't know. From the first moment she steps foot into the mine it becomes clear just how little they are wanted. The HR representative tells the new women that he doesn't want them there and if it wasn't for the Supreme Court, he wouldn't have hired them. But he'll give them a tour anyway and show them what the work is. The other workers call them crude names and Glory warns Josey that she may find degrading things in their lunch pails. Names are written on walls and lewd drawings are made. In general, the women are not made to feel welcome even though they are also members of the same union with the same rights as the men. But this is a boy's club and women are not welcome.
Josey complains to HR and he tells her that nothing will happen. She continues to complain about the behavior and things get worse. Much worse. They are threatened, attacked, degraded and I can only believe that what is shown in the movie is only scratching the surface as to what really went on in the mine. Finally Josey has had enough and finds a lawyer (Woody Harrelson) and decides to sue. But even the women are not supportive.
North Country mixes Josey's experience at the mine with footage from the lawsuit (preliminary hearings is my guess as it wasn't yet class action) and also makes the connection with Josey's story with the Clarence Thomas/Anita Hill hearings that were going on at the same time.
This is a moving film that deals with an incredibly ugly subject matter. One would think that by the 1990's such behavior would not occur and that it wouldn't be put up with, but it did. The movie itself is well acted by Theron and the supporting cast. In particular the other women miners do a great job in showing toughness in the face of such degradation and why they would not want to speak up and how they can deal with the harassment.
Well made, well acted. I don't feel that North Country was especially manipulative. All film is manipulative and has a viewpoint and an agenda. The questions are: does the movie work? Is it any good? Does it feel true? Yes, to all. North Country is not a feel good movie by any measure and it isn't one that I can really say I enjoyed, but I enjoy any good movie and in that sense I did.
Some may feel that this is nothing more than Oscar bait with the poor woman overcoming degradation and rising to accomplish something big, and that it is touching the buttons that need to be touched to get awards...but that does not lessen the fact that the movie is rather good and that Theron will deserve whatever nominations she receives or awards she wins. She does an excellent job as does Niki Caro, Frances McDormand and the other actors. The movie only hits one note that felt like too much (what happened to Glory), but even that isn't a major point against it. Just something that felt off. It's the only thing that comes to mind.
39 of 45 people found the following review helpful
By D. Mikels
NORTH COUNTRY is as chilling a story as the climate of northern Minnesota. We are told this movie is based on a true story--a landmark sexual harassment case that revolutionized corporate policy pertaining to gender equality nationwide. Disgusted and put out with the relentless, abusive, even violent treatment by her male coworkers (and superiors) in the male-dominated ore mining industry, single mom Josey Aimes (played wonderfully by Charlize Theron) dares to rock the boat by filing a lawsuit against her employer. It's a story that's been told a million times before--of one individual fighting fearlessly, even futilely, against the insurmountable odds of the corrupt status quo--yet NORTH COUNTRY succeeds admirably by virtue of its stellar cast and compelling plot.
Returning to her hometown after her marriage goes on the fritz, Josey dares to seek employment at the local strip mine, where the work is brutal, but the working conditions even more so. Her best friend, Glory (Frances McDormand), is a coworker--even the sole female union rep; Glory advises Josey to go with the flow, let the crude comments and sick jokes roll off one's back, but in due time, the "jokes" become malevolent, the pranks vicious, the work environment dangerous, intolerable. Josey files a grievance with the president of the company; his response is to pressure her to tender her resignation. Convinced she is "in the right," that she must fight, Josey enlists the aid of local attorney Bill White (Woody Harrelson, who in middle age has become magnificently bulldog ugly), and the first-ever class action sexual harassment suit is filed. The subsequent courtroom drama is uneven, often off topic (having to deal with an alleged rape in Josey's past), yet still riveting.
Sean Bean, Sissy Spacek, and Jeremy Renner are three jewels that head an outstanding supporting cast, but special kudos go to Richard Jenkins as Josey's brooding father. Hank Aimes, a longtime employee of the mine, has been estranged from his daughter since she gave birth out of wedlock as a teenager. He is opposed to her taking a job at his company, and as the pranks and sick jokes escalate, he remains silent. Yet once his daughter addresses his union brethren--alone and very much afraid--he comes to Josey's defense in fine fashion. Made me proud to be a papa.
Told from the perspective of the early 1990s, NORTH COUNTRY tells its story, and as good as its story is, it still left me scratching my head. Back in those days, I, too, was in a male-dominated industry (executive of a trucking company). Following the Anita Hill/Clarence Thomas culture storm, followed by passage of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), we certainly saw the writing on the wall, and instantly adopted sexual harassment policies and walked on eggshells to make sure harassment or wrongful termination claims were never brought to bear against us. So I find it intriguing, to say the least, that in such a climate this particular mining employer was so callous and insensitive. As the old adage goes, this company was cruisin' for a bruisin', and in the Great White North, you get ice cubes with that.
--D. Mikels, Author, WALK-ON
Returning to her hometown after her marriage goes on the fritz, Josey dares to seek employment at the local strip mine, where the work is brutal, but the working conditions even more so. Her best friend, Glory (Frances McDormand), is a coworker--even the sole female union rep; Glory advises Josey to go with the flow, let the crude comments and sick jokes roll off one's back, but in due time, the "jokes" become malevolent, the pranks vicious, the work environment dangerous, intolerable. Josey files a grievance with the president of the company; his response is to pressure her to tender her resignation. Convinced she is "in the right," that she must fight, Josey enlists the aid of local attorney Bill White (Woody Harrelson, who in middle age has become magnificently bulldog ugly), and the first-ever class action sexual harassment suit is filed. The subsequent courtroom drama is uneven, often off topic (having to deal with an alleged rape in Josey's past), yet still riveting.
Sean Bean, Sissy Spacek, and Jeremy Renner are three jewels that head an outstanding supporting cast, but special kudos go to Richard Jenkins as Josey's brooding father. Hank Aimes, a longtime employee of the mine, has been estranged from his daughter since she gave birth out of wedlock as a teenager. He is opposed to her taking a job at his company, and as the pranks and sick jokes escalate, he remains silent. Yet once his daughter addresses his union brethren--alone and very much afraid--he comes to Josey's defense in fine fashion. Made me proud to be a papa.
Told from the perspective of the early 1990s, NORTH COUNTRY tells its story, and as good as its story is, it still left me scratching my head. Back in those days, I, too, was in a male-dominated industry (executive of a trucking company). Following the Anita Hill/Clarence Thomas culture storm, followed by passage of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), we certainly saw the writing on the wall, and instantly adopted sexual harassment policies and walked on eggshells to make sure harassment or wrongful termination claims were never brought to bear against us. So I find it intriguing, to say the least, that in such a climate this particular mining employer was so callous and insensitive. As the old adage goes, this company was cruisin' for a bruisin', and in the Great White North, you get ice cubes with that.
--D. Mikels, Author, WALK-ON
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
In the tradition of 'Norma Rae', 'Silkwood', and 'Erin Brockovich' comes a movie which is entertaining, action-packed, and muckraking all in one. Michael Seitzman tells the real-life story of Lois Jenson (Charlize Theron). Jenson encouraged her female co-workers to collectively protest their workplace harassment.
The newly divorced single mother had returned to her Minnesota hometown looking for a way to support her family (Sammy and Karen). Upon the recommendation of an old friend Glory (Frances McDormand) she becomes a miner. The hardest challenges at the new job did not come from the physical labor however. Instead they were from some of the male miners because those individuals became threatened by their new colleagues.
Incidentally, these men are led by Bobby Sharp (played by Jeremy Renner) who used to date Josey in high school.
After being sexually harassed on the job, Josey Aimes (a composite sketch of Lois Jenson) files a lawsuit against the Eveleth Mines and rallies some other female co-workers to her cause. These women face every conceivable odd against them in a modern "David vs. Goliath" epic. As the 'ringleader' of the protesting women, Aimes inevitably takes the brunt of it.
Her crusade draws disapproval from many people in the town and many of her own colleagues at the mine. Her own parents Alice and Hank Aimes (Sissy Spacek and Richard Jenkins) just want Josey to accept things as they have been. Adding insult to injury, her own personal life is put under intensive scrutiny; what 'kind' of woman charges sexual harassment? Even Glory encourages her to let their mistreatment go.
Yet, she perseveres and the women are victorious. In Jenson vs. Eveleth a 1997 court ruling said that the abuse which was received in those mines was a concerted campaign to completely destroy the women.
Niki Caro's excellent directing prevented North Country from being a downer and/or a soapfest. Theron and her co-actors also understood that this was a serious film, and thus did not attempt to ham things up for the camera. North Country even won the praises of the real-life Jenson who said it was close to her real-life experiences. She liked that this screenplay emphasized she and the other protesting women received support from some of the men in that same community.
Glory's husband Kyle (Sean Ben) was a miner up until a dehabilitating accident laid him off. More ambiguous is Bill White (Woody Harelson) a high school hockey star who returns to his hometown after working in New York as a lawyer. Bill initially turns her request for a class action lawsuit down, but then accepts because it is `something different'. Josey pointedly says she draws her own inspiration from the then-current Anita Hill hearings's dramatization of workplace sexual harassment before national audiences.
It's ironic that the film is being promoted as 'inspired' from the book Class Action, because Jenson remains critical of that account's accuracy. People wanting an accurate account of her journey only need this movie---which she has personally praised. It's always a good sign when the real-life people praise the works which are supposed to tell about them.
With awesome music by Bob Dylan and Kim Carnes (among others) this film will definitely have you wanting to instigate some 'trouble' of your own.
The newly divorced single mother had returned to her Minnesota hometown looking for a way to support her family (Sammy and Karen). Upon the recommendation of an old friend Glory (Frances McDormand) she becomes a miner. The hardest challenges at the new job did not come from the physical labor however. Instead they were from some of the male miners because those individuals became threatened by their new colleagues.
Incidentally, these men are led by Bobby Sharp (played by Jeremy Renner) who used to date Josey in high school.
After being sexually harassed on the job, Josey Aimes (a composite sketch of Lois Jenson) files a lawsuit against the Eveleth Mines and rallies some other female co-workers to her cause. These women face every conceivable odd against them in a modern "David vs. Goliath" epic. As the 'ringleader' of the protesting women, Aimes inevitably takes the brunt of it.
Her crusade draws disapproval from many people in the town and many of her own colleagues at the mine. Her own parents Alice and Hank Aimes (Sissy Spacek and Richard Jenkins) just want Josey to accept things as they have been. Adding insult to injury, her own personal life is put under intensive scrutiny; what 'kind' of woman charges sexual harassment? Even Glory encourages her to let their mistreatment go.
Yet, she perseveres and the women are victorious. In Jenson vs. Eveleth a 1997 court ruling said that the abuse which was received in those mines was a concerted campaign to completely destroy the women.
Niki Caro's excellent directing prevented North Country from being a downer and/or a soapfest. Theron and her co-actors also understood that this was a serious film, and thus did not attempt to ham things up for the camera. North Country even won the praises of the real-life Jenson who said it was close to her real-life experiences. She liked that this screenplay emphasized she and the other protesting women received support from some of the men in that same community.
Glory's husband Kyle (Sean Ben) was a miner up until a dehabilitating accident laid him off. More ambiguous is Bill White (Woody Harelson) a high school hockey star who returns to his hometown after working in New York as a lawyer. Bill initially turns her request for a class action lawsuit down, but then accepts because it is `something different'. Josey pointedly says she draws her own inspiration from the then-current Anita Hill hearings's dramatization of workplace sexual harassment before national audiences.
It's ironic that the film is being promoted as 'inspired' from the book Class Action, because Jenson remains critical of that account's accuracy. People wanting an accurate account of her journey only need this movie---which she has personally praised. It's always a good sign when the real-life people praise the works which are supposed to tell about them.
With awesome music by Bob Dylan and Kim Carnes (among others) this film will definitely have you wanting to instigate some 'trouble' of your own.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
North Country
It was how it really was back thing. The story showed the true grit of women that worked in that field. The leading actress was great.
Published 17 days ago by Penny Rice
5.0 out of 5 stars
Headline Required
Plus I have to have 16 more words to be able to submit which I am forced to do, they don't like me to just rate the product with 6 stars. What a bunch of bull.
Published 18 days ago by Jay R. Winans
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic movie
This is a must-watch movie for any one in high school and above. It is all the more relevant after the Stubenville case.
Published 19 days ago by Qtak
5.0 out of 5 stars
Inspiring movie!
Great acting! Intense story. I got very emotional while watching this movie. It was very eye opening. Read more
Published 20 days ago by Sarah edwards
4.0 out of 5 stars
Emotional, raw, film
This is a well acted movie. It's very hard to watch because of the raw emotions. Theron is fantastic. Great ending.
Published 29 days ago by Carol B. Johnson
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very good movie
Good drama and an excellent cast makes this a very intense and interestng movie that brings attention to a serious situation.
Published 1 month ago by Donna R. White
5.0 out of 5 stars
great movie
This is a great movie! Really shows how we are socialized to certain roles. It also shows how men and women think that they need to follow the socially correct gender roles.
Published 1 month ago by SwtThng
4.0 out of 5 stars
i like it
i like it, it was good, this movie is one to like, you should watch this movie, I like it
Published 1 month ago by Jack
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Movie! Charlize Theron hits another one out of the park!
This is a very moving portrayal of a contemporary human rights struggle that should be required viewing for anyone who thinks gender equality is an unimportant issue.
Published 1 month ago by James T. Ayers, Jr.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Accurate depiction of the range
Spot on, sad but true. The iron range is a truely different place. Charlize does a great job depicting the challenges women face on the range.
Published 1 month ago by Stranger ranger
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