Frozen River

This article is about the 2008 film. For the lost part-talkie film, see Frozen River (1929 film). For the song, see Frozen Rivers. For rivers that are frozen, see river.
Frozen River
Theatrical release poster
Directed byCourtney Hunt
Written byCourtney Hunt
Produced byHeather Rae
Chip Hourihan
StarringMelissa Leo
Misty Upham
Charlie McDermott
Michael O'Keefe
Mark Boone Junior
CinematographyReed Morano
Edited byKate Willams
Music byPeter Golub
Shahzad Ali Ismaily
Production
companies
Cohen Media Group
Harwood Hunt Productions
Off Hollywood Pictures
Distributed bySony Pictures Classics
Release dates
  • January 18, 2008 (2008-01-18) (Sundance)
  • August 1, 2008 (2008-08-01) (Limited)
  • September 5, 2008 (2008-09-05) (United States)
Running time
97 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguagesEnglish
French
Chinese
Urdu
Budget$1 million
Box office$6 million [2]

Frozen River is a 2008 American crime drama film written and directed by Courtney Hunt in her feature directorial debut. Starring Melissa Leo and Misty Upham, the film follows two working-class mothers who team up to earn money by smuggling illegal immigrants from Canada to the United States.

Frozen River premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 18, 2008, where it won the Grand Jury Prize. Following a limited release on August 1, 2008, the film opened in theatres on September 5, 2008, to critical acclaim, with particular praise for Leo's performance and Hunt's direction. The film earned several accolades, including the Bronze Horse at the 2008 Stockholm International Film Festival. At the 81st Academy Awards, Leo was nominated for Best Actress and Hunt was nominated for Best Original Screenplay.

  1. ^ "FROZEN RIVER (15)". British Board of Film Classification. 2009-06-29. Retrieved 2012-11-22.
  2. ^ "Frozen River (2008) - Financial Information".