Ballast

The affected minimalism of Ballast is difficult to sit through. Lance Hammer's independent film arrived at the Berlinale Film Festival with glowing reviews from Sundance, but as somebody who has spent some time in rural Mississippi and the Delta, I found that this bare-bones story of poverty rang hollow and affected.

Shot in a minimalist, handheld style replete with poor focus and jerky jump cuts, Ballast concerns monosyllabic Lawrence (Micheal J. Smith Sr.), whose twin brother commits suicide. After a failed suicide attempt of his own, he grows closer with his brother's son (JimMyron Ross) and the kid's mother (Tarra Riggs).

The film trades in small-town clichés -- poverty, drug abuse, convenience store jobs, a gang of criminals who disappear half-way through the film -- but seems know or care too little about its characters to illuminate or empathize with their plight.

Ballast (2008) Starring: Johnny McPhail, Micheal J. Smith Sr., JimMyron Ross
Directed by: Lance Hammer
Produced by: Andrew Adamson, Mark Johnson, Aimee Shieh
Running Time: 1 hr. 36 min.
Release Date: October 1st, 2008 (limited)
MPAA Rating: Not Rated