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

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

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.

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 '99Four 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).