Sexual harassment wasn't a concern in the work place until 1984, when the first class action sexual harassment lawsuit was brought against the owners of a mine in Minnesota. This is the story told in the award winning film, North Country, which graphically shows the horrors these women had to face at work on a daily basis. Charlize Theron was amazing, portraying Josey Aimes, the woman who finally stood up and said enough is enough. Theron is the kind of actress who is usually overlooked because of the roles she takes. I had a difficult time judging what kind of an actress she really was until seeing her in the role of a lifetime. Portraying Aimes as realistically as possible, Theron really made the audience feel the struggle of a single mother, having to take a difficult job, just to put food on the table. We see how the harassment at work effected every aspect of her life and it actually changed my view on sexual harassment. As harsh as it sounds, I always viewed sexual harassment as a law created by people who were too serious and couldn't take a joke, but the story of Josey Aimes is no joke. No person, male or female, of any color, race, or sexuality, should ever have to face even half of what Aimes had to go through. This example is how you know that North Country is one amazing film, because any movie that can change a persons opinion on a subject, is worth it's weight in gold. Theron isn't the only gem in this film, as France McDormand also received an Oscar nomination for her role as a co-worker suffering from Lou Gehrig's disease. I also thought that Woody Harrelson deserved recognition for his portrayal of the attorney who represented the women. In 1984, there had never been a case like this, and for him to go out on a limb for something like this was truly special, and its reflected in his performance. From top to bottom this film is very solid, the cast is terrific, and the story is a historically accurate portrayal of sadly, a much overlooked moment in American judicial history. North Country is the kind of film that I truly believe every child should see before entering the work force for the first time. It is that powerful and also earns a spot on our list of must see movies!

A film inspired by the first ever successful sexual harassment class- action lawsuit against a corporation in U.S. history, North Country is based on the case of Jenson vs. Eveleth Mines. Charlize Theron turns in a powerful leading role as a coal miner who, along with her fellow female workers, endures a range of sexual harassment and assault. The film provides a clear road map for how to fight institutionalized injustice. While most people try to convince Josey to keep quite, keep her head down, and suffer through her work while being harassed, she refuses to take it and fights for her human dignity head on, in the process convincing several of her co-workers to join her struggle. The film features an excellent soundtrack of Bob Dylan songs, as well as excellent cinematography. The mine is always shot in wide angle, looming large over the landscape, often dwarfing Josey or her car in the foreground. It's a David vs. Goliath story, but with a powerful lesson in strategy against seemingly impossible odds. Bravery and perseverance in directly standing up to injustice and exploitation is contagious.

This film really had it's moments, i know people say "powerful" a lot when it comes to describing movies but I really think it really fits in this case. Josie Aimes (Charlize Theron) and her female coworkers went through Hell just to get a little respect in the workplace and be judged solely by their quality of work and not by their sex. This story is partly fiction but it really shows what some women had to go through and what they had to do to get that respect...they had to FIGHT for every bit of it and deal with a lot of harassment, sexism and ignorance in the process. It's a human struggle and perseverance story to me really, all workers have had to fight (usually in court, unionizing or striking) for their safety, their pay and their well being in the workplace and women had to do this in a male dominated world where they were often not welcome. The character of Josie Aimes (Theron) not only had to rise above sexual discrimination she also had to deal with the double standard in which women are viewed when it comes to sex and sexual freedom. This film gave us a window into a world not forgotten by most who were there and shows the struggle we still deal with in some part today (sadly). The acting was great, with a very loud shout out for Richard Jenkins! His part while at the union meeting (standing next to his daughter) damn near made me cry, well done sir, well done! The directing was very good and although this movie may not be for everyone, in a way it's about everyone, it's about the struggle of humanity to better itself and those who have the courage to stand up for what's right.

Overall I found that this film was a bit too Hollywood for my liking, especially the about-turn in the father's regard for his daughter. Plus Charlize Theron, though a terrific actress, looked way too beautiful, luminous, clear-skinned etc. to convincingly play an overwrought mother of two who'd been regularly beaten by her ex-husband.Having said this, I think the reviewers who slam it as being out of date, irrelevant etc. are missing an important point. Films about subjects such as this are in my view essential to remind us of just how far we've come in terms of equality in the workplace and in life generally. The 80s is still a relatively recent decade, which makes it even more horrifying that this type of abuse was at best ignored, at worst encouraged. Add to that the fact that all of the episodes in this film happened in real life, and there were apparently scores of others that could not be included, given the constraints of a two hour film. It is very easy to forget that many of the rights and privileges we enjoy today were hard-won, often by horribly oppressed people who had little more than sheer determination driving them to take on the seemingly untouchable powers-that-be.