Cold November

A young girl on the brink of womanhood goes on her first deer hunt, a family rite of passage. During the course of a few days, she and her close family deal with tragedy in their own way, and an acceptance of the responsibilities of entering adulthood gently align on this young woman's shoulders.

A gentle, contemplative film, well worth your time.

Why make such a movie in the first place? Guess people have money to burn.

An American drama; A story about a 12-year-old rural American girl who prepares for her first deer hunt. The film which is an interesting coming-of-age tale about tradition in the matriarchy of family. It is a quiet, meditative film oriented on realistic, agreeable human relationships. Despite the lack of interpersonal conflict and the limited point of view, it deals with mourning, resilience, imagination, gender, nature, life and death, balanced against the challenges of taking personal responsibility and coping with change. The performances from the supporting cast are a little rough around the edges. The lead actor is inexperienced, but her raw emotion by coincidence suits the direction, especially when scenes feel semi-improvisatory. The film is in danger of being patience taxing in the long, contemplative scenes, and the plot is weak, but for the most part the film is compelling for letting narrative conventions smoulder in its embers.

I really enjoyed this bittersweet drama intermixing a child's coming of age, mourning, resiliency and imagination. There is something very satisfying about how this kid grows up and its a shame nowadays more lives don't develop this way.

Cold November is a unique coming-of-age tale from the perspective of a young girl in a matrilineal family. Exploring activities usually portrayed by male characters in movies, it is a refreshing approach on themes without the familiar gender bias. It deftly blends hunting, familial rites of passage, and the biological maturity of becoming a woman. It functions as a tone poem, with a contemplative exploration, focusing on quiet moments, and it explores the internal struggles of coming into one's own place in a family and, in a greater sense, society.