The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio

Proving once again that Julianne Moore fits gracefully into a 1950s setting, Jane Anderson's encomium to a housewife's grit, resilience, and cleverness in holding a large family together despite her husband's alcoholism isn't—unfortunately—nearly as effective a period showcase for the actress as Far From Heaven. A shrewdly crafted crowd-pleaser that is also curiously thin, The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio—a true story based on a nonfiction bestseller by one of the woman's daughters—stars Moore as Evelyn, a mother of 10 children who, along with her troubled spouse (Woody Harrelson), has difficulty just making ends meet. Fortunately, Evelyn is a wiz at writing winning contest jingles—a talent that carries the family through numerous crises—but as the plot unfolds, it begins to follow a rather repetitive pattern, even up to the final challenge: the possible loss of the family homestead and the contest that could save everything. Despite Moore's engaging personality and Anderson's penchant for colorful parodies of ‘50s TV commercials, the cyclical nature here ultimately grows a mite stale. Optional. [Note: DVD extras include both widescreen and full screen versions, two audio commentaries (one by costar Julianne Moore; the other by director Jane Anderson), a photo gallery, and trailers. Bottom line: nice to have both full screen and widescreen versions on the same release—as well as a pair of commentaries—but the film itself is still only so-so.] (F. Swietek)