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'North Country' goes after Oscar

A familiar-feeling story of an underdog fighting a grossly unjust status quo, "North Country" is most noteworthy for a couple of reasons that have little to do with its artistic merits.

Warner Brothers Pictures 'North Country' 3 out of 5 stars Director: Niki Caro Starring: Charlize Theron, Frances McDormand, Sissy Spacek, Woody Harrelson, Sean Bean Release date: Oct. 14, 2005 Rating: R for sequences involving sexual harassment including violence and dialogue, and for language. See showtimes On the web Official movie site View the trailer    Trailers require Quicktime Rate 'North Country'   Go see it   Make it a matinee   Wait to rent   Don't bother Voter Limit: Once per Hour View Poll Results

The movie seems to exist as much for Oscar voters as for regular moviegoers, with a pathos-milking role (and even a nobly grimy portrait on the poster) positioning Charlize Theron as this year's Norma Rae or Erin Brockovich. Theron is fine in her role, as are excellent co-stars like Frances McDormand and Richard Jenkins, who work hard to bring dignity to the film's more manipulative moments, like a climactic courtroom scene where "Perry Mason" meets "Spartacus."

Instead of award-chasing, a more legitimate but less glamorous reason for the film's existence is its value as a civics lesson. Viewers who have ever been tempted to harrumph about the danger class-action litigation poses to fragile corporations, or to suggest that examples of out-of-control political correctness make all allegations of harassment suspect, might think twice when confronted with this black-and-white tale of moral outrage.

Theron plays Josey Aimes, a mother of two who, after fleeing an abusive husband, is left with only one job option that affords a living wage: going to work in the local coal mine, where male workers outnumber females by 30 to 1 but are still threatened by their presence. Women are subjected to everything from insulting jokes to terrorizing pranks, and those who dare object eventually encounter outright assault.

The screenplay (inspired by the true story of Lois Jensen) isn't at all subtle about the abuse, and neither is director Niki Caro ("Whale Rider"). But the movie does a good job of explaining how what might sound like legalese — the granting of class-action status to the lawsuit Josey files against the coal mine — is such a triumph: Not only do Josey's co-workers have everything to lose by corroborating her allegations, but a sole accuser in a sexual harassment case is vulnerable to the claim that she either fabricated, exaggerated or asked for what she got. That's clearly not the case in "North Country," where the troublemaker's voice is the only one worth listening to.