Review of Snowpiercer (2013) by Hemant S — 08 Aug 2018

A slightly dusty one from the shelves, "Snowpiercer" is a great effort at a dystopian classic, based on a graphic novel and directed by Bong Joon-ho, with a prominent American and British cast.

Interestingly, the story spins off from the dooms day effect of global warming and humanity's self-destructive effort to curb it, resulting in a frozen planet with a speeding "Ark" on rails - Snowpiercer. The tail of the train is populated by the poor, downtrodden; under the mercy of the richer class up in the front, led by Wilford (Ed Harris), the owner of the train who "governs" the train with his make-shift ministers and henchmen. Scarcity of food, water and space to dwell holds the tail down under the iron hand rule of Wilford.

Rebels from the tail, led by an old veteran Gilliam (John Hurt) and his second-in-command Curtis (Chris Evans) break out in defiance with a plan to overpower the tyranny and bring order and fairness into Snowpiercer, leading to an epic battle of wits, strategy and sheer numbers between Curtis and Wilford.

The film boasts of a supporting cast with the likes of Jamie Bell, Octavia Spencer, Tilda Swinton and Song Kang-Ho, but Chris Evans steals the show as the gritty Curtis Everett in one of his many underrated performances that are constantly overshadowed by his role as the star spangled leader of the Avengers. The movie is consistently engrossing, though the climactic scenes rise up in some sort of crescendo, particularly in terms of the narrative and the characters' back stories.

The film also has its fair share of violence, given it revolves around a battle, but shot in the most finished and aesthetic manner - one of the trademarks of South Korean film-making.