Review of Snowpiercer (2013) by Nick W — 23 Nov 2015

Boy, what a kickass movie. There are so many action movies today that lavish in their special effects and think that if they display some computer-generated thing that looks really falshy that we're all going to crawl over ourselves to see it. We're in an age where dazzling computer-generated effects are commonplace, and it's really no trouble for a visual effects company to create an image of say, a robot fighting another robot in the pyramids of egypt with a thousand moving parts. (Seriously Michael Bay, it was old when Transformers came out in 2007, it sure as hell is worn down now.) So when a movie like Snowpiercer reaches theaters and we're all treated to some of the most dazzling fight choreography this year, it is an incredibly enthralling experience.

I can't believe how much I was rooting for the characters in this movie when I saw it. It's about a world where all of humanity is confined to living on this perpetually-moving train, because the entire outside world has frozen over, and it's unlivable. But on the train there is a ruling class and a basically "untouchable" class. The ruling class is at the front of the train and the poor clas is situated at the back. And Chris Evans' character leads a revolt to storm to the front of this train and take it over. I haven't really liked Chris Evans much as an actor, mainly because I've only ever seen him in Marvel movies as either the Human Torch or Captain America, and it's pretty hard to get character depth in a Marvel movie, so I've largely been unimpressed. But in this movie, Chris Evans really wowed me. I still wasn't blown away to the point where I was completely enthralled in his character and no longer saw the actor, but he played this character that initially seems almost like this jesus-like character, but you soon learn that he has had to make seriously difficult choices in his life that made him choose between doing the right thing and maintaining his sense of innocence. And you can see the face of a man who is trying to put on a strong face but is starting to crack under the pressure of living up to peoples' expectations. He's accompanied by a much more venerable supporting cast that includes Octavia Spencer and Tilda Swinton, (also Ewen Bremner, loved him in Trainspotting.) The ending is entertaining as hell, it's one of those movies where you feel like the plot can go in any direction and therefore you cannot wait to see what happens. See this movie for a thrilling, dark, exciting time.