Review of Snowpiercer (2013) by Peter P — 04 Feb 2015

I had heard a lot about Snowpiercer before I ever got a chance to see a trailer for it. People were saying words like "Visionary" and "Original" and lets not forget "Best Scifi In Years", so when I finally got a chance to watch it, (which was on iTunes, no theater near me had it) I was waiting to be blown away. So, was I? Yes...and no. Snowpiercer is equal parts original as it is played out post apocalyptic joyride, which has been a very popular genre in the last ten years. The basic plot is that the world was trying to fight global warming, and made a mistake and created an ice age instead, (minus funny sloths and mammoths). The only people left alive on the planet are the residents of the train Snowpiercer, which does a continuous journey around the world, never stopping. From there it breaks down to your basic class struggle themes, with the rich at the front of the train eating steak and sushi, and the poor at the back eating what looks like a purple bars of jello soap, (you don't want to know what its made of). Curtis is a resident and leader for the people in the back, and recently he has been getting little messages in the food bars, telling him to revolt and giving him the info to possible take over the train. So they try, and that is all I will say about the plot. The cast for Snowpiercer is very talented and diverse. Curtis is played by Chris Evans, and he gives one of the best performances of his career. You also have Tilda Swinton being incredibly creepy, Kang-ho Song doing a nice job as the drugged up security specialist, Octavia Spencer giving a performance unlike she has ever given before, and the legendary John Hurt adding some humanity to the masses. The action in Snowpiercer is spaced out nicely, and gets very intense at times, (axes anyone) and the effects look very good. The idea of Snowpiercer is a good one, and the direction from Joon-ho Bong is very tight and dynamic. The only problem with it overall is that some of the stuff they show just doesn't make sense, and when you start pulling at some of the story threads it leaves a bit of a patchwork quilt instead of a perfect tapestry. But it does get praise for its creativity, ambition and use of the idea of being on a train. Snowpiercer is a very good film, but sadly not a great one, plus the ending may leave some people annoyed, but not everyone. I for one enjoyed Snowpiercer, and highly recommend it if you are up for a post apocalypse journey, or just want to have Chris Evans make you cry, Snowpiercer might even manage both.

4 Beards Out Of 5.