Review of The Ice Harvest (2005) by James P — 08 Dec 2011

Having watched this film, it felt like the tail end of a good noir or crime drama had been nipped off and stretched into a film (barely - note the short running time!).

Although some claim the film IS noir, lots of killing and additional soft lighting across the eyes, esp. the ladies during close ups does not make it so. There is far more to NOIR than a few techniques randomly thrown into a film.

I could go on but the main (the MAJOR) failing of this film is that the makers assumed it would have its own substance without any substantial plot or character development. It did not. I kept hoping that it was another adaptation of a Grisham, and that soon all would start to feed into substance and a few wow and aha moments, but alas, it did not. It was just Cusack's presence playing tricks on me.

A real pity as the idea was bursting with potential.

I give it 2 and 1/2 ( or 5/10) because the films not badly made but is not worth watching.