Review of The Iceman (2012) by Deadly V — 11 Oct 2013

The Iceman - Ariel Vromen (USA, 2013).

The Iceman is the tale of real-life mafia hitman Richard Kuklinski, nicknamed by the press Iceman due to his habit of freezing the bodies before deposing of them several days later, meaning that the police cannot determine a cause of death. The film is more a biography of Kuklinski rather than any kind of mafia flick and overflows with heavy nods and reminders to the likes of Goodfellas and Killing Them Softly.

Just about to enter his forties, The Iceman is Vromen's most high profile release to date, 2005's Simple Lies being his only other noteworthy title. As a calling card for bigger things it is a mixed bag. By opting for a straight biography of Kuklinski, Vromen has robbed us of an intriguing crime thriller complete with set-up, development and pay off. It's almost as if someone were to remake Zodiac but tell it from the Zodiac's point of view. As such the film struggles to maintain any sense of purpose, unsure of what exactly it is trying to do the pace is erratic and the tacked on police investigation ending seems rushed. What will be of interest of the power players of American cinema is that it is clear that Vromen is great at working with actors.

Blessed with a great cast, Vromen has still managed to get them all to their best. Just ahead of his own shot at the big time in Man Of Steel, Michael Shannon knocks it out of the park. From his roles in Revolutionary Road and Boardwalk Empire it was suspected he might just be the real deal, The Iceman confirms it. It is nothing short of a thumping, powerful and terrifying performance; Shannon's Kuklinski fills the screen, dominates every room and goes a long way to distracting the viewer from the deficiencies of the plot.

The supporting cast are on great form too, Stephen Dorff may only pop up for five minutes but he continues what he started with Sofia Coppola's Somewhere; shedding his looks to make you realise the lad can act. Whilst Winona Ryder is showing very supportive signs that she may continue her career into middle age and so will rightly take her place in the pantheon of truly great screen actresses. Although her role was clearly intended as a simple textual marker, a sign of how inhuman Kuklinski could be; she brings more to the role through subtle gestures and graces that hint at a full off-screen life as devoted wife and mother. There are also commendable turns from Chris Evans and Ray Liotta and even David Schwimmer pops up, playing a David Seaman look-a-like who does drug deals for Ray Liotta. Although there's nothing wrong with Schwimmer's performance he has perhaps left it a little too late to return to acting and so has yet to shed his television character's aura, he remains Ross from Friends.

Sadly, though the film doesn't free itself from the muddles and pace problems of its story, even the cinematography seems lost. Jumping from warm amber tones to chill blue ones without any sense of purpose, indeed the changes almost seem random.

In conclusion as an advertisement for the talents of those involved The Iceman excels and indeed it is a decent crime thriller if short of classic status. It is however simply too muddled and directionless to make for compelling, repeat viewing. The real takeaway here remains Shannon, between this and General Zod I'm sure he is finished slumming it in likes of Machine Gun Preacher.