Film Review: Snowpiercer

It may be a stretch, but just imagine a single train looping around a track, cutting through an Earth that's completely frozen over.  This train has been running for years, and it has its own microcosm of social classes, with the rich and powerful living in the front in luxury, and all the poor and wretched stuck in the back.  When those in the back of the train stage a revolution to take over the front, all hell breaks loose.

That's pretty much what this film entails:  the prologue is brief, setting the stage immediately for an all-out onslaught of bloody fighting, riveting peril, and startling revelations.  It's a rather grim and bleak film that doesn't shy away from the grisly details, but it's rarely trashy or distasteful.  The film is dark, fast-moving, and action-packed.  I personally couldn't ask for a more entertaining picture.

What's even more rewarding is the storytelling.  It's a bit of a weird and unbelievable yarn, thinking that a single train could run endlessly like this.  There are bound to be plot holes to uncover if you really analyze it on the surface level.  However, the film slowly unveils more and more details behind its concept that gives more background (whether it's plausible or not is probably debatable).  Above all, the film takes itself seriously, everything looks creditable, and it provides a self-contained world that's easy to take on its own merits.  In spite of all this, the plot moves fast and reaches an interesting climax (the likes of which would be on-par with the architect scene of The Matrix Reloaded, minus the mumbo-jumbo, but with the same level of plot twisting).  Characters aren't terribly deep or refined; they ultimately serve little more than voices for the issues, plot complications, and conflicts that erupt.

The biggest asset to this film are its themes.  Some folks won't like them, because it's a very blatant, in-your-face allegory concerning the state of the world we currently live in.  The film asserts that we are all headed toward disaster if we continue to run this "train" of ours the way we have been.  Whether you look at it as a criticism of the upper class exploiting the lower class, or the depletion of the environment and resources, the film paints a bleak picture to expose the ugly truths of our cold world.  I find the parallels compelling, although I'm sure there are those who will find them pretentious, obnoxious, stupid, or something else.

Regardless of how you grade the content, the film looks great with its dark and gritty photography.  Editing is top-notch.  Acting is great:  Chris Evans is surprisingly somber as the protagonist, and I enjoyed the performances by John Hurt, Ed Harris, Song Kang-ho, and Go Ah-sung.  Tilda Swinton is awesomely hammy in her role.  Every other actor pulls their weight really well.  Writing is pretty sharp and good.  This production has great-looking sets, props, and costumes.  Special effects tend to look fake, but it rarely detracts from the film's overall quality.  Music is decently somber too.

Snowpiercer is a rather odd tale, but one that is highly imaginative, consistently entertaining, and it's chock full of themes worth exploring (whether you want to or not).  Highly recommended!

5/5 (Entertainment:  Perfect | Content:  Good | Film:  Perfect)