Review // Snowpiercer

Celebrated South Korean director Bong Joon-ho makes an impressive English language film debut with sci-fi action film Snowpiercer. Based on the French graphic novel Le Transperceneige, Bong’s adaptation takes the spirit of the comic and brings it to life in this a visually stunning, action packed film.

Set in a future where Earth has been plunged into the next ice age and humanity’s only salvation is found in the form of a luxury train, Snowpiercer, which can brave the extreme conditions inside and out. The perpetual-motion engine keeps Snowpiercer running along an expansive track that encompasses Eurasia and Africa. As the train takes its 18th lap along the year long track, civil unrest boils in the disenfranchised tail section.

Designed as a balanced ecosystem the inhabitants of Snowpiercer are fed the same mantra, “Know your place. Accept your place.” Essentially, that survival is dependant not solely on the great engine (which they worship along with its creator, Wilford) but also in the maintenance of the delicate social order that determines everyone’s place on the train. The elite are in the front of the train and are given access to schools, medical facilities and dining cars. They lead comfortable, lavish lives thanks to a first class ticket purchased 18 years ago. The train’s inventor and engineer Wilford (Ed Harris) resides in the first car and is at the helm maintaining the great engine. The poor are delegated to the squalid quarters of the windowless tail section where they are fed protein blocks, get little-to-no medical attention and have no hope for a brighter future. Wilford’s political pawn, Minister Mason (Tilda Swinton), governs the train with force and propaganda to ensure that the residents remain at their assigned posts.

In a world where upward mobility is unheard of – the American dream crushed – several attempts have been made by those in the tail to get a better lot in life than they were given. All past rebellions have failed however since they were never able to cross through the thousand-carriage train to take the engine. But under the leadership of the reluctant Curtis (Chris Evans) the tail dwellers are once again hoping to take the engine by force, therefore flipping the hierarchy of the train. Curtis is a man of his environment; he’s tough, charismatic and burdened by his past criminal actions. Despite a clear following of his own, Curtis believes he’s just the muscle for his elderly mentor Gilliam (John Hurt), the tail section’s leader. While Gilliam has literally given life and limb for the betterment of his charges, Curtis (who still has both arms) doesn’t want to be a leader, just a tool used to bring salvation to his people. To him that means taking the engine by any means necessary. Together with his second in command, the somewhat annoying yet loveable Edgar (Jamie Bell), Curtis leads a charge into the prison car to liberate Snowpiercer’s original security designer, Namgoong Minsu (Song Kang-ho), who built the doors between the cars. Nam agrees to help Curtis, so long as he can bring his drug addled daughter Yona (Ko Ah-sung) along. The teen proves to be useful as she has the ability to sense what’s behind the unopened doors and acts as the Rebels’ warning system.

One of the doors leads the Curtis Rebels to a particularly dangerous car, stocked with masked men wielding axes. The subsequent fight scene is incredibly exciting – the well-executed fight choreography blended flawlessly with top notch cinematography. And while the axe fight might have been a little too gruesome for 10am (when I watched the movie) it was actually quite tame … for an axe fight. Despite the darkness and confinement of the train cars, cinematographer (and regular Bong collaborator) Hong Kyung-pyo manages to capture visually stunning sequences.

The production value of the film is impressive. Each train car serves a different function, and therefore looks completely different than the last. The production, set and prop designers did a wonderful job of balancing function with visual storytelling.

Despite still sporting the well-muscled physique of Captain America, Chris Evans manages to pull off a great performance as a true anti-hero. While there are a lot of similarities between the characters (both are soldiers fighting for a greater good) this time around Evans is playing a soldier looking for redemption more than a mission, and he’s a great fit for the role. Like his character, Evans does a good job in the lead. His ensemble of supporting players all manage to shine, a rarity in a high concept action movie where it’s easy for the actors to get lost in the spectacle and theatrics. Staying true to form Tilda Swinton gives another incredible performance as an odd-ball character. Jamie Bell’s Edgar is the heart of the film, and he’s a natural as the endearing joker plus he and Evans share a strong chemistry on screen. Allison Pill is a delight in her small role as the over animated, pregnant grade school teacher while relative unknown Luke Pasqualino might be the most expressive actor on screen as Gilliam’s silent warrior, Grey.

While the ending gets messy (think The Matrix Revolutions messy) with last minute ideas and poorly executed plot twists, for the most part the main quest is kept simple and easy to follow. This is important with such a layered allegory. The supporting storylines are pretty weak, and there are moments that felt a bit lost in translation, causing me to think some explanatory scenes didn’t make the final cut. Instead these plot lines only highlight vague ideas. Despite the weak ending and incomplete subplots Curtis’ motivations are clear, his choices are calculated and his story allows audiences to easily connect the political undertones of the film with our own social hierarchy. The narrative is just as much about what will happen when Curtis reaches his goal as it is about his journey to achieve it. Despite my issues with the ending, I wouldn’t change it, it plants an idea worth exploring for viewers.

Snowpiercer is one of those films that all sci-fi fans should watch. I can see this becoming a cult hit, a film student bible and a lazy Sunday movie, something for both the engaged and passive viewer. Be wary that it truly earns its 14A rating – though bloodshed isn’t gratuitous there is a high level of violence – and that taking a train trip after watching this film makes for a far more unnerving ride than usual.

Reviewed by Vithiya Murugadas.

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