Fergus
11-30-2001, 12:34 AM
The Ice Storm
Director: Ang Lee
Cast: Kevin Kline, Joan Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Jamey Sheridan, Christina Ricci, Elijah Wood.
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000056BSG.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg
You will not find an action bonanza, a comedy, or a thriller, but a story about people and their relationships. A film that leaves you to decipher what has just occurred in front of your eyes. I have had very few movies that actually do that to me; one that immediately comes to mind is 2001: a space odyssey. What amazes me is how subtle the film is crafted. It didn't always hold my attention, but the film should be appreciated for what it is. What can be appreciated is that Ang Lee uses pictures to express what is happening, and it gave me the job of seeing into these characters and their emotions--a job that is mostly voluntary, but worthwhile. It draws you in with its characters and leaves you cold like the ice that surrounds them. There is no feeling once the credits roll, like you were just receiving the effect from a shot of novocaine. The numbness stays for a period of time, and didn't leave me for a few hours. It took time to digest.
The marriages, the affairs, the lies and the "experiments." The relationships tear at the insides of these characters until they cannot take it anymore.
**SPOILERS**As Kline's character discovers a body, he walks, sees, but doesn't know what to expect. He kneels next to the lifeless body of Elijah Wood, and rolls him over to see the face. He waits and waits knowing this person is dead. We see how he processes, and contemplates on the situation--he can't believe this is happening. We see the reaction of the boy's father (Sheridan) who breaks down and cries. Or Kline, who, when he is with his family in the final scene, breaks down and cries too.**END SPOILER**
You sit there and wonder, "What has happened to this family?" Much like Nicolas Cage in The Family Man, we are only given a glimpse of who these people are. They are discovering themselves in the hardest way possible.
The film was a surprise, and I'm becoming to like Ang Lee more, as a director. His style is so subtle, so gentle. The story is told through pictures with little dialogue, and left me to think about what happened. I have read that some thought it to be boring, but not for me. It was always interesting—though not wholly entertaining. Ang Lee has created an atmosphere and setting that is as cold and icy as its characters. I liked how that cold feeling that was always there and that constantly reoccurring metaphor of the ice—cold and lifeless like the characters in the film. An ambitious look at the sexual revolution of the 70's, and I admire what Lee has accomplished. The Ice Storm will not appeal to everyone, and I knew that as I was watching it. There are bound to be people who despise it, and people who applaud it. I think it deserves to be seen. It threw me off and exceeded my expectations. But, I think that all depends on the kind of person you are. Nonetheless, a remarkable film, whether you are entertained by it or not, it should be appreciated. One of the best films of 1997 IMHO.
*I'm interesting in hearing what others thought about it.
[This message has been edited by Fergus (edited 11-30-2001).]
Director: Ang Lee
Cast: Kevin Kline, Joan Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Jamey Sheridan, Christina Ricci, Elijah Wood.
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000056BSG.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg
You will not find an action bonanza, a comedy, or a thriller, but a story about people and their relationships. A film that leaves you to decipher what has just occurred in front of your eyes. I have had very few movies that actually do that to me; one that immediately comes to mind is 2001: a space odyssey. What amazes me is how subtle the film is crafted. It didn't always hold my attention, but the film should be appreciated for what it is. What can be appreciated is that Ang Lee uses pictures to express what is happening, and it gave me the job of seeing into these characters and their emotions--a job that is mostly voluntary, but worthwhile. It draws you in with its characters and leaves you cold like the ice that surrounds them. There is no feeling once the credits roll, like you were just receiving the effect from a shot of novocaine. The numbness stays for a period of time, and didn't leave me for a few hours. It took time to digest.
The marriages, the affairs, the lies and the "experiments." The relationships tear at the insides of these characters until they cannot take it anymore.
**SPOILERS**As Kline's character discovers a body, he walks, sees, but doesn't know what to expect. He kneels next to the lifeless body of Elijah Wood, and rolls him over to see the face. He waits and waits knowing this person is dead. We see how he processes, and contemplates on the situation--he can't believe this is happening. We see the reaction of the boy's father (Sheridan) who breaks down and cries. Or Kline, who, when he is with his family in the final scene, breaks down and cries too.**END SPOILER**
You sit there and wonder, "What has happened to this family?" Much like Nicolas Cage in The Family Man, we are only given a glimpse of who these people are. They are discovering themselves in the hardest way possible.
The film was a surprise, and I'm becoming to like Ang Lee more, as a director. His style is so subtle, so gentle. The story is told through pictures with little dialogue, and left me to think about what happened. I have read that some thought it to be boring, but not for me. It was always interesting—though not wholly entertaining. Ang Lee has created an atmosphere and setting that is as cold and icy as its characters. I liked how that cold feeling that was always there and that constantly reoccurring metaphor of the ice—cold and lifeless like the characters in the film. An ambitious look at the sexual revolution of the 70's, and I admire what Lee has accomplished. The Ice Storm will not appeal to everyone, and I knew that as I was watching it. There are bound to be people who despise it, and people who applaud it. I think it deserves to be seen. It threw me off and exceeded my expectations. But, I think that all depends on the kind of person you are. Nonetheless, a remarkable film, whether you are entertained by it or not, it should be appreciated. One of the best films of 1997 IMHO.
*I'm interesting in hearing what others thought about it.
[This message has been edited by Fergus (edited 11-30-2001).]