Starring: Chris Evans, Song Kang-ho, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell, Octavia Spencer, Ewen Bremner, Go Ah-sung, John Hurt, Ed Harris, Alison Pill, Vlad Ivanov, Luke Pasqualino
Review: In this sci-fi epic, a failed global-warming experiment kills off most life on the planet. The final survivors board the Snowpiercer, a train that travels around the globe via a perpetual-motion engine. When cryptic messages incite the passengers to revolt, the train thrusts full-throttle towards disaster.
Snowpiercer is a violent, visually stunning post-apocalyptic thriller set after a cataclysmic global event caused the Earth to fall into a deep, uninhabitable freeze. As a result, the remaining survivors have been relegated to an Earth-encircling train, which is seemingly the only avenue to survival in this Ice Age. This film is very interesting, as the train has become a microcosm for society, with the lower class relegated to the tail section of the train, and the classes advancing towards the elite the further you proceed to the front. The residents of the tail section live in squalor and are forced to endure eating protein blocks made of jellified cock roaches. They are also subjected to the harshest punishments if they don't cooperate, and oftentimes have their children taken for mysterious reasons. In this glacial world, the tail section have finally reached their boiling point, and all hell breaks loose as Curtis (Chris Evans) leads a bloody assault to storm the front of the train. I found this film to be brilliantly shot by Bong Joon-ho, as each train car becomes increasingly higher in class as the mutiny rages forward. You start to see train cars that are dedicated to all facets of society. There are cars for prisoners, food production, water recycling, a greenhouse, and school. You have everything from aquariums, to sushi bars, swimming pools, and hair salons. Each train car is magnificently detailed and it's really cool to see life reproduced into the confines of a train. Not to mention, the icy landscape shown outside of the train is absolutely stunning to behold.
As mentioned, there is no shortage of violence in this film. Curtis and his followers are hell-bent on getting to the engine, and confronting the caretaker Wilford (Ed Harris) by any means necessary. There are bloody axe fights, shootouts, and explosions galore, not to mention plenty of twists and turns along the way. This film is incredibly entertaining despite its more depressing connotations. I really enjoyed this movie. It takes you on a roller coaster of emotions and is a really powerful commentary on society and how we perceive one another. I highly recommend this film!
Fun Fact: Writer and director Bong Joon-ho explained that the protein blocks were made by combining seaweed, tangle, sugar, and gelatin. Jamie Bell hated it, while Tilda Swinton liked it.