As humankind struggles to reverse the harmful effects of global warming, the theories to stop it grow even more desperate. The scientific plan to disperse a chemical to cool the planet and prevent it from overheating succeeds, and then subsequently freezes the planet instead killing nearly everyone on Earth. Earth’s only survivors can be found endlessly riding the immortal train created by a billionaire prior to the frozen apocalypse. The people of the train are divided by class and those classes are separated by cars; the back of the train being crowded and housing the dreary, dirty, and diseased and far removed from the front where the trains privileged enjoy extreme luxuries.
17 years and 17 trips around Earth later the tension of those shoved and forcibly kept in the back of the train cannot hold any longer, which is understandable considering their daily meals only consist of a few blocks of ground bugs for each person and they are held in their cramped quarters by armed guards. Not to mention the guards occasionally haul off children in what would seem to be some sort of sacrificial ceremony every so often. Curtis (Chris Evans) is the relatable likeable but reluctant leader of this push to the front. With him is the old broken down man Gilliam who’s wisdom and experience of these uprisings (this not being the first attempt to get to the front of the train) guide Curtis as he begins his push. Together they’re able to create a plan that will take everyone from the back of the train to the front.
As Curtis travels farther up the train we learn more about his life and his confinement in the back of the train. Through flashbacks and some of his own narrative, we see some of the horrors of the back of the train where cannibalism was not an uncommon practice and we also learn more than perhaps we ever wanted to know about Curtis’s own life. We learn about the ominous Wilson as well, the creator of the train and faceless overlord. Our only information of him comes by way of the first classers as they refer to him in almost a godlike manner. There are chants and songs dedicated to him, and what seem like sacrifices as well. But almost the entire film we are never given a face to match his name, or a voice either as every time someone calls to the engine to talk to him they do not receive an answer. These are among some of the mysteries and evolutions of characters that kept me interested throughout the entire movie.
But this movie does not just reward its watchers with interesting characters and intriguing storytelling. Perhaps what was even better were the amazing visuals and shots in the film. First person night vision action scenes, overviews of famous cities frozen over, and views winding through incredibly designed first class cars, which can vary from aquarium, to underground rave, to schoolhouse are just some of the shots featured here.
While Snowpiercer is an eventful, mysterious and suspenseful, the film does raise some questions while watching such as why the train needs to circle the earth in the first place or even more pressing how it circles the earth (because did they wait for the oceans to freeze over and then build tracks on them?). I found myself asking why there needed to be so many people in the back to begin with, and as the film goes on questions about the push to the front itself. Although there are slight holes in the plot of Snowpiercer, none of them really take away from my enjoyment of the film. It’s absolutely worth the watch.
3 out of 5
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