The Ice Storm
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Movie Reviews of The Ice Storm
Movie Review: This is one of the best films I have ever seen.
Summary: 5 Stars
Really, it is. It may be too dark and too slow for some. It is not a happy film, and it may depress you terribly. It did depress me.
This is a film about alienation, and it is devastatingly accurate. If you dare watch it, take note of all the conversations. In nearly every scene one character tries to reach out to another character, to try to tell them something intimate or important. In every scene except one they are brushed aside or ignored. The only scene where two characters connect and actually communicate, they talk in code, not directly.
Yes it is beautifully shot and acted. It may well accurately evoke America of the 70s, I wouldn't know I wasn't there. A lot of people are doing squalid, illegal or kinky things in the movie. But to focus on these things alone seems to me to miss the real point of the film. I think it is alienation that drives the aberrant behaviour of these people, not the place or the period.
I don't think the film is meant to depict the failings of any period. I don't think there is any judgement or solution offered. It is simply a stark portrayal of alienation.
I haven't read the book, I would like to. Perhaps others who suggest the setting is more important than I do have their perceptions coloured by having read it. Before reading it I will go out on a limb and suggest the storyline and the setting are just a vehicle for this depiction of alienation.
This film is a disturbing masterpiece which may make you reconsider your own life relationships.
Movie Review: A "Chilling" Portrayal...
Summary: 5 Stars
The Ice Storm is representative of those iconic days when the "me" generation explored all things daring, and it also depicts chillingly that the selfish behavior of the adults can have dire consequences.
Kevin Kline, Joan Allen and Sigourney Weaver are the key adults in this film, which highlights one holiday season in a Connecticut community -- with the festive dinners and holiday parties -- and reveals the superficial lifestyle of those who are bored by the surfeit of material possessions and the absence of meaning in their lives.
Even though the film was made in the late nineties, the production seemingly transplanted the viewer completely into that time. Like a flashback -- or time warp -- we can glimpse the lives of those disenchanted characters and really feel their malaise.
The youngsters are portrayed by Tobey Maguire and Christina Ricci, among others, and while they, too, are delving into sexual pursuits, they also seem to be going through the motions.
In the story, we see how a dangerous ice storm, which happens on the same night as an adult key party and while the young folks are left to their own devices, renders havoc for everyone concerned.
I had seen this movie a few times when it first came out, but when I watched it again this week, I felt "chilled" to the bone.
Laurel-Rain Snow
Movie Review: one of the best suburban comedy-dramas EVER
Summary: 5 Stars
while one could easily consider ice storm a companion piece to the great american beauty, the genius film-maker ang lee actually made this film several prior to american beauty & this was unfortunately highly overlooked in 1997 & 1998 sad to say. with the elements of comedy & drama, we get a view of what life could've been like during the seventies right around the holidays. the world outside was going through some great changes, people were searching for their own identities, & family were losing touch with one another. this holiday season, 2 families will be put to the test in terms of loyalty, commitment, & will discover just how they mena to one another. ice storm features some excellent performances from kevin klein, joan & sigourney weaver in addition to some stellar performances from lesser-known actors/actresses around that time such as christina ricci, tobey maguire, & elijah wood. ang lee has crafted a funny, often touching look at a cold world in which we've inhabited based upon the great novel by rick moody. the best scene in my opinion is the scene where kevin klein carries his daughter(played wonderfully by christina ricci) on his back walking through the woods as the snow begins to fall. beautiful & heartwarming scene indeed. another great moment is the thanksgiving dinner where christina ricci's character leads the family into prayer & this is a complete riot. at such an affordable cost on vhs & dvd, why shouldn't you own this little known masterpiece in your library?Movie Review: W(h)ither the family?
Summary: 5 Stars
In the early 70s illusions about our society were falling.Symbolized by the corruption and debacle of Nixon, it was a time when many lies that we had accepted about the role of our nation and its leaders were shed.
Of course this questioning of authority and the mores of society extended to the family, and the directory brilliantly portrays the complexity of the situation in "Ice Storm".
The family very often appears as a sham. In order to "keep up appearances", one has to feign love and pretend to enjoy the so-called "togetherness" of patriarchal authoritarianism. An instance of this is the "Thanksgiving scene" in the movie. Almost every American has experienced one of those boorish holidays around the table with family members, when s/he would prefer to be somewhere else with other people.
The movie demonstrates the efforts of middle-class America to go beyone the staleness of the nuclear family. Often this involved empty sexual promiscuity. It also demonstrates the failure of those efforts. As a result of those failures, the
experimental middle-class would soon champion the thermidorian reaction called reaganism in the 1980s. The finals scene of the movie shows the family remassed and willing to "give up".
Along with PT Anderson's "Boogie Nights" this film does a great job of portraying the "in-between" years of the 70s as a juncture between between the 60s cultural revolution and the 80s neoconservative reaction.
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Movie Review: Scenes From the 70's
Summary: 5 Stars
Ang Lee's "The Ice Storm" is a brilliant, beautiful but haunting film that shows us how the sexual revolution of the 1960s brought about emotional devestation, once it hit the suburbs of the 1970s.This is a portrait of two upper middle class families who are trying to find themselves in the decade of Watergate and Vietnam, where sex, drugs, and infidelity are among the many obstacles to confront them. We are shown adults who act like adolecents and adolecents, who are too quickly trying to become adults.Ang Lee does an excellent job of recreating the era through architecture, music, wardrobe etc., but where he really triumphs is in creating an emotional framework which makes us care about these people.All the actors involved with this movie give near perfect performances.Special mention should be made for actors, Kevin Kline and Joan Allen, who show us a couple, who's relationship is in a downward spiral.How this film failed to get any Academy Award nominations let alone win any Oscars is beyond me.The DVD version of this movie gives us a crisp, clear beautiful picture.The only fault I can find with it is that the special features section is a bit on the skimpy side. Would have loved to have had Ang Lee or some of the actors do a commentary track. I would highly reccomend any fan of drama to see this film.