Laura’s Rating: 3/5 Stars
Snowpiercer is based on the French graphic climate fiction novel Le Transperceneige by Jacques Lob, Benjamin Legrand and Jean-Marc Rochette. Directed by Bong Joon-ho, known for his best picture winner Parasite, the movie stars Chris Evans and was Bong’s first English language debut in film. The film was adapted into a TNT TV series of the same name in 2020.
The Analysis:
After a failed attempt to reverse global warming, the world has been thrown into a new and deadly ice age. 17 years later, all of humanity has perished, except for the passengers of a large train run by a man named Wilford. Train passengers are segregated by economic status, creating a sort of class system within the railroad. Wealthy, elite passengers enjoy roomy cars with spas, fine dining, and even typical school classrooms for children. The poorest of the passengers are crammed into the last couple cars on the train, forced to live in filthy conditions and eat processed protein blocks to survive. Armed guards monitor the back cars, occasionally plucking people to be taken to the front in order to serve a purpose for the elite passengers. Caboose residents Curtis and Edgar decide to lead a revolt to make it to the front of the train and take control.
Like he would go on to do in Parasite, Bong Joon-ho is able to highlight the vast differences in power dynamics and quality of life between social classes. While the elite waste away time and resources, the terribly poor must fight for survival every day. The appearances from front-of-train passengers really reminded me of the eccentric and extravagant characters from The Hunger Games. Quirky and overly stylized, the characters embrace excess and enforce brutal rules of order. There is an almost whimsical quality to the people and setting associated with wealth and power. This is contrasted by the dingy, ragged clothing found in the back of the train, where necessity and survival trumps style.
A train that continuously runs through an ice age and is complete with all amenities and food necessary for life for nearly 2 decades? It seems like a stretch. Despite the concept having questionable plausibility, I have to give this film props for originality. That being said, I had a few other issues with this film. Some scenes depict more graphic violence than I would argue is necessary, a couple characters have no explained purpose, and there are some major plot holes I could not reconcile. While Snowpiercer was entertaining and the ideas behind it are thought provoking, I wanted a more polished finished product.
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