The 2013 Sci-Fi thriller Snowpiercer is all about “the little engine that could.” A train engine that the last of humanity relies upon to keep from freezing to death. It is set in a world where most everything is extinct. Bullets, cigarettes, morality. All gone.
Or are they?
This world gone off kilter is directed by Korean auteur Bong Joon Ho. He shares screenwriting credit with four folks. Snowpiercer is addictive. It features a stellar cast who help to sell this chaotic version of the future. In the train, the riot/takeover starts at the very rear of the vehicle. At no time do we want to stop watching this tale of dystopian chaos.
Each step the rioters take toward the front of the train, keeps up transfixed.
Snowpiercer the story
The world unites to stop climate melt down. An intense cooling down program is initially successful in lowering the surface temperatures. This program works too well and the world literally freezes. Only megalomaniac Wilford with his non-stop engine pulling a train of the rich survive.
Plus all the poor folks who dove onto the train, literally last minute. They are doomed to be the very bottom of society. Living on bricks of slimy protein and barely existing, their rebel leader, Curtis, takes Wilford on. This entails battling the entire train, section by section.
The Cast
Chris Evans is Curtis.
Song Kang-ho is Namgoong Minsoo.
Ed Harris is Wilford.
John Hurt is Gilliam.
Tilda Swinton is Mason.
Jamie Bell is Edgar.
Octavia Spencer is Tanya.
Ewen Bremner is Andrew.
Ko Ah-sung is Yona.
Kudos to Alison Pill who looks quite possessed in the school scene she rocks her small role. #nosmallparts
cast and story side notes
Song Kang Ho, Ko Ah sung and director Bong Joon Ho worked together on the splendid comedy horror The Host . In this 2006 film the two actors played father and daughter as well.
Tilda Swinton is an acting chameleon. She takes on a Yorkshire accent and despite this, the actor made me think of an odd Margaret Thatcher type.
It ain’t soylent green, but it is protein. The gelatin blocks are Cockroaches. This in itself is revolting.
Kudos to the school room scene and Octavia Spencer smacking the boiled egg on the head of the annoying schoolgirl.
It all works
Snowpiercer works on many levels. Wilford truly believes that he is predestined to be in control of the remnants of the world’s people. He sets himself up as false prophet and demigod.
The relationship of Namgoong and Yona is brilliantly portrayed in the film. The two former prisoners know much more than just how to unlock doors. They know secrets and history. Yona, can see in to the future.
Vlad Ivanov as Franco the Elder cranks up the suspense as he emulates the Terminator here. Although his kills are not quite robotic, like Yul Brynner’s gunslinger in Westworld (1973). He is, however, violent, focused and downright scary.
Sympathy for the Devil
By the time that Curtis reaches Wilford, we feel a bit sympathetic for the leader of the train. We realize, that he sold his soul to keep the engine running. This act of pure devotion to the vehicle that keeps him and the world’s 1% alive, is killing him.
The Verdict
Snowpiercer is, to me, a classic. This film earns a full 5 stars effortlessly. It is such a personal favorite that I never gave the 2020 television series a look in. Even having the brilliant and beautiful Jennifer Connelly on board could not entice me. *She has been a favorite since the 1986 film Labyrinth. I remember turning to my then wife and saying, “Keep an eye on that one. She is going to go far.”*
The film is available to stream on Plex, Tubi and Pluto TV for free. It can be rented/purchased via Prime. Head on over and check it out. Snowpiercer really is the engine that could…entertain you.
And remember. Know your place. Be a shoe.
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