The PDC Picks the Top Films of 2014

Mae's Picks

5. Snowpiercer - This is the first English-language feature film for director Bong Joon-ho. And you know what? He gets it right. The production value, a re-envisioned take on already-used themes, and fantastic execution and performances by Chris Evans, Octavia Spencer, and Tilda Swinton, among many others, makes this movie really stand out. It's dark, it has fantastic themes, and keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout. Watching Snowpiercer is essentially like being on a thrilling ride you never want to get off of. As the passengers, who are the last of humankind and are placed in a class system on the train that makes a complete turn around the earth every year, grow tired of being mistreated, they plan to take over the train one car at a time. This literal look at society's economical system is in heavy play here and Bong Joon-ho's direction takes center stage in a suspenseful epic that deserves to be seen and gives us something to think about.

4. Gone Girl - One of the best adapted screenplays of the year (probably because Gillian Flynn, the author of the novel, was the one who adapted the script), Gone Girl is chock-full of powerful acting, a crazy plot, and just the right balance between drama and insanity. Flynn writes with a deft hand and layers the story with proverbial stereotypes about certain gender notions and exceptionally memorable characters. Rosamund Pike's monologue about the "cool girl" is so popular, and for good reason, and her portrayal of Amy is nothing like we've seen from the actress before. Ben Affleck is the accused husband whose life hangs in the balance between normal life and prison (mostly due to the media's twist and portrayal on the proceedings, which plays a large part in the film). I could go on and on with all the great things to say about this film, but just know this: It's excellently done. Also, did I mention the entire "Cool Girl" speech, already?

3. X-Men: Days of Future Past - We can never forget Brett Ratner's turn in the director's chair for the doomed X3, but now with Days of Future Past, we kind of can. Finally! The excellence that was X-Men: First Class and the wonderful first two X-Men films combine worlds in a time travel mash-up that was exciting and more than fulfilling for longtime fans of the movies and comic books alike. For one thing, Bryan Singer is back in the director's chair and the fluidity with which he directs what could have been a complicated plot (what with flip-flopping timelines and all) could have ended in disaster in anyone else's hands. Plus, spoiler alert, every X-Man (and woman!) makes a reappearance in a spectacular fashion. A definite example of how superhero films should be done.

2. Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) - What is there to really say about Birdman that hasn't already been said? Most of the time, critics don't agree on everything, but when they do, there's reason to, and this film is definitely reason to. One of the reasons to love it is that the story pretty much, and ironically, mirrors Michael Keaton's career and rehabilitates it all in one go. The ensemble cast is fantastic, it's a cohesive story, and director Alejandro Inarritu gets technically creative when it comes to the style and oh, yeah, the entire film looks like it's entirely one shot. Which is just awesome. That is all.

1, Selma- A lot of people won't see Selma until January 9, but believe me when I tell you that if you see this film and manage not to like it, then... well, you won't like it, but that in and of itself would be a tragedy. This film couldn't have come at a better time and director Ava DuVernay takes great care to make this film, first and foremost, about Martin Luther King, Jr. Everything else is just an extension of him and only serves to make the film that much better. It's powerful, will probably make you bawl like a baby (bring tissues!), and will leave a great impact on you like no other film will this year. Selma is also backed by a strong cast (David Oyelowo as MLK is outstanding) and really steps up to the plate. The best picture of the year!

Julian's Picks

I don’t see as many films as the rest of the crew but I get out there and you know why

5. The Raid 2- Imagine this whole paragraph with this Sean Bean’s face the whole time you’re reading this.

ONE DOES NOT SIMPLY VIEW THE RAID 2.

The Raid 2 is like pure martial arts film life. It breathes in pure awesome. Where the first film The Raid is like what if some one took late 80s beat’em up video games, bosses and all this one was like a perfect upgrade. With perfect mix of films like Infernal Affairs and Donny Brasco with martial arts classics like the Big Boss or Fist of Legend the Raid 2 had it all. Had me catching the shaolin holy ghost in the theater when I saw it. Every fight is money and also such great new remember able characters like Bat-man and Hammer Girl along with their friend curved knife dude had everyone on the edge of their seat. I go around telling people all the time that they need to fix their life if they haven’t seen The Raid 2.

4. Dear White People- Man I loved the idea of this movie from the title alone. 2014 had been a very weird year for race relations in the United States. For a many just looking at the film’s title and trailer they probably thought this film was about Black people telling white people how they are wrong and really folks are wrong. It’s very much more about generation dealing with race in the country now when it’s supposed to be so post racial. I don’t know, I feel this film a lot. I ended up talking about race a lot this year in many different type of situations and a lot of the issues raised here were needed to be explored in the mainstream. The film also gave me one of my favorite reaction gifs

and Tessa Thompson is fine as all outdoors.

3. Interstellar- This movie is my jam y’all. IT HAS TWO ROBOTS!!!! TARS and CASE all damn day folks. 

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I know this film gets flack from some, I probably love it the most out of our crew here. The movie has Proto-Culture in it! I loved the science in it. The real science fiction explored in it. I loved the whole four-dimensional tesseract part; talk of singularities and the theory of relativity in use.

2. Lego Movie- Lego Movie is my jam. It has Batman in it just stunting on everyone. Holding it down like he does in his Lego games. This joint had my dude Chris Pratt aka The Star-Lord out there being awesome building bunk couches. Being a master builder and all. The film basically has the opposite message of The Incredibles, where in everyone is special in their own way. Which does make everyone the same yet amazing at that same time. I also love how they have that play at the end with something that seems innocuous but really plays with Emmitt (Chris Pratt’s Lego alter ego) basically meeting Judeo Christian God and Jesus with the kid and Will Ferrell. Ferrell created the world and wants strict rules where in his son wants the Lego world to be more forgiving and peaceful. Yeah I saw all that when I was watching it and I’m not even close to religious. I just know stories.

1. Top Five- Chris Rock man, Chris Rock. See I always liked his movies. Head of state was enjoyable. I Think I Love My Wife I swear by but this, Top Five is next level. It’s true what everyone is saying it is Rock’s Annie Hall. It’s a great film basically just about people talking in NYC but from a completely black experience. I love how the film deals with fame, especially urban fame and some of the stuff a person has to deal with. It deals with pressures and the way people view you that really struck a cord. The use of hip hop as a constant topic of a person’s top five favorite emcees is perfect way to really tap into a lot of peoples’ life. Also the whole interview that becomes a date I really connected to in this. A TON! Top Five had me like

Rocky's Picks

5. TIE 22 JUMP STREET/VERONICA MARS- Let’s start with a couple of movies that had big expectations this year: Veronica Mars, which needed to simultaneously please the Marshmallows that helped fund it and people new to the show in order to draw in additional audiences; and 22 Jump Street, which had to prove that the original film starring Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill wasn’t a fluke success. And I think both of them succeeded quite admirably—I couldn’t stop smiling during the former and I couldn’t stop laughing during the latter. Veronica Mars, as I talked about during my Best Trailers of 2014 and Best Kisses of 2014 posts, picked up exactly where the show had left off so many years ago, channeling the right wry and cynical tone while still letting a bit of hope (Logan and Veronica forever!) peep through. And 22 Jump Street continued to poke fun at youth culture, this time mocking the absurdity of college and allowing Tatum and Hill to further their weird sibling rivalry charm. (Let’s hope that the Jump Street/Men in Black crossover hinted at in the Sony email leaks never comes to fruition, because I would shake my fist in prolonged rage.) Overall, though, two of the films that gave me the most smiles this year.

4. TIE: ERNEST & CELESTINE/THE BOXTROLLS- In a year that saw huge success for animated films The LEGO Movie and Big Hero 6, and following last year’s mega-obnoxious-it-will-never-go-away mania of Frozen, I would rather watch Ernest & Celestine or The Boxtrolls. The former is a beautiful (and I mean that both visually and thematically) French-Belgian film about a friendship between a mouse and a bear; they’re not supposed to get along, but they realize their differences from the others of their species make them more attuned to each other than anyone else. The movie was originally released in 2012 but only made its way stateside this year, and please find it and watch it (the subtitled version!). You won’t regret it. The same goes for The Boxtrolls, the latest film from Laika; it underperformed when released this fall, but it’s such a weird, bizarre, gleeful little film that I’ve been recommending it to anyone and everyone. It’s about classicism and creativity and, well, cheese, but all of its disparate elements come together into something great.

3. GONE GIRL- What else is there to say about Gone Girl? I won’t write you a thinkpiece; all I’ll say is that Amazing Amy is my favorite villain of the year. Her cruelty gives me joy. And any time I get the opportunity to smugly say “That’s marriage” to someone, well, I’ll take it!

2. FOXCATCHER- I listed Foxcatcher as my most underrated movie of the year in our staff post, and I stand by that claim. Of the more than 150 movies I saw this year, this is probably the one I can’t stop thinking about—the story that makes me the angriest at American sports culture, social structure, and inherited wealth. All of the performances are great, and in a year packed with male competitors, it’s disappointing that Steve Carrell, Channing Tatum, and Mark Ruffalo might get forgotten for their work here (and they absolutely shouldn’t). The methodical stillness of the filmmaking is unshakably eerie. And while I hear the critique (which fellow PDC-er Travis Hopson has made to me) that director Bennett Miller doesn’t really add anything to the story with his film, I disagree; I think the mystery of the narrative, and the abruptness with which Miller moves between subplots and how he chooses to end the film, speak for themselves. There’s a moral decay to Foxcatcher that is simultaneously enthralling and repellant, and it’s going to stay on my mind for a long time. 

1. BIRDMAN OR (THE UNEXPECTED VIRTUE OF IGNORANCE)- Masterful is how I would describe Birdman—director Alejandro González Iñárritu; cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki; composer Antonio Sanchez; the ensemble led by Michael Keaton and including great work from Edward Norton, Emma Stone, and Zach Galifianakis. Everyone here is in top form; every scene works; every criticism of cinema and theater and fame hits exactly where it needs to hit; every sneer from Norton lands perfectly; every narrated line from Birdman himself has impact. That voice! Who doesn’t love the Keaton-as-Birdman voice? It’s a twisty-turny film, and the ending won’t work for everyone, and the play within the movie structure has its moments of exceeding meta-ness—but I couldn’t take my eyes off any second of it. Birdman is unforgettable, and it’s my favorite movie of the year.


John's Picks

5. Foxcatcher- The ‘Based on a True Story’ film starring Steve Carrell and Channing Tatum chronicles the story of John du Pont and his relationship with the Schultz brothers during their time working with Du Pont’s Team Foxcatcher wrestling camp. The flick had a ton of buzz a while back but has since taken a back seat to films like Boyhood and Birdman. While the prosthetics used on Tatum and Carrell are a bit distracting I can’t find another flaw with the film. The performances are great and the story has this subdued quality that really grips you by the arm and makes you pay attention. Honestly, if I were to watch a scene out of context I’d think the film lacked any semblance of energy, but the entire film in context? Simply gripping. Carrel’s Du Pont is equal parts sad, weird, and ominious and Ruffalo brings that overly likeable persona he adds to each of his characters making the whole film that much more tragic (Sorry Channing, you were good but those two stole the show).

4. Guardians of the Galaxy- I wonder if this was what it was like to see Star Wars in a theater back in 1977? Guardians brings us to a whole new world full of such fun and wonder that it’s amazing there was any trepidation about the film being too out there. Hindsight is 20/20, I would never have guessed a film starring a talking raccoon and anthropomorphic tree would be one of the best of the year either. Calling a film “the total package” is, like most review tropes, overused and under deserved most of the time. Not here, nope, this is the definition. Chris Pratt brings more laughs than you could possibly expect, the action scenes are top notch…I haven’t seen such great sci-fi dogfighting choreography since Return of the Jedi, the story and writing are so good that you find yourself empathizing with the pain felt by that same talking Raccoon in a bar scene, and if you didn’t cry during the hyper-emotional “We are Groot” conclusion…well then I think you need to see a psychiatrist.

3. The Raid 2- Given how overly-verbose I was when talking about last years The Raid: Redemption it surprises me to have so little to say about the best martial arts movie of the last decade (taking the honors from its predecessor). The simple fact is you don’t need a lot of words to explain why this film is in my top of 2014 list. It surpassed the original. Point made.

2. The Imitation Game- Benedict Cumberbatch’s role as Alan Turing, the British born cryptographer who broke the Nazi’s enigma code and created the first computer while doing it, is both captivating and heart-breaking. Cumberbatch is at his best in the role pulling out that persona of an anti-social genius that has become his calling card. Some have criticized the film for just that, Cumberbatch playing the same old role, and in some sense they are right but he does it so well how can you blame him. Extra points to the filmmakers for making the film about his work and not the tragic conclusion to the story. It’s not that I think that angle shouldn’t be covered, quite the opposite, the way they used it as a final punch to the story made the impact that much more heartbreaking.

1. Captain America: The Winter Soldier- How could it not be #1? I’m in the minority that I absolutely loved Captain America: The First Avenger, but the follow up left me among the masses in our mutual love for Cap. The Russo brothers deliver an amazing piece of filmmaking, comic-book or not. Their use of practical effects and shying away from the big flashy CGI of most comic book films brings this movie right down to eye level adding a layer to it that I don’t think we’ve seen yet in the Marvel Universe. The far reaching impact on the Marvel universe at large is obvious but it’s the personal story and in your face blood and sweat action that brings Cap back to #1 and cements The Winter Soldier as my #1 film of the year. 

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Review: 'Snowpiercer' Starring Chris Evans, Tilda Swinton, and Octavia Spencer

Will he or won't he? There's been a great deal of talk amongst cinephiles about South Korean director Bong Joon-ho's Snowpiercer, but the "he" in question is actually Harvey Weinstein. And the question was whether we would get to see the film in full as Bong would have preferred, or if Harvey would do one of his infamous hatchet jobs, threatening to slice 20 minutes from it for American audiences who prefer their action movies brisk and short. In the end we're getting the version Bong always intended and the dystopian world he envisions is incredibly immersive and extremely thrilling....but maybe some of those edits should have been kept in.

So much about Snowpiercer goes a long way in placing it amongst the very best and smartest sci-fi movies around that any flaws prove to be glaring. What's not an issue is how Bong is able to fully realize a future world and all of its problems with a bare minimum of exposition, at least initially. Finally convinced of the threat of global warming, the world governments band together to release a substance called CW7 into the air. It works, but rather than dropping the temperature down a few degrees the world is thrust into a new Ice Age, killing all life on the planet but a handful of survivors. Somehow they all managed to board a luxury perpetual motion train known as the Snowpiercer, and now it races all around the world. If it stops everyone on board could die and humanity would be extinguished.

But that may happen anyway because the system aboard the train is divided up by social status. The dregs, society's poor, are banished to the train's tail while the elite live near the front in the lap of luxury. The downtrodden live in squalor, feasting on disgusting "protein" as their main sustenance, and suffering the wrath of train security if anyone steps out of line. There have been rebellions, all soundly defeated, but a new one is building led by the brooding hero, Curtis (Chris Evans), and his wizened old mentor, Gilliam (John Hurt). Tired of being bullied by the chittering, teeth-gnashing bureaucrat Mason (Tilda Swinton, in dork mode), Curtis, his right-hand man Edgar (Jamie Bell), and a drug-addled engineer (Song Kang-ho) gather an army and proceed to take the train car by car.

Combining brutal action with art house sensibilities, think The Raidmeets Metropolis, as the tail section survivors endure one bloody battle after another against the elite's heavily armed goon squad. Bong and screenwriter Kelly Masterson aren't content to make this just another beat 'em up, though, adding in stark social commentary and a central mystery of the train's origins for audiences to ponder. Designed often like the levels in an arcade game, each train car has a different feel and significance, like the oddball classroom led by pregnant, gun-toting schoolteacher (Alison Pill); or one glorious car built as a giant aquarium. The amount Bong is able to accomplish on a modest $40M budget is remarkable and shows his range in capturing the vibrant and unbearably grim. Not that we should be surprised at Bong's range. This is the same guy who delivered one of the great modern monster movies inThe Host, and the haunting South Korean film noir, Mother, both exceptional entries to their respective genres. The CGI gets a little dicey when the action moves, however briefly, outside the train to the frozen Earth below.

In working with a largely American audience Bong has managed to cull some memorable performances from his cast. Whatever the heck Swinton is doing with her nerdy librarian routine as Mason, she needs to keep doing it because she is simply amazing and a lot of fun. Supporting players Octavia Spencer, Ed Harris, Bell, Kang-ho, and Ko Ah-sung bring a ton of depth to characters that don't all get a lot of screen time. Evans shows off the physicality and stoic personality we've seen him employ as Captain America, but his character is probably the least defined of the bunch. That was probably done to maintain some level of secrecy but it becomes an issue later on we need to believe the choices he makes.

After a certain point the film begins to lose some of the momentum it left the station with as questions get answered and characters' true natures are revealed. This is probably the area where Weinstein was hoping to do some chopping as the final act is bogged down by a lot of people standing around explaining what was left out before. The energy comes to a dead halt as new surprises emerge seemingly out of nowhere with one major character twist lacking potency because of it.

It's become a common complaint that Hollywood doesn't offer enough in the way of heady sci-fi movies but the truth is that dynamic is changing. In a way it's ironic that Snowpiercer isn't getting a wider release because it pulls no punches either in brains or brawn and should appeal to audiences of every stripe.

 Rating: 3.5 out of 5

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New U.S. Trailer for 'Snowpiercer' Starring Chris Evans and Tilda Swinton

All the worrying over director's cuts and release dates are over and finally, FINALLY we will be seeing Bong Joon-Ho's epic sci-fi film, Snowpiercer, in theaters this summer. Sure, it will only be in limited release and may be overshadowed by the season's tentpoles, but at least we're getting Joon-Ho's full uncut vision for the apocalyptic thriller.

A new trailer cut for U.S. audiences has been released, showcasing the top-flight cast of Chris Evans, Tilda Swinton, Ewen Bremner, Alison Pill, Octavia Spencer, John Hurt, Ed Harris, Song Kang-Ho, and Ko Ah-Sung. By now you know this takes place aboard a moving train where the last human survivors of a ruined Earth battle after a brutal cast system is established.

Snowpiercer leaves the station on June 27th.


Snowpiercer Official Trailer #1 (2014) Chris Evans, 1080p HD by Filmsreviews

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Red Band Trailer for Sci-Fi Epic 'Snowpiercer'

Bong Joon-Ho's highly anticipated Snowpiercer will be opening the LA Film Festival in June, indicating once and for all that the arguments are over in regards to the final version. Harvey Weinstein won't chop out 20 minutes as he was tempted to do, and Joon-Ho will get the full director's cut he wanted. It'll only open in limited release, but hey, those are the breaks.

An action-packed red band trailer and some new images have been released for the futuristic film. Chris Evans, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell, Alison Pill, Octavia Spencer, Song Kang-ho, John Hurt, and Ed Harris star, with the story set in a future when an attempt to end global warming thrusts the world into a new ice age. What remains of humanity travels the world in a train propelled by a perpetual motion engine, until a violent class war erupts amongst the passengers.

Despite the mixed response it earned on the festival circuit, Snowpiercer is one film I'm dying to see on June 27th.

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'Snowpiercer' Finally Hits U.S. Theaters this Summer

The fighting between Harvey Weinstein and South Korean director Bong Joon-Ho over the final cut of Snowpiercer has seemingly been resolved, and now the anticipated sci-fi film has a release date. The film will hit theaters right in the thick of blockbuster season on June 27th, and yes, that puts it head-on against Transformers: Age of Extinction.

One has to wonder what Weinstein is thinking here, as genre fans will almost certainly flock to Bay's film rather than seeking out Snowpiercer, which we know is opening only in limited release. However it will be the director's cut as Joon-Ho had hoped, so those who have been most eager for it will get to see the full creative vision. Still, this is somewhat disappointing and kind of smacks as one last jab of defiance from Weinstein. The film stars Chris Evans, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell, Song Kang-ho, Alison Pill, Ewen Bremner, Octavia Spencer, Ed Harris, and John Hurt, taking place in a future when an experiment to end global warming kills most of the population. Class warfare erupts aboard the Snowpiercer, a perpetually-moving train carrying the last remnants of humanity.

In other news, Kill the Messenger, the real-life biopic on journalist Gary Webb, has been given a release date of October 10th, putting it right into the Oscar mix. Directed by Michael Cuesta (Homeland) and starring Jeremy Renner as Webb, the story follows the reporter's reveal of the CIA's connection to the Colombian drug trade, leading to his being publicly smeared. The assassination of his character ruined him professionally and personally, and ultimately ended with Webb's suicide. Rosemarie DeWitt, Paz Vega, Andy Garcia, Tim Blake Nelson, Robert Patrick, Barry Pepper, Oliver Platt, Michael Sheen, Michael K. Williams and Mary Elizabeth Winstead co-star.

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Director's Cut of 'Snowpiercer' to Hit U.S. but in Limited Release

Well, there's good news and bad news in regards to Bong Joon-Ho's sci-fi epic, Snowpiercer. For months there's been a ton of anger from fans, a little from the director himself, that Harvey Weinstein was planning to do what he's known for and slice the film by as much as 20 minutes and make other changes nobody else wants. But now it looks like Joon-Ho and Weinstein have come to an agreement that will probably leave fans with mixed emotions.

Snowpiercer will arrive on U.S. shores unedited, just as Joon-Ho intended, but it will only be in limited release. That means if you really want to see the film in full it may require a bit of a hike, but at least you'll get the full cut that is apparently just over 2 1/2 hours. It's that lengthy run time which caused Weinstein to scuttle plans for a national rollout. The film has been playing internationally where it has broken box office records and won a handful of awards (it's at Berlin now), but apparently we're too dumb in America to understand it.

And that's been Weinstein's prevailing attitude for awhile, that American audiences won't respond to a foreign film with any level of intelligence or nuance. That apparently applies to Snowpiercer even though it boasts a cast including Chris Evans (Captain America), Tilda Swinton (Oscar winner), Octavia Spencer (Oscar winner), John Hurt, Alison Pill, and Jamie Bell. So it's not as if it doesn't have the star wattage to attract a decent box office if given the proper push.

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New Japanese Trailer for 'Snowpiercer' Debuts New Footage

Snowpiercer has been a long time in the making for director Joon-ho Bong. It's Bong's first English-speaking film and a couple of trailers have already been released for the film, including a new Japanese trailer. The movie is set to hit theaters in Japan on February 7, but it's yet unknown when the U.S. and UK are going to be seeing what looks to be a fantastic science fiction thriller. The trailer is pretty intense and action-packed, giving us glimpses of new scenes that weren't shown in previous trailers. 

The film stars Chris Evans, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell, Octavia Spencer, John Hurt, Ed Harris, and Alison Pill. The movie was first released in South Korea in August of 2013. 

Plot: In a future where a failed global-warming experiment kills off most life on the planet, a class system evolves aboard the Snowpiercer, a train that travels around the globe via a perpetual-motion engine.

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Bong Joon-Ho Reportedly "Furious" Over 'Snowpiercer' Cuts

A couple of months ago rumors began to surface that The Weinstein Company were looking to chop up Bong Joon-Ho's sci-fi film Snowpiercer for American audiences.. Those familiar with ol' Harvey Scissorhands have been worried about this since the studio acquired the rights, and with estimates of as much as 20 minutes being cut there was a considerable amount of outrage. Bong diffused the situation a little bit by saying the edits wouldn't be so bad, but according to Variety they are pretty bad and the director is more upset than he's been letting on.

Talking to audiences at the South Korean Busan Film Festival where Snowpiercer recently screened, Bong made it clear that it was the last time his complete vision for it would be available. He said, “We are still in discussions about the cut, but it is clear that this is the only director’s cut you will be able to see." He didn't go into specifics on what the changes are, but sources close to him are saying they are significant enough that "privately he is furious."

Snowpiercer has been a major hit in Bong's native South Korea, where they received a full unedited version. The Weinstein hold the rights to the U.S. and a number of other major regions so the only hope at this point is that a director's cut will be a part of the DVD/Blu-Ray package. 

I emphasized caution when the original story hit back in August, but that was before Bong Joon-Ho himself started getting pissed about the situation. More than anything I want to experience everything that a filmmaker intends, and considering what Weinstein did to The Grandmaster I'm officially worried.

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New Trailer for 'Snowpiercer' Starring Chris Evans and Tilda Swinton

The jury's out on whether Harvey Weinstein is going to slice 'n dice Bong Joon-ho's sci-fi epic, Snowpiercer, but in the meantime the film is gearing up to roll into theaters. Not here, unfortunately, as it has yet to gain a U.S. release date. Instead it will open in France next month after previously opening in Joon-ho's native South Korea. And as the release nears, a new trailer has been released that offers up the richest look yet.

Assembling a top-notch cast of Chris Evans, Alison Pill, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell, Ewen Bremner, Song Kang-ho, John Hurt, Ed Harris, and Octavia Spencer, the film is set in a future when humanity has been wiped out by a failed attempt to end global warming. The few who remain travel the frozen world in a perpetually-moving train until a class system begins to emerge and rebellion grows. The footage suggests an action-packed, high-concept thriller, but who knows if we'll get Joon-ho's original vision or a watered down version.

 

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Cue Outrage: Harvey Weinstein May Chop 20 Minutes from 'Snowpiercer'

While we still don't have a firm release date for Bong Joon-ho's Snowpiercer, the film has gone great guns in South Korea, breaking the previous records held by the director's monster flick, The Host. A great deal of that can be attributed to it being the director's home country, but with a diverse international cast and post-apocalyptic science fiction setting, there's a pretty good chance it will be hit on a global scale. But there is an issue, and that's The Weinstein Company, who think that it still needs to be chopped down before a U.S. theatrical run, despite its foreign success.


Festival programmer and film critic Tony Rayns claims that Harvey Weinstein is planning to trim as much as 20 minutes from Snowpiercer, while adding voiceovers to the beginning and end, before opening it in multiple territories including the U.S., New Zealand, South Africa, and Australia. It's not exactly something new for Weinstein, whose reputation for editing down his foreign acquisitions precedes him and is well-earned. Hey, he didn't get the nickname Harvey Scissorhands for nothing. It's the reasons Rayns gives for the decision which has ruffled a few feathers, saying "TWC people have told Bong that their aim is to make sure the film 'will be understood by audiences in Iowa ... and Oklahoma. Leaving aside the issue of what Weinstein thinks of its audience, it seems to say the least anomalous that the rest of the English-speaking world has to be dragged down to the presumed level of American mid-west hicks."

To put it bluntly, what Rayns means is that Weinstein thinks American Midwest folk are too stupid for the film. It doesn't sound particularly complicated, though, centering on the last remnants of humanity fighting to survive on a perpetually moving train as the outside world is destroyed by global catastrophe. According to the director, whose opinion on it we don't know at this point (Wong Kar-Wai didn't care his The Grandmaster was edited by Weinstein), the majority of the cuts will come from character detail in order to make it more of a streamlined action movie.

It's that last part that bugs me the most, because the last thing we need is yet another sci-fi/action movie. We've seen enough of those this year and few have been very good. Otherwise I'm finding it a little tough to have the same level of outrage that some others have. As I said earlier, this is just what ol' Harvey does, so why in the world would anybody think Snowpiercer would be the exception? He'll slice up Princess Mononoke but not Snowpiercer? Yeah, right. And as for the insulting comments about the American Midwest, that was all Rayns coloring his comments with personal opinion. And the deliberately inflammatory headline by Twitch certainly didn't help matters.  So how about we wait and see how Snowpiercer turns out before getting all hot 'n bothered? Or at the very least wait until we know when it will be in theaters. Rayns says the U.K. will be protesting the changes, and Australia may follow suit, but what that means exactly is anybody's guess. It probably doesn't mean anything at all, and chances are we'll see the version of the film that Weinstein wants us to see. If it turns out to be a stinker because of his meddling, he'll feel the brunt of the backlash, as he should.

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Brief Trailer and Violent Animated Prequel for 'Snowpiercer'

Either The Weinstein Company has a truly amazing marketing push in store, or they really don't care that Bong Joon-Ho's sci-fi epic Snowpiercer is tops on the "most anticipated" list for a lot of people. As the film gears up to be released in South Korea, a stateside date has still yet to be announced, and we're getting what is being billed as the "final" international trailer.More of a teaser than a full trailer, the focus is primarily on the character played by Chris Evans, and it appears he has a personal destiny that ties into the growing riot aboard a train full of humanity's last remnants.

While there may not be much in the way of new footage in the trailer, a new animated prequel is something entirely different and offers a look at how the world ended up in a perpetual ice age. As society begins to crumble, we see an outbreak of violence as what's left of the human race fights to get aboard the train that is their only hope for survival.

Also starring Octavia Spencer, Jamie Bell, Tilda Swinton, John Hurt, Ed Harris, Song Kang-ho, and Ewen Bremner, look for Snowpiercer to (hopefully) open later this year.

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