Edge of Winter

Starring: Joel Kinnaman, Tom Holland, Rachelle Lefevre, Rossif Sutherland, Percy Hynes White
Directed by: Rob Connolly
Rating: R
Genre: Drama, Thriller
2016

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Two boys get stranded in the woods with their father (Joel Kinnaman), but soon suspect he is beginning to unravel.

Review:

Tim: I genuinely thought I was going to like Edge of Winter. It seemed like a stripped down, focused intense thriller. It looked like one of those movies that totally flies under the radar, but surprises you with how good it was. That's a great story to tell, but the truth is this movie is far too forgettable, never making even close to the desired impact. It's an okay movie, but never more than that.

I'm not sure exactly how you screw this one up. The idea is a cool one- two boys are stranded in the middle of the woods during a dangerous snowstorm. They're city boys and must rely on their outdoorsy father to protect them. Their protector soon turns into their biggest threat, as he mentally begins to crack under the strain of potentially losing them. That's a really cool story and one that shouldn't have been that hard to execute. Unfortunately, the movie never lands its punches and we're left with a completely subpar movie.

A big complaint I have here is Joel Kinnaman. I've been saying this again and again- I don't understand why people cast him. He's not a good actor. He looks dangerous, sure, but the guy doesn't have enough talent. I've never really liked him in any role. This could have been the perfect opportunity for him. There's moments early on where I wondered if this would be the movie that redeems him. Despite a few good moments, as the film goes on, Kinnaman's lack of talent eventually shows. He simply doesn't have the ability to make this role work. A better actor could have changed the trajectory of this entire film- the descent into madness could have been remarkable, but Kinnaman butchers it. It's really the biggest shame of the film. I did like seeing Tom Holland here- while it's a small role, you can tell Holland has talent and will be around for a long time. I enjoyed his performance. I smiled when I saw Rachelle Lefevre- another actor who I cannot understand how they keep getting cast. Luckily, her part is basically pointless. The cast here was quite underwhelming- really Holland is the only standout. This movie is hurt because they didn't assemble enough talent in front of the camera.

It's easy to criticize the talent behind the camera, too. You have to start with Rob Connolly. This is his feature film directorial debut, and his experience in the director's chair shows. There were so many missed opportunities here, so many ways this movie could have worked. It's obviously far too early to issue any decisions about Connolly, but I only hope he learns from the myriad mistakes made on this film. This could have been a good movie, but Connolly is unable to execute on it.

There are certainly decent moments throughout Edge of Winter, but the movie as a whole doesn't work nearly as well as it should. The tension is never quite as powerful as it needs to be. There's just odd decisions that are made with the story that push you away, rather than drawing you in. There's too many things that just seem too farfetched. The movie is an extremely short 1 hour, 29 minutes, but the film can't even manage to hold our attention for that short length of time. This is an okay movie, but you have to leave this feeling really disappointed.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: In the Heart of the Sea, The Edge