The Ice Storm

Starring: Kevin Kline, Sigourney Weaver, Joan Allen, Elijah Wood, Katie Holmes, Tobey Maguire, Christine Ricci, Allison Janney
Directed by: Ang Lee
Rating: R
Genre: Drama
1997

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A husband (Kevin Kline) deals with his cold wife (Joan Allen) and frustrating lover (Sigourney Weaver) while he welcomes home his oldest son (Tobey Maguire) and deals with the budding relationship between his daughter (Christina Ricci) and her friend (Elijah Wood).

Review:

Tim:
The Ice Storm is a look at average Americans in the early 1970s, as they deal with family, friends, and a growing sexuality all around them. Director Ang Lee focuses almost exclusively on the characters, and each is indeed developed as the film progresses. The character study is interesting, but the movie itself is a bit underwhelming. While we may feel a bit of interest in the characters, we simply aren't emotionally invested in any single one of them. Their stories might entertain us briefly, but they don't impact us on any deeper level.

The characters do come to life because of the performances of the mostly-impressive cast. Kevin Kline does a decent job, but he never really connects to the audience. He almost fades into the background of this ensemble film. I wish he would have made a bigger impact. The same can be said for Sigourney Weaver- she has a few good moments, but doesn't really stand out from anyone else. Joan Allen actually has a number of very good moments- I thought her performance was quite strong. I liked seeing Tobey Maguire and Katie Holmes in this film, but neither one has enough screen time to be truly great. This film is less about Maguire and Holmes, and more about the other actors. That is a bit disappointing, because I would have really liked to see a further exploration of these characters. Maguire, especially, I just didn't feel like I ever really knew his character. Elijah Wood and Christina Ricci work well together. Both give good performances, and I really enjoyed their scenes together. I was surprised I was so into their story. All in all, the cast is impressive, but no one is really able to breakthrough and take control of the film.

I really enjoyed the subtle connections between the story of the adults and the story of the children. While it is easily overlooked, their stories really do connect and inform on each other. This film does a good job of capturing that innocence of the early 1970s, and how it would quickly shatter (Nixon is a good analogy of how our naivety quickly turned to cynicism). This can get a bit much, as Lee definitely bangs this point home over and over.

One of the biggest problems I have with this film is that family dysfunction has been done over and over again, especially period piece family dysfunction dramas. I wanted to see something new or different, or at least to be touched on a deep emotional level. I couldn't believe how surface level this movie remained. There are a few momentary deep dives into emotions, but these mostly involve the children. The adults stories were surprisingly devoid of this. I couldn't believe how little I cared about the ending, which should have been extremely emotional and unforgettable. I just shrugged it off, which speaks volumes about the lack of lasting impact this movie has.

The Ice Storm is not a terrible movie. It does indeed do a lot right, and Lee focuses narrowly on the individual characters. However, it is missing a serious dose of connection and emotions, which hurt the movie to no extent. This film has enough to entertain, but not enough to last for any length of time. This is a film that is all too easy to shrug off.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



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