Typically, when a movie takes place in a fairly recent time period, the filmmakers do one of two things--A: Romanticize the period, or B: Turn it into a jokey cartoon caricature of what it was. The latter is especially true when the period in question is the 1960s or '70s. This era is consistently portrayed as some sort of avocado-green polyester nightmare (as opposed to the boringly-neutral-beige combed-cotton nightmare of present society). The Ice Storm, however, takes neither approach. While I won't say that the time is incidental, we are not pummeled with it; in fact, we can even forget it after a while. The film is about (surprise!) people.
The place is New Canaan, Connecticut; the time, winter 1973. The people are a group of alienated, sexually repressed/frustrated/bored characters. All want different things, but all are united by their desperate longing for personal satisfaction. They mix, discussing Watergate, Deep Throat, and Styrofoam packing peanuts, letting their own issues simmer without a word. In private, they all struggle to break out of their numbing suburban routine. But numbing though it may be, they really don't know anything else. So where do they go?
Ang Lee has created the type of film that is, sadly, an anomaly in Hollywood: A picture that makes you think. The characters are merely observed, without judgment, revealing their personalities, fears, aches, longings. Lee never goes out of his way to make them sympathetic; whether you care about any of them or not all depends on your own personality, fears, aches, longings. The interactions of these incompatible people, together yet isolated, are never less than fascinating.
The film is marvelously put together. The photography is beautiful, combining with great sets and costumes for the perfect atmosphere. We see a lot of ice--in trays, on branches, etc--and though the metaphor may not be subtle, it works perfectly. Though the soundtrack includes some great pop tunes, they are merely background music, heard only when characters put them on. The acting, which is the true backbone of the movie, is fantastic (though I don't care for Katie Holmes). Stand-outs include Christina Ricci as a teenager experimenting with sex (it happens--get over it), and polar-opposite wives Joan Allen and Sigourney Weaver (who has never looked more beautiful). This is a dark, barren winter landscape worthy of exploration. Expect to be chilled...but leave your coat in the closet.
The place is New Canaan, Connecticut; the time, winter 1973. The people are a group of alienated, sexually repressed/frustrated/bored characters. All want different things, but all are united by their desperate longing for personal satisfaction. They mix, discussing Watergate, Deep Throat, and Styrofoam packing peanuts, letting their own issues simmer without a word. In private, they all struggle to break out of their numbing suburban routine. But numbing though it may be, they really don't know anything else. So where do they go?
Ang Lee has created the type of film that is, sadly, an anomaly in Hollywood: A picture that makes you think. The characters are merely observed, without judgment, revealing their personalities, fears, aches, longings. Lee never goes out of his way to make them sympathetic; whether you care about any of them or not all depends on your own personality, fears, aches, longings. The interactions of these incompatible people, together yet isolated, are never less than fascinating.
The film is marvelously put together. The photography is beautiful, combining with great sets and costumes for the perfect atmosphere. We see a lot of ice--in trays, on branches, etc--and though the metaphor may not be subtle, it works perfectly. Though the soundtrack includes some great pop tunes, they are merely background music, heard only when characters put them on. The acting, which is the true backbone of the movie, is fantastic (though I don't care for Katie Holmes). Stand-outs include Christina Ricci as a teenager experimenting with sex (it happens--get over it), and polar-opposite wives Joan Allen and Sigourney Weaver (who has never looked more beautiful). This is a dark, barren winter landscape worthy of exploration. Expect to be chilled...but leave your coat in the closet.