Smilla's Sense of Snow (1997)

A strong beginning segues clumsily into a dark and confusing middle.

• Plot devices spring up out of thin air, with little rhyme or reason. EG, the powerful daddy, the buddy with nautical connections, ad nauseam.

• For most of the film, the lead actors seem to swallow the majority of their lines, which are anyway spoken so low as to be unintelligible. If I hadn't had closed captioning, I wouldn't have understood half the dialogue. Is this a thing with "artsy-house" films?

• Does Gabriel Byrne have narcolepsy here, or does he simply wish he were in a more intelligent movie?

Too bad, if it had kept up with the strong beginning, this could have been an excellent film. What a waste of talents like Robert Loggia and Bob Peck.

Summary: better than any sleeping pill.

Fmovies: A scientist who heads up a mining company in Greenland discovers a way to make money and garner power. However, in doing so he endangers others. After a child supposedly commits suicide, a woman who has doubts about the death begins an investigation in behalf of the dead boy. Her life is then threatened, but she never gives up. Eventually, she comes face to face with her enemies on a lonely ice floe far to the north. At times the story was hard to follow, and I felt it had a few holes in it. Sometimes it just didn't make sense. Still, it was worth the seeing.

I really, really, really liked this movie. Yes, I know the plot was a little twisted and the ending was very confusing and somewhat unbelievable at times, but this was a great movie. Julia Ormond's portrayal of the ice princess is absolutely fantastic. This has got to be her best role ever. With SSOS, she proves that she is not just a movie star, but that she is also a damn good actress. The supporting cast is superb. All first class actors, Vannasa Redgrave, Richard Harris, and Gabriel Byrne. I love Byrne's portrayal of the mysterious mechanic. Yes, he could have done a better job but that didn't hurt the movie. I have heard so much criticism from others regarding this film but the bottom line is, you either love it or hate it. I happen to love it. This is a great thriller/mystery/sci-fi/drama. Did I mention Gabriel Byrne, as good looking as ever? 9/10

Smilla's Sense of Snow fmovies. I was surprised to see that IMDb users had given this movie a 7.0. It's really pretty terrible. I gave it a 3.0, and that was being generous. It's ridiculous, opaque and all around pretty stupid. It's empty of any emotion or believability. I had no sympathy and very little interest in the characters. Every time I started to get interested or began to like someone, something ridiculous or stupid happened. I was very disappointed in this movie. What did I miss? How come everybody liked it?

I read the book before I watched the movie. Usually I am not too fond of films made after a book. This is one of the rare exceptions.

The makers succeeded well in capturing the complexity of the book's characters. Julia Ormond does remarkably well as the moody, unpredictable Smilla Jaspersen. So does Gabriel Byrne in the role of the rather secretive Mechanic. The brilliant Richard Harris is in here too, one of the many movies he probably said that it would be his last. The rest of the cast fits in well. Nice to see that they didn't try to get all big names, but rather actors who can fill a role appropriately.

Of course the movie isn't perfect, but in order to give that book full credit, they would have had to make a 4 hour film. Especially the second part, with all the events on the ship and in Greenland, is rather condensed. Those scenes could have used a bit more air to breathe, less pace.

Nevertheless I really like this movie, I have been watching it several times already. And now I think I am going to read the book again... (8/10)

Based upon the bestseller by Peter Hoeg, "Miss Smilla's feeling for snow", it would have been hard for the movie to disappoint. The performances by all are exceptional, not least Julia Ormonds portrayal of Smilla, as icy as the landscape that involves (and evolves) the movie. The movie has an almost poetic feel, so beautifully is it paced, and the story draws you in steadily as Smilla searched for the truth behind her young friends death. There are enough surprises, twists and turns to keep most people happy, and the warmth of the two leads performances are in great contrast to the snow that provides the story. I couldn't recommend this story enough to fans of the book, or anyone who is interested in seeing a movie that is not your ordinary run of the mill hollywood movie, but one with depth, character and genuine emotion.

Superb.