Rolling Stock

I resisted watching Bong Joon-ho's Snowpiercer (2013) for quite a while, because I assumed that the harsh secret was cannibalism. I'm happy to tell you that I was wrong. Also happy I watched this, mostly for the atmosphere.

It takes place 17 years after an attempt to solve global warming leads to global freezing. The only life left on Earth is a group of people on a luxury train that travels endlessly around the globe. Why this prevents them from freezing is never explained. The train has a special inexhaustible  fuel, but I don't think it requires motion. Anyway, just roll with it. 

In the tail of the train are refugees and their kids. They live crowded together, and fed on bricks of grey protein jelly - not soylent green, but not much better. Their spiritual leader, John Hurt, is working towards their eventual overthrow of the oppressive regime, symbolized by Helen Mirren as the Thatcher-like minister who comes to the tail section to steal children - in this case, Octavia Spenser's. 

Chris Evans plays another sort of leader - a good, capable man who is reluctant to lead. His side-kick is Jamie Bell. He discovers that the guards guns don't have any ammunition - it all ran out and there's no way to get more. So the revolution is on.

First, they get a famous thief out of cold storage, Song Kang-ho. He also breaks out a young woman, Go Ah-sung. They are both addicted to a volatile substance derived from industrial waste, but have skills they need.

So the team heads up to the front of the train. They make many discoveries, have lots of fights, and so on. When Evans gets to the head of the train, he meets the train's inventor, Ed Harris - and makes more discoveries.

I have to acknowledge that the plot is full of holes - in fact the whole premise is. So never mind that. The story is great. The influence of Terry Gilliam (Hurt's character's name is Gilliam) and Edgar Wright (Jamie Bell is Edgar) are clear. The train has a great post-steampunk feel, not as over the top as Brazil, but you won't be surprised by the Art Deco cockpit in the front of the train. Bong gets some fine performances by some great actors for this. 

So that, along with Parasite, completes our little Bong Joon-ho film festival. We loved this but don't expect to watch the TV series that is just starting up.