Schneemann

Great actors, great book. Great scenery. But what's happening here? People are introduced, things are happening, but I don't get it. What is happening? What are they working on? Is there a case here, a story? I wanted this movie to be great, but it is too much fluff and little (if any) story for a movie the way it's presented. Who directed this.................................

What annoys me the most is that this movie could have been so good... an engaging story by the best-selling nordic writer Jo Nesbø, a breathtaking cinematography, an exceptional cast (Michael Fassbender, Rebecca Ferguson, JK Simmons, Chloe Sevigny and even Val Kilmer).

And yet the adaptation is so unsatisfactory. There are cuts and jumps that break the fluidity of the narrative, the plot ended up so stereotyped that in 15 minutes I already knew who the murderer was, and then there were so many loose ends... And that ending is just empty, empty, empty. What a waste of potential. This book deserved a much more coherente adaptation.

I read that this movie got some pretty terrible reviews but i kind of enjoyed it. I'm a sucker for cop/detective movies especially ones where the main character is jaded and burnt out and the movie has a great cast - Micheal Fassbender, J.K Simmons and the beautiful Rebecca Ferguson. The story kept me interested all the way through and the Norwegian setting is pretty stunning to look at. It felt like a TV movie in places though probably because nothing is overly flashy and the movie wasn't particularly action packed but i did enjoy the police procedural elements. It's well acted and i was invested to know what would happen next. Also you're kept in the dark until the last 15 minutes as to who the killer is and then my reaction was "Oh, it's that guy....really?". Not as awful as the reviews would make you believe but not a classic. If you enjoy detective thrillers i'd say check it out, you'll have a decent time.

Aside from apparently everybody in Norway speaking only English with an English dialect (good for old school filmmaking, but we're all smarter than that), it was a really enjoyable afternoon movie. Would love to have seen it on the big screen, it just had that feeling to it!! There were some shortcomings in the film, some of them were distracting, others permissible. I expected a little more, but overall recommend it on a cold, rainy day!

The original material the film is based on, "The Snowman" by Jo Nesbo, is a gripping thriller brilliantly composed with complex characters. However, this film adaption lacks everything. Frankly, there is very little left of the original story. The scriptwriters not only tampered with the plot, but altered characters as well. It is an entirely different story that is badly constructed with gaping holes in the plot.

Without having read the book, I'd imagine it would be slightly better with decent performances from the actors. Shame that had such an awful script to work with.