[And yet another old, previously missing post]

THE ICE HARVEST (U.S. / 2005)



If the words "Ho @#%$ Ho" are uttered early on in a film which is set on Christmas Eve, then it shouldnt be difficult for one to conclude that this may not be an average holiday effort starring Tim Allen. Indeed, continuing the tradition of the surprisingly successful Bad Santa (2003), The Ice Harvest is a blackly comedic tale (less comic, but much darker than the former), which unfolds via a largely unemployed vein of late: a straight noir, seemingly out-of-fashion since the disaster of Oliver Stones U Turn (1997). The Wichita, Kansas set story features John Cusack as Charlie Arglist, a mob lawyer who schemes with a local strip-club manager, Vic (Billy Bob Thornton), to rob one of his clients of $2 million. While this "perfect crime" is pulled off without any hassles, the uncompromising weather conditions prevent them from immediately leaving the city which also represents a quagmire of personal and professional regrets for Arglist. Directed by Harold Ramis (Groundhog Day [1993], Analyze This [1999]), The Ice Harvest features a frigid, sterile surface that well complements the motivations of its protagonists (though, Cusacks hangdog face doesnt always help matters). The duo are mostly seen in seedy strip joints or cocktail bars, with one being owned by the films requisite femme-fatale (a beguiling Connie Nielson), who, of course, is deeply tangled in ways these women tend to be. The script by Robert Benton and Richard Russo is consistently involving, while featuring some delicious one-liners (mostly delivered by Thornton, the perfect anti-hero). But whats truly remarkable about this film is how boldly and thoroughly unselfconscious it is, obliterating any false hopes for a nudge or a wink along the way. Hopefully there will be a harvest of these sort of films around Christmas time for years to come. 

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*Available on DVD in the U.S. (Universal).