The Ice Harvest

In The Ice Harvest, it seems like every actor is having a good time. From Randy Quaid to Billy Bob Thorton, everyone relishes in their role and plays as if with tongue firmly in cheek. The problem is, just because everyone is having fun doesn't mean that a movie is good. Everyone seemed like they were having a good time in Ocean's Twelve (2004) as well and that film was a convoluted mess. But The Ice Harvest has an ace up its sleeve. It has John Cusack. Cusack is such an immensely likeable guy no matter what character he plays, that one ends up rooting for him. And it is one of the only reasons I found the movie tolerable.

Billy Bob Thorton plays that standard Billy Bob role as the guy who isn't trustworthy but hides under the auspices of being a friend. Connie Nielsen plays a sex pot femme fatale type character and for some reason I got the impression that in many of her scenes they were intentionally lighting her eyes which gave the scenes a pseudo-film noir look. I didn't care for either character. Thorton's because its the same one he always plays and I'm getting tired of it and Nielsen's because I just don't buy her performance. Randy Quaid and Mike Starr both do wonders with what they have, unfortunately what they have isn't very much and they're out of the film almost as soon as they came into it.

Other than Cusack only one actor was really enjoyable. Oliver Platt's drunk gets to ham it up to great effect from angry to idiotic to sincere. Of course in these scenes we also like Cusack more as he selflessly aids his friend. The caper as it were goes horribly wrong and obligatory scenes show up like clockwork. There are hostage situations and scenes were the partners plot to do the other in and even Cusack couldn't stop me from sighing in disappointment during these scenes.

Some of the transitional moments of the film were helped along by Ned Bellamy as a bartender with anger management issues. Despite this flaw we figure out quickly he is one of the good guys, if anyone can be considered such in this film. In the end the good guys are rewarded for their goodness, the evil guys are punished. Unfortunately there was also a flash back reveal segment as well. And I hate those segments. This is where a character comes upon a realization and recalls scenes in which as it turns out a character was actually there all along off in the shadows are something equally ridiculous. These things irritate me because most of the time they are shots you have never seen before and therefore there is no way for you to figure it out before the end because the clues weren't there.

In the end The Ice Harvest wasn't very good. But neither was Must Love Dogs (2005) and I went to see that. I always go see John Cusack movies because as I said, Cusack is always so damn likeable. But I do hope everyone making the film had as much fun as it would appear because then someone will have enjoyed the film.