A lot happens on Thanksgiving weekend in New Canaan Connecticut 1973.
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What I love about The Ice Storm is how it never seems to judge its characters. Though highly stylized and filled with visual metaphors, it’s narratively akin to reportage. Even with the subjective narration, you get the privilege of seeing everyone at both their best and their worst. The characters are just being themselves and the camera is simply observing, no editorializing. People do and say horrible things just as easily as they can do or say wonderfully compassionate things. No heavy-handed, “Look Closer” tagline on the poster necessary either. Might make an interesting double-bill with Little Children.
This movie also gets major bonus points for not overstaying its welcome. It does not linger one frame longer than it needs to. It makes its point and gets the heck out of there. Cut to black. If only contemporary blockbusters would take a cue from this film.
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