"Dear Ishmael..."      

SNOW FALLING ON CEDARS (PG-13)

Reviewed January 8, 2000 - Check out the Snow Falling on Cedars Website.

Studio Synopsis: Fog as thick and palpable as cotton hangs suspended over San Piedro Island. On the bay, a flickering lantern signals distress from a crippled fishing boat, while elsewhere a freighter lurches blindly through the chalky mist. By morning, sea and sky are clear, but the tranquil village of fisherman and berry farmers will forever be changed. For one man has lost his life, and another -a childhood friend- has been charged with taking it. An investigation is launched. The trial begins.

A reporter covering the trial, Ishmael Chambers, sits in the courtroom, carefully observing the person with whom he shared the rapturous secrets of childhood, the only woman he has ever loved. Hatsue, the defendant's wife. Their tortured relationship will have an unexpected bearing on the trial of Kazuo Miyamoto, which serves to frame Snow Falling On Cedars.

Fuzzydog Review: Directed by Scott Hicks (Shine), Snow Falling on Cedars clearly comes through as one of the most visually appealling motion pictures this year.  Based on David Guterson's award-winning novel of the same name, Snow (the movie) manages to capture the same serene, lyrical and almost poetic tone of Guterson's words, except translated into gorgeous Pacific Northwest panoramas and beautifully composed screen shots.  Simultaneously a courtroom drama and a love story, this film also boasts a wonderful cast of main and supporting players--a cast headed by Ethan Hawke and Youki Kudoh, but also including Max Von Sydow, Anthony Harrison and James Cromwell.  Needless to say, the performances here are strong, nicely complementing the stunning visuals the film presents.

With all the great things Snow has going for it, you almost want to give everyone a big green light to this film, giving people a hearty "go see it!" recommendation.  Unfortunately, however, Snow is not perfect, and there are those that will certainly be disappointed with its presentation.  As courtroom dramas go, this isn't the most suspenseful or compelling showing I've seen.  And as love stories go, this is hardly the most engaging or emotionally moving romance you might find.  In some sense, intensity of any emotion seems to have given way to the quest for a magically poetic visual tone in this film.  It's a tradeoff that director Hicks seems to have made, and it's a tradeoff that not everyone will appreciate.  Why can't we have both sweeping visuals and sweeping emotions...the book certainly delivers it?  Ah yes, for those of us that have read Guterson's novel, this very beautiful film adaptation may yet fall into the dreaded "the book was better..." category.  Still, for those unfamiliar with the story, or those who simply want to see a great visual adaptation of Guterson's novel, Snow Falling on Cedars is certainly a film worth seeing.  The Pacific Northwest may never have looked this good on celluloid before...