Starring Kevin Kline, Sigourney Weaver, Joan Allen, Christina Ricci, Elijah Wood, Jamey Sheridan, Henry Czerny, Tobey Maguire, Adam Hann-Byrd. Directed by Ang Lee.
In 1973, the Vietnam War is still raging, Tricky Dicky is about to experience Watergate and bell-bottoms and polyester rule. The sexual revolution was in full swing and drugs were way too plentiful. Society was changing, and ordinary people were greatly affected by these changes. During Thanksgiving in Connecticut the affluent Hood family is awaiting the return of their son Paul (Maguire) from boarding school. Benjamin (Kline) and his wife Elena (Allen) are not getting along well - Elena refuses to let him touch her. In response, Benjamin is having an affair with next door neighbour and family friend Janey Carver (Weaver), whose husband Jim (Sheridan) is seemingly too busy with business to notice. Benjamin doesn't know if Elena knows about the affair, but he thinks she does. Their daughter Wendy (Ricci) is in a rebellious phase, and seeks to learn about sex with the Carver's sons (not at the same time) Mikey (Wood) and Sandy (Hann-Byrd). Elena does realize that Benjamin is having an affair, and this revelation causes her to go back to her childhood to find meaning. Meanwhile, Paul has the hots for a pretty rich girl from New York, but she'd rather go for his more exciting roommate. The parents and the kids are aimless, and their lives have little meaning - they all indulge in an excess of sex, drugs and booze, and the parents engage in fad therapies and group sex "key" parties to avoid any kind of communication.
The Ice Storm is a metaphor for the deep freeze that the Hoods and Carvers have encased themselves in. The movie is filled with shots of ice - ice cubes in cocktails, ice on the train, a severe ice storm at the end of the film, and its thawing the next day after tragedy sparks a resolution of sorts for both families and a rebirth in communication. The cinematography is beautiful, especially the outdoor shots of trees in ice and the melting the next day. The musical score, by Mychael Danna (who did the score for The Sweet Hereafter) has an Oriental feel to it, and it fits the film well. Director Ang Lee (The Wedding Banquet and the excellent Sense and Sensibility) tells the story at an unhurried pace, but the film never seems to drag. There is a surprising amount of humour in the film, especially in the first half, but the overall tone is one of detachment. The characters are unable to really connect with one another, and Lee likes to show things from a distance to accentuate this detachment. The performances are excellent and several are bound to be considered for Oscar nominations. Joan Allen is again expertly playing the frigid and distant wife, but this time she isn't the martyr she tends to play - she gets some revenge. Kline is quite good as a man who doesn't know what he wants, and is hoping someone resolves things for him. Weaver is fine as the cold and mean socialite too long ignored by her husband, but unable to find any joy in her other trysts. But the film is most compelling in the scenes with Ricci. She captures perfectly the aimlessness and sullenness of a teenager who dislikes the hypocracies of the adult and material world around her, but doesn't know how to break free of them.
The problem with the film is that there is no explanation how these characters got to be they way they are. We don't know why Benjamin and Elena have drifted apart - we are left to guess. Janey's bitterness and loathing reminds me of Anne Bancroft in the Graduate, but Jim is a nice guy. Although he may be working too hard and away too often, there is nothing to explain how she has became this unhappy. Elena talks with a minister she met before, but we have no idea what kind of religion he's professing or what his place is in her life, and in this film. It makes it more difficult for us to connect and understand the characters. But overall, the film is an enjoyable journey into a lost group of people and their eventual reconnection.
