Snowpiercer" is the film that takes a hammer to climate-change denial. A sometimes whimsical but mostly horrible sci-fi simulation of what could happen in the event of a global-warming catastrophe, the story of "Snowpiercer" kicks off in 2014. And now that the U.N. is reportedly preparing a warning that someone will have to come up with a device to suck up carbon dioxide emissions or else, it looks as though reality and fiction are marching shoulder to shoulder.
Directed by Korea's Bong Joon-ho ("Memories of Murder," "Mother"), it is based on the French graphic novel "Le Transperceneige," and at its heart is an indictment of first-world energy consumption lifestyles, particularly that of the United States. In spite of this or because of it, the overall tone of the film is set by its stars, Hollywood notables such as Chris "Captain America" Evans, Octavia Spencer of "The Help," Ed Harris, Tilda Swinton and John Hurt.
Bong has worked only in Korea up to this point, and though he has bagged awards on the international film-festival circuit, his name doesn't exactly turn heads in the West. Also, the film is an anti-first-world, feel-bad sci-fi film that no American superhero appears at the eleventh hour to fix. Worst of all, there are no bad guys — just humans being their greedy selves.