Snowman's Land (2010)

How sad is this?

Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

"Snowman's Land" is the second film written and directed by Tomasz Thomsen and came out almost 10 years after his first work "Stiller Sturm". The main character is played by Jürgen Rißmann and while I was occasionally not sure if he was boring or quietly convincing, as a whole, I liked his performance. It was a mix of the two characters mentioned in the title of my review. He also had nice physical presence. There were quite a few indicators of what is going to happen. For example when his young colleague (reminded me a bit of Pinkman in "Breaking Bad") tells he is unbreakable at one point, it was fairly obvious he is not gonna survive this movie. Same goes for the character played by Kanischtscheff. When he keeps rambling about how this is all gonna be his I felt that he will be killed off at some point as well.I personally enjoyed the first 30-45 minutes of this film the most. There is not really a lot happening, but the tension between the two contract killers and the woman is pretty interesting. When Berger enters the picture, it gets slightly worse, although I liked the idea that they wanted to try to kill him. However, he was faster. When they find the girl and Berger suspects somebody else, it all gets a bit weak and the best moments of the film had already passed. Especially that bald muscular guy all of a sudden knocking out Berger was so out of nowhere, certainly one plot twist too many. I'm not too big on the narrator either. The ending was a bit strange as Berger and the bald guy suddenly disappear and Rißmann's character actually manages to get into safety. It would have made sense if they, according to the title, would only have displayed what happened in the snowy forest area, but early on and also the final scene took place somewhere entirely different. Maybe too much of a forced happy ending for my taste.This film works best with its dark humor. The dramatic sequences were not that great mostly and it was not an outstanding thriller either, but that whole tongue-in-cheek approach is well done. That intro was pretty entertaining with the botched shooting. All in all, I recommend watching it. I just wish the second half of the film could have been half as superb as the first.

Snowman's Land is a superb exercise in suspense. While the story is character driven and remains absurdly plausible until the end, Snowman's Land is in no way predictable. Walter, a sub-par hit man, is summoned to a remote mountain lodge to work for a crime boss who had disappeared from the scene several years before. Walter's colleague and fellow hit man turns out to be an old acquaintance, Mickey, who has his own history of botched jobs and brushes with death. The action is a sustained, deliberate adrenaline rush that eschews the cut-happy editing blitz of most dark comedies about the criminal underworld. Snowman's Land makes full use of the ecosystem at hand and it seems like the celluloid itself is covered in a fresh dusting of snow.

This movie is not very typical of German (dark) comedies -- it's intelligently written and well thought out. The actors do a great job of making situations which could easily fall flat very enjoyable to watch and the dialogue is strong. It is easy to root for and sympathize with the main character, even when his actions are questionable; the actor does a great job of pulling off the role. The movie is quiet and reserved, there is no slapstick or cheesy dialogue to keep things moving. It remains suspenseful, however, until the end. Definitely worth seeing if you enjoy untraditional comedies.

I saw 'Snowman's Land' at La Mostra Valencia film festival in 2010 and was struck by the black humour of the film, the atmospheric imagery, the quirky soundtrack and the tight plotting. Great acting by the anti-hero too! The film is mostly set in an mysterious and dangerous location (a forest in winter) hundreds of miles east of Germany. This isolated and haunted place creates an on-going tension, enhances the plot and emphasizes the struggle of the characters who have to use their wits to survive each day. A memorable, dark and entertaining film. I look forward to seeing more from this director in the future.Will McCarthy