Schneemann

Eine Handlungsunordnung mit einem prima Casting und einer ewig attraktiven (auf der Leinwand) nordischen verschneiten Atmosphäre. Und ein schwacher Höhepunkt, welcher die Bewertung noch um einen halben Stern heruntersetzt. (13.11.2017)

This movie once again confirms that transferring a quality book onto the big screen is not so easy. At first glance, everything seemed pretty good. The cast with the lead Michael Fassbender is great. The man in the director’s seat is adequately Nordic. What else could you ask for? If only the screenplay was a bit more logical. This way I pretty much  watched this film without much interest, even though there was a number of really interesting actors. For example, Val Kilmer, whom I have not seen for a thousand years and I will not need to see him for another thousand years. Or J. K. Simmons, who was possibly just a decoration in the movie as I cannot recall him doing anything at all. Well, he actually did do something, he was taking creepy pictures of women on his phone and consequently the screenwriter did not even explain why. And that was the same with everything, the schmuck. It is crazy that the main character Harry Hole, played by Michael Fassbender, seems like he just had a lobotomy, so it feels like he isn’t investigating at all, plus, what is even worse, you way too often realize that he does not speak at all. The cynical bastard Hole, whom all the people who’ve read the book love for the endless bullshit he says, utters at maximum two sentences in a row in the film. How could that make me like him? And the investigation? Just tell me, all of you who haven’t read the book, what was Val Kilmer doing there at all? Or why were the murders committed? Was it obvious from that conclusion? I didn’t feel that way. Overall, a terribly badly filmed crime film that was meant to tell the best story of Harry Hole and, in my opinion, killed the whole series. I haven’t been as pissed off for a long time as I was in the case of this movie. One of the worst crime movies I’ve ever seen. If it weren’t for the beautiful Norwegian locations, I would have left the cinema in the middle of the screening like the Czech film critic Mirka Spáčilová. (12.10.2017)

The adaptation of Jo Nesbø's The Snowman definitely had more potential. I haven't read the book, but it was certainly more interesting than this bland detective story with mediocre visuals and a bored Michael Fassbender. These cold Nordic serial killer thrillers are usually top notch, here the Americans must have interfered a lot in the film, otherwise I can't really explain the failure. The murders are almost non-existent, so forget about the blood, the atmosphere is not very good and the only thing that surprises is the identity of the killer, which I didn't figure out. It is watchable, but the film lacks any WOW effect, which is a shame. The best scene from the trailer doesn’t even appear in the film. 55% (14.12.2017)

The book The Snowman marked a certain turning point, during which the series began to be uncomfortably suggestive and the murderous scenes became so precise and terrifying that one would look over their shoulder at home, wondering if something bad was waiting for them in the corner. At the same time, it was the most cinematic installment of the series so far, offering a great thriller. However, my fear that the main guide to Oslo in winter could fail in motion picture format was confirmed. Harry Hole, the hero of my favorite crime series, has already experienced, endured, and drunk quite a lot at this point in his life and career. His depressive substrate is soaked with losses and dismal periods in both adulthood and childhood. The film presents us with Harry, who is just a drinker, and it is not clear whether it is due to his breakup or simply because he does not currently have anything to dig into at work. Both reasons seem quite trivial, so it is good that the first snow comes and with it the murders that everyone who has heard of Jon Nesbø's books eagerly awaits. This sets the stage for the investigation carousel, which nonetheless seems almost ridiculous. The main characters ask a few questions, spend a lot of time examining the background of the Winter Games in Norway, and try to unravel the past of several anonymously acting characters. The problem is that the suggestiveness has disappeared from the adaptation. Murders either happen off-screen or are completely uninteresting. The present and past storylines do not intersect in the end; on the contrary (and this is a criticism I cannot forgive), the trio of screenwriters decides to openly deviate from the original, turning a crucial subplot into a dragging dead end. Moreover, I still remember how while reading, I thought I had the identity of the killer clear, but the author surprised me every time and played out the plot so far that three different characters could have been the culprit, and the twist in each case seemed similarly unquestionable. However, the film shoots down both incorrect theories and prematurely labels them as false, confusing the viewer perfectly and making some of the false clues almost insulting in retrospect. At this point, my initial disappointment is not far from anger, and I only give it a second star out of mercy because Charlotte Gainsbourg seems to have stepped out of my imagination as "my" Rachel, and because of the sad realization that in different hands, Michael Fassbender could truly be the perfect Harry. Nonetheless, I pray that the escalation towards an even more intense The Leopard hinted at in the finale does not come to pass. (23.10.2017)

Boring, transparent, playing on the horrible psychology of the characters. But anyone who doesn't know Hole could care less because you don't see into him, you just know that he must be drinking and must have been living with someone and being a dad to someone, but he wasn't very good at it. He probably liked them, they probably liked him. But he screwed up sometimes. Probably the drinking. And then there's the killer. He's got a problem, too, but on the other hand, he's a genius because he can commit murder and build snowmen undetected. This adaptation was a waste of time. I haven't read the source material, but it’s been a long time since I’ve see such a boring movie. (16.01.2018)

Poor in terms of story, in terms of form – brilliant. Paradoxically, everybody was worried about all sorts of things, just not a faulty story, especially when it’s filmed according to the Norwegian crime-writer king, Jo Nesba. Alfredson’s realistic approach with wonderful, long shots of seriously snowy landscape warms the heart. The same applies to modern investigation techniques, which aren’t given much room in this movie, because when something starts happening that might be of interest, it cuts to another place – the screenplay diverges from the book. That’s where the problem lies. Fassbender is excellent – a guy a bit off the rails, but still in form, but on the point of giving everything up – is a perfect Hole. On the other, the second most famous name on the poster, Kilmer, comes across as almost charming. Otherwise, the cast is a delight, although they don’t get the chance to show they stuff on screen, which is another reason why lots of scenes seem just to fizzle out. A movie full of contradiction which most likely won’t lead to a series. (15.10.2017)

Eine eiskalte und trostlose Atmosphäre für eine Million, der exakte Michael Fassbender (es reicht ein Weilchen und Sie glauben seinem Harry, dass er dort ist, wo er ist – nämlich am Boden zerstört), ein interessanter Fall, ein sehr schlaues Drehbuch und Alfredsons Regie. So wie bei Dame, König, As, Spion werden die Zuschauer*innen dazu gedrängt, auf Details zu achten, Dialoge wahrzunehmen, immer aufmerksam zu sein… Es gibt hier aber einen wichtigen Unterschied – in Schneemann werden Sie am Ende für diese Aufmerksamkeit nicht belohnt. Im Gegenteil – der Film versucht das Publikum mit falschen Indizien in die Irre zu führen und hereinzulegen. Und ich muss sagen, dass es ihm wirklich ausgezeichnet gelingt. Es hängt dann von den Zuschauer*innen ab, wie sehr sie es den Autoren übel nehmen werden. Ich habe die Geschichte (deren Vorlage ich nicht gelesen habe) mit allem Drum und Dran genossen. ____P.S. Es ist lohnend, sich den Soundtrack von Marco Beltrami einfach nur so anzuhören. (30.07.2019)

Wenn man an einem frostigen und mit Schnee bedeckten Winterabend wie ich Lust auf einen Thriller mit angemessener Atmosphäre hat, greift man überall hin, nur nicht nach dem Schneemann. Es ist schwer zu sagen, wo sich alles so sehr verändert hat. Tomas Alfredson, einst ein vielversprechender Regisseur, hat sich in den letzten Jahren wohl im Schnee verkrochen. Es wäre noch erträglich, zwei Stunden lang unsympathische Helden dabei zu beobachten, wie sie sich in einer solch öden Handlung auf die Suche nach einem Mörder begeben, aber die Handlung des Schneemanns springt seltsamerweise hin und her, Charaktere tauchen auf und verschwinden wieder, jeder Fortschritt in der Untersuchung ist für den Zuschauer logischerweise nicht nachvollziehbar und am Ende entpuppt sich der Mörder als die Person, auf die man von Anfang an getippt hat. Nicht zu schweigen vom Ende, bei dem man aufgrund des absolut chaotischen Schnitts absolut keine Ahnung hat, was zum Teufel passiert, und die endgültige Abrechnung mit dem Bösewicht wird einen nur laut auflachen lassen. Und was zur Hölle hat diese parallele Handlungssträhne mit dem leider kranken Val Kilmer im Endschliff überhaupt gemacht, das entzieht sich meinem Verständnis. (15.02.2021)

Da ich das Buch nicht gelesen habe, kann ich Schneemann nur in seiner Verfilmung beurteilen, und ich muss gleich zu Beginn sagen, dass ich nur hoffe, dass der Roman besser ist als seine Verfilmung. Der Film fängt ziemlich gut an, und die verschneite nördliche Kulisse ist fast immer ein Pluspunkt, ebenso wie die komplexen Verbrechen in der Vergangenheit. Der Film hat sogar eine sehr gute Besetzung. Was ich jedoch nicht nachvollziehen konnte, war die völlig unglaubwürdige, ja unverständliche Motivation des Täters für seine Taten. Der letzte Sargnagel war jedoch das unglaublich banale Ende. Ich hatte einen gruseligen und rauen Thriller mit einer anständig konstruierten Handlung erwartet - deshalb war ich nach dem Anschauen des Films natürlich enttäuscht. (28.03.2020)

Some spoilers: Inspired by Douglas and Gilmour93's unconventional defenses of the film, where the director himself admitted that it had no beginning, middle, or end because there was ultimately nothing to use to piece the film together, I also picked up the thrown gauntlet of alternative readings of this jumbled mess and came up with the idea that actually the only thing in the film that's real is the last scene. The rest is a glimpse into a perspective on Detective Harry Hole's past, warped by years of alcoholism and exhaustion, that superimposes disjointed, surreal scenes of his previous cases and burned-out relationships on top of each other. Right when he can just barely reach specific occurrences in his memory, he disappears right before he can touch them under the ice of an irreparably damaged mind. Postmodernism lives even if it doesn't want to, and old Lynch is somewhere in the back, nodding approvingly over his cigarette. PS: it still looks better than a lot of other adaptations of Nordic mysteries, though, and Alfredson's handling of space, camera work, and (wherever the wind keeps him from tripping over his own feet) dynamics is exemplary. But unfortunately, you simply can't turn a concentration camp into a bouncy castle by simply redoing a few barbed wires. (03.01.2018)

What a disaster. I have no idea why the creators decided to introduce Harry Hole to the audience through an adaptation of the sixth part of the book series. I don't know what someone who has never read the series can take away from the film, as it contains a lot of references to the previous storyline which isn’t part of the film. The film itself didn't make much sense to me, regardless of having read the books. The filmmakers made such a mess of the original story that I’m not sure why the murders were so complicated, and most of all, why J.K. Simmons agreed to take part in it. (07.03.2018)

Based on the reviews I read before watching the film, I thought that there was no way it could be that bad. And yet it is. Aside from the fact that it doesn't honor the book in every way, which was obvious beforehand, the problem is that it doesn't even remotely work as a suspense thriller. Some of the characters are dealt with too much, some not enough, but the plot and its resolution are tragic. This film was not playing a nice game with the audience. (22.10.2017)

Rückblickend muss ich lächeln, wenn das Erste was mir im Film fehlte war, dass niemand daran gedacht hat, dass, wenn die Filmemacher versuchen, Harrys Musikgeschmack mit einer kurzen Aufnahme des Sex Pistols-Albums anzudeuten, sie auch wenigstens einen Song aus dem Album spielen konnten. Leider ist es das kleinste Problem. Die Autoren verwendeten nur Harrys apathischen Teil nach seinem Kater und vergaßen dabei, dass auch der Held von Nesbø seine Interessen hat, die manchmal außerhalb des eigenen Tellerrandes gehen. Geschweige denn von der Darstellung anderer Charaktere. Leider scheiterte hier gleichermaßen auch die Regie, was in diesem Fall ein Garant für zumindest einen durchschnittlichen Film hätte sein sollen. Trotzdem ist die endgültige Auflösung des Falls so ein Mumpitz, dass sich alle beteiligten dafür schämen sollten. Was die Horden mörderischer Wahnsinniger in Büchern nicht konnten, hat Tomas Alfredson von seinem Regisseurstuhl in weniger als zwei Stunden geheiligt und perfektioniert. Dem norwegischen Detektiv hat er somit jeglicher weiterer Ermittlung definitiv den Riegel vorgeschoben. (10.07.2018)

I haven't read the book, so I'm not burdened with the need to compare whether or not it was well adapted. I was intrigued by the atmosphere, which the film undoubtedly has, mainly due to the chilling setting of the snowy Nordic landscape in which it takes place. Dramatic music, composed by Marco Beltrami, helps to build tension. The story's logic is worse, and I also dislike that the murderer's motives for his heinous acts are not very clear. In the end, the perpetrator comes across as a bit of a caricature. (65%) (21.03.2021)