The Ice Harvest, directed by the great Harold Ramis, is still just plain awesome.
A lawyer (John Cusack) swindles his boss (Randy Quaid) out of $2 Million, and has to hold it together for one night so he and his partner in crime (Billy Bob Thornton) can skip town. What follows are hijinks, strippers, Christmas carols, booze, and murder.
The film addresses some serious issues and situations in a very light hearted way, it almost makes you forget just how much carnage is actually going on. Tons of people are beaten and killed, often in horrible ways, but the movie somehow always makes you laugh. Most of the characters lives were in shambles prior to the night that the movie takes place, and this one evening makes most of them even worse.
While the story focuses mainly on Cusack and Thornton’s characters, Oliver Platt’s character stole the show for me. His portrayal of a man who falls into a blissful drunken depression because of his miserable marriage is spot on, and incredibly amusing. His scenes with Cusack were the highlight of the film, and I wish they had more screen time together.
Visually the film has a fairly dark in tone, and is reminiscent of the noir films of the 40’s and 50’s.
This flick flew under the radar for most people, and I highly recommend that you give it a chance. At barely an hour and a half, it makes for a great weeknight movie and is an excellent movie for the holiday season. 4/5
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