SNOW FALLING ON CEDARS

REVIEWED BY CHARITY BISHOP

Our rating: 3 out of 5

Because of: sexual content, thematic elements

Rated:

Based on the international best-selling novel, Snow Falling on Cedars is a film that took great chances. One cannot adapt such a tedious and extensive work of fiction to the silver screen without the risk of loosing the dramatic elements of the story. The tale centers around a trial in which a Japanese-American has been pressed with charges of murder and traces the past and present of everyone involved, from the deceased's family to the man's young and beautiful wife, Hatsue.

Ishmael Chambers (Ethan Hawke), the resident newspaper man, has taken a literary interest in the trial but his interest is also personal. Before the war, he and Hatsue (Youki Kudoh) were involved in an innocent but passionate relationship that ended in heartache. From a young age the attraction was strong and progressed as they grew up together on the small island until WWII broke upon the cost like a mighty tidal wave and the Japanese immigrants were forced to move into concentration camps. At this time, Hatsue was forced to say goodbye forever to Ishmael, not simply because of their different cultures and the prejudice of the Americans but also out of a personal choice, knowing that they could never be happy.

On a fog-shrouded night, misted with the fragrance of a storm, a fisherman shares a few moments with a Japanese immigrant, Kazuo, and the scene passes into the following morning when he is found drowned in his nets, his head severely gashed open. Kazuo is immediately put under arrest, having been the last man to see the diseased alive and his trial ignites prejudice amongst the jury and townspeople. Slowly as the case unfolds Ishmael is forced to make a choice. Jilted by Hatsue, whom he still secretly loves, he bears a grudge against her and the man whom she married, the man now under trial for murder. And when evidence appears to place a shadow of suspicion on the case, evidence that only he has knowledge of, he must decide whether to follow the vengeance of his thoughts or his heart and do what is right, no matter what the consequences.

Snow Falling on Cedars has several very prominent and strong aspects that make it worthwhile. The first is the gentle love story between two very different cultures, people of different backgrounds and skin colors forced apart by prejudice. The Japanese evacuation is handled well and is touching in itself but at times felt overdone. The second is that the main characters are both forced to evaluate their pasts in order to effect the future for the greater good. Ishmael's mother urges him to give up his love for Hatsue due to her marriage. However, this film holds many cravats that one cannot overlook. One is the relationship between two children -- and indeed they are little older than eleven when they share their first kiss. They progress to heavy petting in their teens alone and secluded in the woods. (And apparent sex -- although later it is implied that they never went that far.) Hatsue and her husband are shown in bed on their wedding night in an upper shot (no nudity, and in a silhouette) and share brief intimate dialog (he asks if she's ever done this before -- she says no) before consummating their marriage. 

The audience shares with the widow of the diseased her memories of their last few moments together in which the pair is shown together in the shower, passionately embracing. The glass is distorted, disfiguring their movements and any nudity (it is all in an upper shot) but is too long and overdrawn when it apparently has nothing to do with the story. Frequent flashbacks within flashbacks make the film tedious to follow and sometimes confusing when you cannot discern the past from present and contain all of the violent content -- from images of WWII to the amputation of an arm. It is rather gruesome with the sand of the beach littered with fallen and often bloody bodies, limbs, and other debris. The pallid and blue fisherman is drawn up in the nets and examined by the coroner. It well fills the PG13 rating in content but the final insult is a muttered phrase after Ishmael has been jilted by Hatsue that includes the f-word, racial slur for Japanese, and nasty slang for women. It's out of place, well out of character for the mild-mannered man, and insulting in a film that boasts about seven profanities altogether -- three of "Jesus," one of "God," one of "d*mn," and three of "hell." 

I found the film too long and mildly confusing with a uninteresting camera angles that were often too close and out of focus. I suppose the director did as much purposely to create individuality but it mars the plot and often proves distracting when you want them to get on with it. Often both music and dialog is absent, creating patches of dry and sometimes boring elements that seem to drag this 2+ hour film on. I was mildly bored through these instances and glanced at my watch more than once. For people who enjoy fast-paced thrillers, Snow Falling on Cedars just misses the boat. But for those who like slow-moving and poetic unfolding dramas and are willing to overlook brief strong profanity and a sexual undercurrent, this film will prove an interesting and informative way to spend an afternoon.

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