'Snowpiercer' stormed into my Netflix unexpectedly and it made me want to watch it straight away. Most of the shows that I have been watching recently are lacking serious adventure and sci-fi and it seemed like 'Snowpiercer' could shake things up a bit for me like a hurricane in a snowglobe.
The first episode gives you a lot to unpack in its early beginning. It offers you samples of detail that the world has become uninhabitable (a trope, yes, but not a bad one if done well) and we are shown a train of biblical proportions like an ark that towers over the dying landscape like The Polar Express gone wrong. It is 1,001 cars long and like the titanic; there is only so much space. Which leaves a mass of people attempting to board it in desperation. Some people manage to get on the train but the train conductors want to throw them off. A lot of them are butchered apart from those who could hide. The viewer is left to wonder what it is that entitles passage on the train and the biggest answer seems to be class and money like any high value travel or luxury now.
The episode flashes six years forward to the future. The train is full of different parts like classrooms, cafes and poverty areas where people are starving with half rations. In my naïve consuming content brain I was hoping that everybody once on the train would be treated the same but it is not the case. We see the carriage full of the original stowaways which is full of dirt, overpopulation and rising tension. It gives me a bit of 'The 100' vibes mixed with 'Lost In space' but with a train not a spaceship. Times are hard and the situation is cruel and crass as we see that the other areas of the train are starkly different. Bright colours, fancy music...the whole works! It is a utopia of making the best of a situation. Yet there are still political tensions between the different nationalities of people so it's not all perfect but everything is ten times more petty.
We grow attached to the people that are known as The Tails. Andre- an ex-homicide detective is at the forefront of the community and he is encouraging a boy who wants to be an engineer to pursue his dreams of moving up in the train. The community plan to hijack one of the cars in an attempt to rebel from the lack of food and in a way, try and take control of the situation which feels so hopeless. A wrench is thrown into this plan because Andre is taken away and separated from his girlfriend. They take him away from the part of the train that is all he has ever known and experienced there. The budget on this show seems pretty good. There is a cable car which transports people to different carriages which adds dimension to a show that could feel more forced and unbelievable to house so many people. But it all works and seems like a never-ending train which it is supposed to be.
Andre looks outside for the first time at the world that is engulfed in snow and ice. It is terrifying yet it's beautiful with the sun shining down on it and you can see how grateful he is to see it. He almost cries seeing a splice of bread. I like how this shows his humanity and gives more character development to back up his uprising actions. The reason they have brought him out of The Tails is to solve a murder. You don't expect it to turn into murder on the orient express but...it sort of does. Just with less jazziness. But I am not mad at it. However, Andre is and insists to go back at every turn which is annoying as a viewer but endearing to a degree. I feel bad because I agree with the higher ups who believe he should want to get out of where he is. And I think that is a very privileged viewpoint and is exactly what the show intends to target.
One of the people involved in the murder used to be in the The Tails but got a job and got out of it. Her and Andre were in a relationship but it is clear that he resents her for leaving. It raises some interesting questions and the politics of survival and betrayel. The world of the train is fleshed out more by Andre getting see parts of the train which are covered in growing flowers and fruits which is meant to stretch for 130 cars! It is a sight to behold and it feels like as much of a fantasy to me as it does Andre because the way it looks is so different compared to The Tails. Though it is incredible, Cavill brings him back to earth by telling him that it isn't as much as it looks. Though, it is more than he and his community get.
With further research I discovered that 'Snowpiercer' was a film released a few years back starring Chris Evans. I enjoy that this is a prequel to that and better yet, it has been diversified a lot by looking at the cast list of the original film. 'Snowpiercer' has a lot of right elements and it has all the right parts to keep a steady show. I worry that it might become a little lacklustre but it is so hard to tell right now. I like details like how the now oldest man on the earth in the The Tails carriage. It is an interesting detail that makes you think. There are only two episodes up currently because of a delay because of the Coronavirius but I will definitely be checking out the second episode to see how things progress.
Have you seen 'Snowpiercer' yet? Does it "pierce" your heart in a good or bad way?
In a bit,
The Serial Television Watcher
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