Rating: 

The Info

Directed by: Scott Hicks
Written by: Scott Hicks, Ron Bass (novel by David Guterson)
Starring: Ethan Hawke, Youki Kudoh, James Cromwell, James Rebhorn, Sam Shepard, Max Von Sydow
Produced by: Ron Bass, Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall, Harry J. Ufland

The Nutshell

A young reporter must accept the marriage of his first love to another man, while covering his murder trial in the 1940's.

The Review

    A boy's first love can survive dormant for years; so can prejudice. Snow Falling On Cedars is three stories combined to highlight the stark differences in the emotions behind them; the tale of a boy's first love that would not wither, the repercussions of the bombing of Pearl Harbour for a small island community in Washington, and a Japanese-American on trial for murder nine years after the bombing occurred. Based on the novel by David Guterson, the film goes for a hard look at America's actions towards its citizens of Japanese descent during World War II, but winds up going a racist sneer too far. Where the film succeeds is in its message of eternal love, told gently by director Scott Hicks, who also adapted the novel with Ron Bass.

    Snow Falling On Cedars is a hard novel to adapt to the screen. With a story comprised mostly of flashbacks, the action jumps frequently to multiple periods in time, needing a deft screenwriter to avoid turning the film into a confused mess. Hicks and Bass almost succeed. Sacrificing many details of the murder trial, the writers concentrate on the love between Ishmael Chambers (Hawke) and Hatsue Miyamoto (Kudoh). The two, of different ethnic backgrounds, run together as children on the nearby beach, hiding out in a hollowed out cedar tree. As they grow up, they find themselves unwilling to separate, despite the impossibility of ever being seen as a couple in public. These are the '40s, and the Japanese are not very high on America's popularity list. They question where their love is real, or whether it is really just a long-lasting friendship. As with many young men, Ishmael cannot accept the concept that his first love may not be true, and his desire is pushed to the back of his mind during the war.

    The war changes the lives of everyone it touches. Ishmael enlists and fights against Japan. Hatsue and her family are taken to a camp for Japanese where she meets her future husband Kabuo. To prove his honour and patriotism, Kabuo also enlists, going to war against the Nazis. Each man is changed by the carnage he witnesses, and upon returning to San Piedro (their island home) is a different person. Ishmael, who runs a one-man newspaper his father had run before him, finds himself covering a murder trial in which Kabuo is accused of murdering a fisherman for land. It is there, in the courtroom, that Ishmael will have to confront his dormant feelings of desire for Hatsue, while watching her husband stand trial.

    Scott Hicks takes a page from the book of Anthony Minghella with Snow Falling On Cedars. Like Minghella's The English Patient, this film is stunning, full of lush scenery and landscape. Hicks lets the gorgeous cinematography of Robert Richardson envelop his story, keeping all of the pain and despair contained in an emotional bubble. Everything from a foggy night, to rolling hills, to a couple making love in the shower are beautifully shot for maximum emotional weight, without manipulating the audience. This is closer to a genuine love story than Hollywood usually gets, and writers Hicks and Bass deserve credit for novel's love successfully to the big screen. The original score by James Newton Howard is haunting and well-suited to the film.

    If the film has a misstep, and it does, it is in its handling of the issue of prejudice, especially Kabuo's trial. The trial serves to bring out the prejudice and racism of America at the time, yet goes overboard in its handling of the issue. Prosecutor Alvin Hooks (Rebhorn) practically oozes contempt at the Japanese, and many of the trial's details, which mostly point to Kabuo as the murderer, are brushed past in a quick, confusing blur. Things like a suspicious piece of rope found on Kabuo's boat that looks like one from the victim's and a bloody blade's handle are not presented long enough to register on the audience's minds, leaving us with a trial appearing to lack in hard evidence. One witness, coroner Horace Whaley (Max Wright, the dad from the TV show Alf) is obviously meant to symbolize American arrogance but mostly just gets laughs, while Judge Fielding (Cromwell) is two-dimensional. The population of San Piedro itself is poorly written; every person of Japanese descent is a good, decent person, while every Caucasian except Ishmael's family and a handful of others is a racist pig.

    The cast is a mixed bag of talent, headed by Ethan Hawke. Hawke is an inconsistent actor, but is showing signs of maturity, with a winning role in Before Sunrise, and now as Ishmael. Hawke's subtle performance is largely due to his face. Letting Ishmael's inner turmoil simmer and stew, Hawke lets Ishmael say a lot of things without actually speaking. Others like Sam Shepard as Ishmael's father, and Youki Kudoh as Hatsue are able and bring a confidence to the film. Kudos go to the casting department for casting Max Von Sydow as Nels Gudmundsson, Kabuo's elderly lawyer. Nels is almost pathetic as he wobbles around, cups a hand to his ear to better hear and tugs on the loose skin of his neck distractedly. Von Sydow has long been a great actor, appearing in films as diverse as The Exorcist  and Strange Brew. As Nels, he demands the attention of both the jury, and the film's audience. His final speech is as stirring and powerful as Anthony Hopkin's classic in Amistad, and the film's highpoint.

    This is a film that may have a hard time finding a following. Too slow for some, too complex with its countless flashbacks for others, quite possibly the only people who will truly love the film will be those who have read David Guterson's wonderful novel beforehand. For those of us who have, those little details that are brushed aside in quick shots make all of the difference, and make Snow Falling On Cedars a winner. This is a film for anyone who loved The English Patient; it is one of those rare love stories that actually has an emotional power to it, and when combined with the uncovering of prejudice in America and the trial of a man who may only be guilty of being Japanese at the wrong time in history, is likely better than most of the films schedule for January release.

Copyright - Tim Chandler

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