Why this film didn't perform better in the box office: I don't know! Why this film was forgotten by critics in a matter of weeks: you've got me! Why this film didn't win the Oscar for best cinematography: I give up! But what I do know is that after seeing `Snow Falling on Cedars' for the first time last night, I couldn't have expected it to be so intensely sweeping. I knew it was made by Scott Hicks, the acclaimed director of `Shine.' I knew it was shot by Robert Richardson, the A-class DP who shoots most of Oliver Stone's films. I knew that it was adapted from a best selling novel that won praise all over the world, but for some reason I had never been driven to see it. The film is on so many levels a masterpiece.
One of the things that I liked most about the film was the backdrop in which it was set: a small little fishing community in Washington State, set during the time period of post WWII. This backdrop was what aided the lust cinematography and remarkable set designs. The viewer was able to establish a clear picture of what it must have been like to live in a small little west coast marine town full of Japanese inhabitants during a racially clouded time period. The sequence which best fulfills this, is when all of the Japanese families are taken to concentration camps. One of the moments which tore into me was when the officers came to Hatsue's house and took all of their Japanese influenced belongings and arrested her father. As the officers are leaving the house, one of them stops on the porch and takes down a Japanese chime. It is truly disheartening to see their culture disappear in the blink of an eye. The scene played out beautifully, and it most importantly summed up the Japanese position in America at that time. One could easily make an entire film on the subject of not how the Japanese treated us during Pearl Harbor, but instead on how we treated them in our own country.
Near flawless, and full of some of the richest and purist images to have ever been put on film, Scott Hicks has crafted simply one of the best-looking films ever made. Virtually every shot in the picture is filmed with precision and style, yet never dulling the viewers attention, not even for a moment. I had never realized how good an eye Scott Hicks has had before. I personally hope that his collaboration with Richardson will remain constant for years to come. The first fifteen minutes of the film is an example of the amazing beauty which the two achieve together through the lens of the camera, as are the flashback sequences with Ethan Hawke and his lover Youki Kudoh as children.
One of the things that didn't work for me was Ethan Hawke's character. For the first hour of the film, his character kind of hovers above the storyline as it unravels and the plot begins to thicken. He only has about ten lines throughout the first act, and I consider this to be the film's main flaw. Ishmael's character is supposed to be one of the central drives of the film, and it is he who is in love with the defendants wife and he who should be who the audience sympathizes with. However the audience simply doesn't know anything about him for them to care. His past is hardly mentioned, except for the scenes between him and Hatsue. We don't know exactly where he stands in his field: is he a good newspaperman or a lousy one. Pretty much all we know about his character, is that he has to live in the shadow of his father, and he is madly in love with a woman who doesn't love him back. Also the supporting players do a good job especially that of James Rebhorn and Rick Yune. I recommend this film to others and especially people who like good movies.
One of the things that I liked most about the film was the backdrop in which it was set: a small little fishing community in Washington State, set during the time period of post WWII. This backdrop was what aided the lust cinematography and remarkable set designs. The viewer was able to establish a clear picture of what it must have been like to live in a small little west coast marine town full of Japanese inhabitants during a racially clouded time period. The sequence which best fulfills this, is when all of the Japanese families are taken to concentration camps. One of the moments which tore into me was when the officers came to Hatsue's house and took all of their Japanese influenced belongings and arrested her father. As the officers are leaving the house, one of them stops on the porch and takes down a Japanese chime. It is truly disheartening to see their culture disappear in the blink of an eye. The scene played out beautifully, and it most importantly summed up the Japanese position in America at that time. One could easily make an entire film on the subject of not how the Japanese treated us during Pearl Harbor, but instead on how we treated them in our own country.
Near flawless, and full of some of the richest and purist images to have ever been put on film, Scott Hicks has crafted simply one of the best-looking films ever made. Virtually every shot in the picture is filmed with precision and style, yet never dulling the viewers attention, not even for a moment. I had never realized how good an eye Scott Hicks has had before. I personally hope that his collaboration with Richardson will remain constant for years to come. The first fifteen minutes of the film is an example of the amazing beauty which the two achieve together through the lens of the camera, as are the flashback sequences with Ethan Hawke and his lover Youki Kudoh as children.
One of the things that didn't work for me was Ethan Hawke's character. For the first hour of the film, his character kind of hovers above the storyline as it unravels and the plot begins to thicken. He only has about ten lines throughout the first act, and I consider this to be the film's main flaw. Ishmael's character is supposed to be one of the central drives of the film, and it is he who is in love with the defendants wife and he who should be who the audience sympathizes with. However the audience simply doesn't know anything about him for them to care. His past is hardly mentioned, except for the scenes between him and Hatsue. We don't know exactly where he stands in his field: is he a good newspaperman or a lousy one. Pretty much all we know about his character, is that he has to live in the shadow of his father, and he is madly in love with a woman who doesn't love him back. Also the supporting players do a good job especially that of James Rebhorn and Rick Yune. I recommend this film to others and especially people who like good movies.
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