Smilla's Sense of Snow (1997)

The Smilla Cliff Notes
Let me state immediately that while I liked this film, it does not remotely begin to convey the multi-layered density of Peter Hoeg's long, complex novel. This film should be more aptly titled, "Bille August's Cliff Notes of Peter Hoeg's Novel, Smilla's Sense of Snow". Because that, basically, is what this movie is: a sketch of major events from the book, and not even all of them.

Of course, it must be said that bringing all the plots, subplots, twists, turns, and subtleties of Hoeg's novel to the screen in one film was probably impossible. Thus, August, I suppose, is to be congratulated for even trying to convey some sense of the book's primary themes about identity, power, and responsibility.

Fortunately, the film works quite well on its own terms, so if you haven't read Hoeg's novel, this film functions more than respectably in the suspense genre, and features a finely focused performance by Julia Ormond as the protagonist, Smilla Jaspersen. Ms. Ormond is really very good, and it is a pity she spent even ten minutes in Hollywood trying to become a Real Movie Star in silly movies like Sidney Pollack's disastrous remake of "Sabrina", "Guinevere", and, to a slightly lesser extent, "Legends of the Fall". The role of Smilla shows more of her range, talent, and emotional commitment than all three of those films wrapped up together.

Smilla is a half-Greenlandic/half-Danish scientist/mathemetician who has never been able to reconcile her two cultural heritages. Her Danish father, smoothly played by Robert Loggia, is also a scientist, and brought a young Smilla back to Denmark after her Inuit mother died in the Arctic waters off Greenland. And, as Smilla's mother was the love of her father's life, Dr. Jasperson's rage and grief at her loss left little care and love within him for the strong-willed little daughter who was also devastated by the loss. Smilla, who spent her entire childhood in Greenland among her mother's people, has never really adjusted to life in Copenhagen or to a European lifestyle. She misses Greenland's vast snowy expanses and suffers from the horror of small spaces that often afflicts those brought up in Greenland. As the film opens, Smilla is a sad, prickly, conflicted woman in her late thirties, difficult to approach and contemptuous of all systems save mathematics. She specializes in the science of snow, and translates all human experience through the language of mathematics.

The only human being who seems to have pierced her armor, and only after considerable effort, is a little boy who lives in her apartment building. Isaiah is also Inuit, and often takes refuge with Smilla when his widowed mother embarks on one of her long drinking binges. One day, Smilla comes home from work to find Isaiah dead in front of the apartment house, having ostensibly fallen off the roof while playing alone there. One look at his footsteps on the snowy roof convinces Smilla that Isaiah's death was no accident, and she sets out to find out what really happened to him.

As she does so, she uncovers a series of betrayals and multiple levels of corruption at the highest levels of government and scientific research. Her dogged pursuit of Isaiah's murderers puts a cynical and corrupt band of ruthless men on her trail, and places her in considerable danger.

The movie is stylishly produced and well-acted, with plenty of suspense as the destinies of the protagonists cross. Gabriel Byrne as another of Smilla's neighbors who is not quite what he seems; Richard Harris, Tom Wilkinson, and Bob Peck as the villainous conspirators; and a brief but sharply drawn cameo by Vanessa Redgrave as a conscience-stricken company official, all contribute to the high standard of performance in the film.

But the movie is anchored by Ormond's Smilla, whose journey to avenge Isaiah and illuminate the truth about his fate becomes part of her search for the answer to the question of who she is. There are some fine moments in the film, and a beautiful, haunting score. No, it's not Hoeg's novel, but one would probably need three movies for that. This one, however, is still well worth watching.

Great mystery!
I had read this book- one of the best I had ever read, particularly about Denmark and Greenland - and it was so well written, I did not want it to end. So, of course, I wanted to see the movie. It was wonderfully done. It handled a complex mystery very well and was a great evening's entertainment. All actors were great and really bought the book to life!

Great mystery!
I had read this book- one of the best I had ever read, particularly about Denmark and Greenland - and it was so well written, I did not want it to end. So, of course, I wanted to see the movie. It was wonderfully done. It handled a complex mystery very well and was a great evening's entertainment. All actors were great and really bought the book to life!