In different movies and other work of art, the title “Whiteout” is said to be used. The most notable of which is the Kate Beckinsale starrer thriller movie titled 2009 movie, Whiteout. Here’s an analysis of the film as given below:
Whiteout (2009)
Director: Dominic Sena
Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Gabriel Macht, Tom Skerritt, Alex O’Loughlin
Genre: Crime, History, Adventure
Synopsis
The movie starts when U.S. Marshal Carrie Stetko (Kate Beckinsale) is stationed in Antarctica and due to Left chronic career, she is in the process of leaving her post. The main character Carrie is just about to leave her position when a corpse is located on the ice- the world’s most extreme weather the body was discovered. Carrie collaborates with a UN official (Gabriel Macht) to cover the surface of the Earth to find out what occurred, but severe weather conditions, including an Antarctic blizzard, stand in their way. With time running out, they must complete the mission quickly.
As the investigation proceeds, it reveals a conspiracy that is linked with the past and has been about greed, hidden agendas and even survival in some of the most unwelcoming places on Earth.
Themes and Style
- Man Versus Nature:
There is beauty and extreme danger in Antarctica which is where the film is set, and thus its a character in the film as well. The whiteout in the film about the storm becomes a visual excuse of danger which Barrett and others repeatedly talk about as the protagonist’s struggles are internal.
- Ethical complexity:
As Carrie faces the reality, the movie delves into the human themes like betrayal, the primal urge to survive, and the heavy burden that comes with having to keep certain things under wraps.
- Setting and Tension:
The film mostly hinges on setting, with the deep and dangerous environment providing a sort of uncomfortable dread despite how the Antarctica area is quite large.
Critiques
There were mixed to negative review for critics regarding ‘Whiteout.’ Yes, while its visual appeal and concept didn’t go unnoticed, the movie got flak for its speed, creativity and deviation from the graphic novel by Greg Rucka and Steve Lieber, published in 1998. Nonetheless, the film has its limitations, it does provide a different background seldom found in thrillers.
Production Notes
- Deployment Issues:
Although set in Antarctica, the majority of the film was shot in Canada and Greenland to give the impression of frozen locations. Production hardships for the cast and crew involved severe cold touches for realistic representation.
- From Comic Books to TV:
It seems many people have adapted the graphic novel into the movie and in the eyes of those fans, the graphic novel offered a better story. Some of the film’s exceeding the bounds of the source material earned a hostile response from the lovers of the graphic graphic literature.
For Fans Of “Whiteout”
Take a look at these movies that will most likely please you:
- “The Thing” (1982): A film with a haunting feature that takes place in Antarctica about those who don’t trust each other and are trying to stay alive.
- “Wind River” (2017): A compelling story involving the death of a young woman in a setting filled with snow.
- “30 Days of Night” (2007): This is a horror movie about a small, remote town in Alaska and its people trying to survive.
- “Insomnia” (2002): Another horror film that occurs in a poorly populated area of Alaska.