Whiteout DVD with Kate Beckinsale, Gabriel Macht, Columbus Short (R) +Movie Reviews +Used DVD available for Swap

Murder in a Very Cold Place...

D. S. Thurlow | Alaska | 09/20/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

""Whiteout" is an implausible but enjoyable thriller set at the South Pole. In its opening sequence, set in 1957, a Soviet cargo plane carrying a mysterious cargo goes down somewhere in Antarctica. In the present, the Amundsen-Scott Scientific Station at the South Pole is preparing to rotate out its summer crew and batten down for the winter darkness, just ahead of an approaching storm. US Marshal Carrie Stetko (Kate Beckinsale) is preparing to depart, along with her doctor friend (a grizzled but amiable Tom Skerrit).

The discovery of a body on the ice triggers an investigation that leads in short order to an old Soviet scientific station, another dead body, a killer, and the Soviet cargo plane, minus its mysterious cargo. Stetko is assisted in her investigation by the doctor, an aircraft pilot (Columbus Short) and a UN Security Officer (Gabriel Macht). The group, almost inevitably, becomes trapped in an evacuated station with the killer or killers.

Stetko, traumatized by betrayal in a previous assignment told in flashback, finds she can't trust anyone in her present. The action sequences inside and outside the station work well, moving the audience quickly past some plot holes and cold weather implausibilities to a twisty ending. "Whiteout" isn't going to win any awards, but manages to be moderately entertaining. Canada does stand in for the Antarctic with some stunning exteriors."

Neo-Noir on Ice is Nice....it's de-Litefully right

A Customer | L.A. | 01/22/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Atmosphere as the title star always gets me. Soundstages and Canada look great as Antarctica. Pretty picture has Kate Beckinsale and Tom Skerritt as part of it's very slick production. Action-mystery in the style of a horror-mystery from 30s to 50s. Story is weak but thriller-lite ...which might bother many; but Dark House Films exist at this B level, and do it well. The bottom feeder in all of us are their target. 30 below, stuck in the snow, mystery in tow with a hot cop and script to go. Graphic Novel inspired
BD looks and sounds great but intentionally soft and mild with power moments. Overall; good looking"

Beckinsale steams up the screen in this frigid thriller

Darren Harrison | Washington D.C. | 02/21/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The studios seemed unsure on how to market this movie and the punchline of being the coldest movie ever filmed hardly inspired confidence in the Antarctica-set thriller and the movie quickly vanished from movie screens. That it did not get an audience could also be explained by the fact that the film never quite identified itself in its marketing material. Was it a paranormal thriller? Was it a horror movie? Was it a psychological thriller? The truth be told it was none of these and was probably closest in structure and narrative to a western.
The plot revolves around a research station in the Antarctic that is prepping for a hibernation period where a skeleton crew keep things runnning through the Antarctic winter. A body is discovered on the ice and it is down to a U.S. Marshall (played competently by the always watchable Kate Beckinsale) to piece together the mystery of precisely what happened. The mystery is tied to a missing Cold War era Soviet Union plane that crashed into the ice decades earlier, which is shown as the movie opens, and the mysterious cargo on board.
Many complained that the movie makers covered the lithe, beautiful Beckinsale in many layers, but this criticism was hardly a valid one. The star strips down to her underwear within moments of her appearance on the screen but the scene is not gratuitous and is not graphic. For the rest of the movie necessity has her all bundled up but this is in keeping with the nature of the frigid weather which is a character unto itself in the movie. One quickly understands why the movie is set in the Antarctic for the movie uses the inhospitable climate as a mechanism with which to ratchet up the suspense and claustrophic feeling of the production.
Overall a satisfying thriller that surprised me in how much I liked it. I had expected to be bored by it but found myself entertained."

Cold-blooded murder in a very cold place!

J. Meeley | WA, USA | 04/30/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"You always get a potential mixed bag when comics are adapted to the silver screen. Not everything done in a comic can translate to the screen and vice versa. And creative liberties are almost always used in excess, when compared to the actual source material. Fortunately, such is not the case for "Whiteout." The story revolves around a female US Marshall named Carrie Stetko (very well played by actress Kate Beckinsale), as she is forced to investigate a murder on an Antarctic base, just days before the long six month winter, and a powerful whiteout storm, is about to hit.

This dramatic "whodunit" mystery starts off on a slow burn, but yet it never feels like it is dragging. As the body count rises, the puzzle sucks you in, not just about the murders and why they are happening, but about Carrie's own past that has brought her to this desolate wilderness. Tom Skerritt is good as the comforting doctor, while Gabriel Macht is passable as the slick Government agent. But the film almost totally rests on Kate Beckinsale's role. She makes it believable, not only through her no-nonsense attitude on the job, but through the more vulnerable parts, as the painful secret she's been running from is revealed. In some ways she's as cold and dead inside, as the environment surrounding her is outside. You develop a real empathy for her character and it sucks you right into what is happening around her. Beckinsale literally carries the main emotional thrust of the film single-handed, but she does so quite well.

The cinematography is also extremely strong. The sweeping landscape shots easily convey the beauty and vast emptiness of the region. The dangers of those who would seek to dwell in such a place feels quite real. There are a few times, though, where the atmosphere of a terrain so hostile to human life isn't necessarily portrayed accurately, but they don't really detract that much from the film, as if you are already invested in Carrie and the mystery, you probably won't even notice them. Also, one of the red herrings on who is behind the killings is hammered on a little too often, which makes you know that person can't be the one, but that is a small quibble in an otherwise nice and taut mystery.

Having read the graphic novel the film is based upon, I already knew who was ultimately behind the murders, but it was still a real treat to watch it unfold. For those who haven't read it, I think this film will give you the kind of intelligent thriller fans of this genre of film enjoy. Don't listen to all the haters and give this film a shot. It's actually much better than many are giving it credit for."

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	Whiteout Actors: Kate Beckinsale, Gabriel Macht, Columbus Short, Tom Skerritt Director: Dominic Sena Genres: Action & Adventure, Drama, Mystery & Suspense R 2010 1hr 41min LONE U.S. MARSHAL THE ONLY ONE ASSIGNED TO ANTARCTICA, MUST INVESTIGATE A MURDER AND TRACK DOWN A SERIAL KILLER ON THE FROZEN CONTINENT WITHIN THREE DAYS BEFORE THE DARK WINTER BEGINS.
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