The first time you see Kate Beckinsale in the new thriller “Whiteout” you’d swear you were watching a late-night Cinemax “masterpiece.”
The fetching actress, for no reason of narrative importance, strips down to her underwear and then heads for the shower.
The actress’ beauty is beyond critique, but as a movie goer you certainly expect the worst.
But “Whiteout” isn’t awful. It’s just another average thriller comprised of elements we’ve seen before – save one.
Setting the story in Antarctica ratchets up the tension – and texture – until its garden-variety shocks feel fresh.
Beckinsale plays U.S. Marshal Carrie Stetko, the head law officer at a remote research facility eagerly awaiting her return ticket home.
And who could blame her? The temperature outside the camp is brutally cold – the life endangering kind. And she’s forced to hang out with drunken researchers and elder statesman Doc (Tom Skerritt), one of the few sober minds in the facility.
Everything changes when they discover a dead body near the camp. It’s murder, they say, and now Carrie has to solve the crime before she can head home. But catching the murderer means stepping outside, a task which makes everyone vulnerable.
“Whiteout,” similar to John Carpenter’s “The Thing,” makes prime use of its frozen esurroundings. The action sequences, although dizzying to watch, are far superior to the generic thrills in recent pictures like “The Taking of Pelham 123.”
Our heroes must cling to support lines strung between buildings in order to survive the hurricane-like winds whipping around the camp.
And Beckinsale, who doesn’t look like a hard-nosed cop, has enough grit in her performance to make the questionable casting moot.
Yes, the dialogue throughout “Whiteout” is as stale as a frozen donut. But a few scenes prove surprisingly tender, like Doc’s attempt to stitch up Carrie after a nasty accident.
“Whiteout” feels like a September release, a low expectations ride better suited for late-night channel surfing. Seeing it on the big screen will still leave audiences blowing into their hands for comfort.
(Photo: Kate Beckinsale stars as Carrie Stetko in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Dark Castle Entertainment’s action thriller “Whiteout,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo credit: Rafy)
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Watching the trailer for Whiteout, the thing that struck me was that none of the characters really seem to be cold. The snow is obviously CGI, and no one appears to shiver or have their speech or movement slowed from the cold.
I’ve endured a few freezing winters in my time, and when you go outside everyone acts, and feels, like they are living in an unpleasant form of slow-motion. Fargo and A Simple Plan both captured that kind of verisimiltude perfectly, and it’s too bad Whiteout didn’t try to do the same, given the film’s setting.
I love “The Thing,” but I don’t think I’m going to spend any money on this one. I’ll wait until it comes to DVD.
Kate is not one of my favorites. I haven’t been able to take her seriously since she put on that ridiculous accent in Van Helsing.
“But “Whiteout” isn’t awful”
Are you sure about that?