Get on the dystopian future train! Wow, reviews about dystoptain futures pop up quite often on this site. Are there no good Utopia movies coming out? Titan Comics is releasing the French sci-fi tale of a train of 1,001 carriages on a never-ending voyage through a ruined Earth to coincide with the upcoming release of a film based on the original comic.
There's been some bad blood about the film between the studio and director. The American cut is not what he wanted. That's why you always negotiate for final cut, upcoming directors. I'll probably be posting on the release in the CGV Cinemas sooner or later, it's going to be distributed by CJ Entertainment, which doesn't have the best track record with me. South Koreans films are mostly costly B-Movies waiting to happen and coming from the director of The Host it might be so bad it's good.
Snowpiercer Vol 1 the graphic novel follows the adventure of Proloff getting from the back of the train to the front of the train. The end. No, it's much more entertaining. The world as we know it has been destroyed, the only survivors are on board a self-sufficient train, the Snowpiercer. It's a cold world, where a climate weapon might has covered the world in snow. The train has 1,001 carriages and is going on a never ending voyage, ever repeating around what's left of the world. There are no stops, nothing else has survived.
That's some bleak future and it gets worse. The carriages are divided by class. The poorest are at the back of the train in cattle cars. In the middle, the middle class and up front the rich. This was written in the 70's so don't be judging it for simplifying how unfair the divide is between the groups. If you saw Elysium then you know it's hard to pull off that sub-divide or Elysium was just a terrible film.
In black and white we follow as Proloff, one of the poor class makes his Journey to the front of the train. Slowly learning what life is like on-board for the different class, there's a lot of sex to be had. Before getting to far we know life isn't on the up and up for most of the train. A gloomy tale about what a birthday means in the poor section of the train and the sudden enforcement of isolation and fear of germs of Proloff shows it's best to be rich on this train.
Before Proloff gets a military escort to the front of the train he's joined by Adeline Belleau and advocate from the middle class that wants to integrate the poor among the rest of the train. She's a bit naive and soon enough she's taken with Proloff and taken to meet the President of the train for unknown reason along side Proloff. In a final act of insult to Adeline for bothering the military she must cut her hair off as Proloff already has in worry of disease spreading.
Soon were following not only Adeline and Proloff, but the three soldiers assigned to take them to the front of the train. The higher we go up the more we see of this world and how it's divided, dirty and unfair. Adeline and Proloff are already a couple as they go deeper down the tracks.
A section that stood out was that of Momma. Momma is a ever reproducing meat organism. It's butchered constantly and regrows every time it cut in the butcher section of the train. One of the soldiers even asks the unnerving sci-fi question if it can feel and think about what's happening. A disgusting idea that stays with you.
Proloff and Adeline do make it to the front of the train learning how the aristocrats live a great life one with a lot of sex. I mean a lot of sex.
Dire concerns about integrating the train, Adeline's dream, have false answers to them and escalates to them being hunted over what real plans are in store for the poor aboard the train and Adeline's organization. At the same time it seems Proloff did spread a diseas on the train and carriages no have a major outbreak to contend with.
What will happen to Proloff and Adeline?
The art is of older European comic style. It's drawn realistic, nothing that cartoony. It's almost a 70's film with it's angles and tone.
The train goes on and a second volume is scheduled for February