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Parents' Guide to

The Ice Harvest

By Cynthia Fuchs, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 16+

Dark comedy about a mob lawyer who steals $2 mil.

Movie R 2005 88 minutes
The Ice Harvest Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 18+

Based on 1 parent review

Tony Cusack
Tony Cusack Parent of 7 and 10-year-old
October 6, 2022
age 18+
See all 1 parent review

What's the Story?

Mob lawyer Charlie Arglist (John Cusack) tries to commit the "perfect crime" in THE ICE HARVEST. Charlie has just stolen $2 million from his gangster client (Randy Quaid). Worse, he's working with seamy strip club owner Vic (Billy Bob Thornton). Charlie's ex-wife's new boozing husband, Pete (Oliver Platt), self-medicates to deal his miserable home life. Charlie and Pete bond on Christmas Eve over their shared experience of violence and fear, and Pete's childish rebellion against his in-laws and abusive, icy wife. As Charlie careens between brash and tentative, he follows the usual noiry hero's route, descending though he knows better. The partnership with Vic is bound to unravel, and then he meets sultry Renata (Connie Nielsen), who tries to seduce him to get what she wants but is clearly not interested in him. Charlie appears to know this, but he uses Renata too. She keeps his mind off what he sees as his most immediate anxiety, for a minute anyway.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (1 ):
Kids say (1 ):

For all Charlie's running around -- in driving rain and icy road conditions, to boot -- the film never picks up speed. If Charlie appears energetic, if not exactly inspired, it's only because he's in constant, circular motion. Surrounded by antic dunderheads and furious bunglers, he responds as if mystified, though he understands and can manipulate such behavior. Charlie's positioned twice -- as conventional, self-aware hero and dim anti-hero, both sustained by the oddly convincing, refreshingly subtle, and relentlessly appealing Cusack.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about Charlie's limited vision. Though he feels angry, frustrated, and in his way, ambitious, he's unable to imagine his way out of Wichita except by the very means he despises: betrayal and violence. How does Charlie look relatively rational, compared to his mostly crazed associates? How is he positioned between other male characters (who are miserable and not-so-smart) and women (selfish, conniving, and mean-spirited)?

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