History YMMV / Snowpiercer

[[folder:The Movie]]

** Even worse, the film's message could very easily be "a strictly segregated social hierarchy may be oppressive, but any attempt to rise above your station would only bring ruin". As much as the film plays up the "shoe/hat" metaphor as ridiculous and oppressive, the decision by the shoe (Curtis) to overthrow and replace the hat (Wilford) is what directly causes [[spoiler:the train to be destroyed, condemning humanity to extinction.]]

* AdaptationDisplacement: Did you know it was based off of a comic series? Neither did a lot of people outside of the Francosphere! When the books were released in 2014, they were riding off of the film by saying this inspired the film. (So much that when one of the authors returned to the work, the film was basically adopted into canon.)

** Was Gilliam [[spoiler: truly a traitor to the tail-end section]] or was he so traumatized by [[spoiler: the cannabilistic melee from]] the train’s early days that [[WellIntentionedExtremist he thought population control was the only way of preventing another outbreak]]? Also, he urged Curtis to just kill Wilford outright, and not even give Wilford a chance to talk with him. Was Gilliam regretful [[spoiler: that he let Wilford manipulate him for all these years and didn't want the same thing to happen to Curtis, or did he just want to keep his collaboration with Wilford a secret?]]

* AwardSnub: Received no [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Academy-Award]] nominations or Golden Globes despite it being critically acclaimed and named by some as one of the best films of the year, though Creator/TildaSwinton did receive some recognition for her work as Mason. Somewhat justified though as it was released in Korea in 2013, making it ineligible for the Oscars though it did get a 2014 release in the States.
* BrokenBase: Fans of Bong Joon-Ho's previous works are split about whether the movie was great or not.

* DeathOfTheAuthor: It's been [[http://thekoreanforeigner.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-philsophy-of-snowpiercer.html argued]] that Bong Joon-Ho wasn't making a film about class warfare, but about tyranny itself; maintaining the train - both its life support and its rigid caste system - demands that everyone aboard make inherently dehumanizing sacrifices. The tailenders obviously get the worst of it (living in squalor and eating gel bars [[spoiler:made from ground-up cockroaches]]), but the frontenders also have no freedom as the system permits no growth or change [[spoiler:and when the population climbs too high, they are sacrificed just as callously as the tailenders in Wilford and Gilliam's revolution]]. Wilford cannot risk interacting with the population, as they have come to see him as a divine figure - breaking the illusion risks the system breaking down. The frontenders are as dependent on the tailenders for survival as the tailenders are on the frontenders - and the architects of the revolution are the least free of all. Unless everyone is free, no-one is.

* EsotericHappyEnding: The shackles of tyranny have been cast off, and life is returning to Earth, but, [[spoiler:humanity might be effectively wiped out, and that beautiful polar bear sure seems awfully interested in our two remaining heroes…]] [[spoiler: ''Terminus'', however, confirms that our two remaining heroes have not only survived, but made it to a safe spot.]]

* HarsherInHindsight: In ''Film/TheHost'', Song's character Gang-du [[spoiler: lives, while Ko's character Hyun-seo dies]]. In ''Snowpiercer'', Song and Ko once again play father and daughter, only [[spoiler: Song's character dies while Ko's lives (longer)]].
* HilariousInHindsight: During the classroom scene, when they get to the part of the propaganda video on Wilford's backstory where his childhood self talks about how he wants to live on a train forever, the children all scream out "forever!" and perform a gesture that looks an awful lot like [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dab_(dance) dabbing.]] While that gesture has its roots in {{anime}} and ''Franchise/SuperSentai'', it only caught on in the West in 2014, the year after this film was released.

* SugarWiki/HeReallyCanAct: Most of the cast got this reaction but especially Creator/ChrisEvans and Song Kang-ho.

** Curtis slipping on a fish in the middle of an intense fight, with a pretty ridiculous expression on his face.
** During the Ax Gang fight, one of the gang members turns to look at Mason.
-->'''Mason:''' No! Don't look at me! Look... THEEEEEEEEEEEAH!
** "I know that babies taste best."
** The sight of [[spoiler: the children performing the functions of train parts]] is... Odd to say the least.
** The use of a polar bear of all things to showcase that [[spoiler:life still persists in the outside world. By then the two sole survivors are an unarmed teenager and an even less resilient 5-year old whereas polar bears are lethal apex predators in a biome where food is scarce with or without a man-made ice age apocalypse. Put those two things together and this uplifting moments becomes decidedly less so. Supplemental material reveals that the two kids survive, but you won't know that by just watching the film.]]

* AccidentalAesop

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation

* {{Narm}}

** The film shares a '''lot''' amount of similarities to the first ''VideoGame/BioShock1'' game. The class division, a protagonist with a shadowy past, Wilford's egocentric propaganda, [[spoiler:children being brainwashed to serve the society]] - [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1utJKkMEXE it's all there.]] Some fans even go on calling this film "''VideoGame/BioShock'' as directed by Creator/TerryGilliam". It even serves as a better example of its [[UsefulNotes/{{Objectivism}} Objectivist]] themes than ''[=BioShock=]''. [[spoiler:Wilford and Gilliam are ''working together to maintain the train'', with Wilford a fascist tyrant who preaches that salvation comes from serving him and Gilliam a socialist tyrant who preaches that salvation comes from serving each other, at his command.]]

* SpiritualLicensee:

* SpiritualLicensee: The film shares a '''lot''' amount of similarities to the first ''VideoGame/BioShock'' game. The class division, a protagonist with a shadowy past, Wilford's egocentric propaganda, [[spoiler:children being brainwashed to serve the society]] - [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1utJKkMEXE it's all there.]] Some fans even go on calling this film "''VideoGame/BioShock'' as directed by Creator/TerryGilliam".
** It even serves as a better example of its [[UsefulNotes/{{Objectivism}} Objectivist]] themes than ''Bioshock'' - especially as [[spoiler:Wilford and Gilliam are ''working together to maintain the train''; Wilford is a fascistic tyrant who preaches that salvation comes from serving him, Gilliam is a socialist tyrant who preaches that salvation comes from serving each other - at his command]].

* HilariousInHindsight: During the classroom scene, when they get to the part of the propaganda video on Wilford's backstory where his childhood self talks about how he wants to live on a train forever, the children all scream out "forever!" and perform a gesture that looks an awful lot like [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dab_(dance) dabbing.]] While that gesture has its roots in {{anime}} and ''Series/SuperSentai'', it only caught on in the West in 2014, the year after this film was released.

** The [[GreenAesop delicate balance of the train's life support]] is referred to ''constantly'' as the reason for the abuse heaped upon the tail-sectioners, though critics usually ignore this in favor of condemning the tyranny du jour. Thus, the alternate theme of Snowpiercer could be, "Find a way for people to [[IWantMyJetpack immigrate to space]], or wind up having to [[TheNeedsOfTheMany sacrifice people to keep the human race alive]]."

* AwardSnub: Received no [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Academy-Award]] nominations or Golden Globes despite it being critically acclaimed and named by some as one of the best films of the year, though Tilda Swinton did receive some recognition for her work as Mason. Somewhat justified though as it was released in Korea in 2013, making it ineligible for the Oscars though it did get a 2014 release in the States.

* PyrrhicVictory: Sure, [[spoiler: Curtis managed to derail the Snowpiercer and end the cycle of tyranny…he just had to die and kill pretty much everyone else on the train.]] Not exactly a sunshine-and-rainbows movie.
* RewatchBonus
** Watch the movie again [[spoiler: with the revelation that Curtis killed Edgar's mom.]] It really puts their interaction in a new light.
** Or with the knowledge that [[spoiler: Gilliam worked with Wilford to create revolts from time to time.]]

* SpiritualSuccessor: According to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jEX52h1TvuA this]] video, there are similarites between this and [[Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory.]]

* SugarWiki/HeReallyCanAct: Most of the cast got this reaction but especially Creator/ChrisEvans, Song Kang-ho and Creator/EdHarris, with Harris being downright terrifying in the few scenes he's in.

* HeReallyCanAct: Most of the cast got this reaction but especially Creator/ChrisEvans, Song Kang-ho and Creator/EdHarris, with Harris being downright terrifying in the few scenes he's in.

** The [[GreenAesop delicate balance of the train's life support]] is referred to ''constantly'' as the reason for the abuse heaped upon the tail-sectioners, though critics usually ignore this in favor of condemning the tyranny du jour. Thus, the alternate theme of Snowpiercer could be, "Find a way for people to [[IWantMyJetpack immigrate to space]], or wind up having to [[TheNeedsOfTheMany sacrifice people to keep the human race alive]]." It also makes most {{Green Aesop}}s kind of horrifying, as they often boil down to, "The place is more important than happiness, well-being or lives of the people who live there."

* CompleteMonster: [[BigBad Wilford]] is a [[ItsAllAboutMe selfish]] and megalomaniacal [[TheSocialDarwinist social Darwinist]] who seeks total control over what’s left of mankind. Despite knowing the risks of using CW-7 to combat global warming, Wilford doesn’t bother doing anything about it and instead takes advantage of it to design and create [[TitleDrop the Snowpiercer]]. When [[CoolTrain the train]] begins its trip, he tries starving out stowaways inside the tail section of his train, forcing them to [[ImAHumanitarian resort to cannibalism]]. For the next 18 years, Wilford installs a caste system where the poor inhabit the tail section and the elite inhabit the front. The poor are frequently tortured, [[spoiler:force-fed bars that are [[IAteWhat made out]] of [[{{Squick}} cockroaches]]]], bullied by psychos such as Wilford’s [[TheDragon Dragon]], [[SinisterMinister Mason]], and occasionally have their children abducted. The front section cannot escape Wilford’s iron fist either, as their kids are brainwashed with propaganda promoting a [[CultOfPersonality cult of personality]] that [[AGodAmI treats him as a living god]] and as a savior of humanity. As Curtis Everett learned the hard way, Wilford will also not hesitate to meddle with facts and pull {{breaking lecture}}s on his victims. Wilford tells Curtis that [[spoiler:revolutions in the tail were pre-planned by him and his [[TheMole mole]] Gilliam to keep the tail section population in check, only then to reveal that Wilford had no problems [[YouHaveFailedMe ordering his friend’s execution for failing to control Curtis’s rebellion]]]]. Wilford then spites Curtis by "tallying up the numbers," by which he means ordering a henchman to kill 74 percent of people in the tail section (less 18) and putting the ensuing massacre on speakerphone. [[spoiler:When Yona pulls up the floor to reveal Timmy, a [[WouldHurtAChild 5-year-old boy]], being used as slave labor to replace the train’s parts, Wilford declares that children under 5 are "[[PoweredByAForsakenChild parts of an engine]]." He then calls Timmy "a replacement" and thanks the tail section for having a "steady supply of kids."]]

* LoveItOrHateIt: Got rave reviews from critics and fans, while others found it overlong and pretentious.

* DeathOfTheAuthor: It's been [[http://bangalay4.rssing.com/browser.php?indx=3542699&item=6588 argued]] that Bong Joon-Ho wasn't making a film about class warfare, but about tyranny itself; maintaining the train - both its life support and its rigid caste system - demands that everyone aboard make inherently dehumanizing sacrifices. The tailenders obviously get the worst of it (living in squalor and eating gel bars [[spoiler:made from ground-up cockroaches]]), but the frontenders also have no freedom as the system permits no growth or change [[spoiler:and when the population climbs too high, they are sacrificed just as callously as the tailenders in Wilford and Gilliam's revolution]]. Wilford cannot risk interacting with the population, as they have come to see him as a divine figure - breaking the illusion risks the system breaking down. The frontenders are as dependent on the tailenders for survival as the tailenders are on the frontenders - and the architects of the revolution are the least free of all. Unless everyone is free, no-one is.

* JustForFun/XMeetsY: Some people has described this film as "''Literature/AnimalFarm'' on a train"

** It even serves as a better example of its [[UsefulNotes/{{Objectivism}} Objectivist]] themes than ''Bioshock'' - especially as [[spoiler:Wilford and Gilliam are ''working together to maintain the train''; Wilford is a fascistic tyrant who preaches that salvation comes from serving him, Gilliam is a socialist tyrant who preaches that salvation comes from serving each other - at his command]].

* AwardSnub: Received no Academy-Award nominations or Golden Globes despite it being critically acclaimed and named by some as one of the best films of the year, though Tilda Swinton did receive some recognition for her work as Mason. Somewhat justified though as it was released in Korea in 2013, making it ineligible for the Oscars though it did get a 2014 release in the States.

* CompleteMonster: [[BigBad Wilford]] is a [[ItsAllAboutMe selfish]] and megalomaniacal [[TheSocialDarwinist social Darwinist]] who seeks total control over what’s left of mankind. Despite knowing the risks of using CW-7 to combat global warming, Wilford doesn’t bother doing anything about it and instead takes advantage of it to design and create [[TitleDrop the Snowpiercer]]. When [[CoolTrain the train]] begins its trip, he tries starving out stowaways inside the tail section of his train, forcing them to [[ImAHumanitarian resort to cannibalism]]. For the next 18 years, Wilford installs a caste system where the poor inhabit the tail section and the elite inhabit the front. The poor are frequently tortured, [[spoiler:force-fed bars that are [[IAteWhat made out]] of [[{{Squick}} cockroaches]]]], bullied by psychos such as Wilford’s [[TheDragon Dragon]], [[SinisterMinister Mason]], and occasionally have their children abducted. The front section cannot escape Wilford’s iron fist either, as their kids are brainwashed with propaganda promoting a cult of personality that [[AGodAmI treats him as a living god]] and as a savior of humanity. As Curtis Everett learned the hard way, Wilford will also not hesitate to meddle with facts and pull {{breaking lecture}}s on his victims. Wilford tells Curtis that [[spoiler:revolutions in the tail were pre-planned by him and his [[TheMole mole]] Gilliam to keep the tail section population in check, only then to reveal that Wilford had no problems [[YouHaveFailedMe ordering his friend’s execution for failing to control Curtis’s rebellion]]]]. Wilford then spites Curtis by "tallying up the numbers," by which he means ordering a henchman to kill 74 percent of people in the tail section (less 18) and putting the ensuing massacre on speakerphone. [[spoiler:When Yona pulls up the floor to reveal Timmy, a [[WouldHurtAChild 5-year-old boy]], being used as slave labor to replace the train’s parts, Wilford declares that children under 5 are "[[PoweredByAForsakenChild parts of an engine]]." He then calls Timmy "a replacement" and thanks the tail section for having a "steady supply of kids."]]

* DeathOfTheAuthor: It's been [[http://thekoreanforeigner.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-philsophy-of-snowpiercer.html argued]] that Bong Joon-Ho wasn't making a film about class warfare, but about tyranny itself; maintaining the train - both its life support and its rigid caste system - demands that everyone aboard make inherently dehumanizing sacrifices. The tailenders obviously get the worst of it (living in squalor and eating gel bars [[spoiler:made from ground-up cockroaches]]), but the frontenders also have no freedom as the system permits no growth or change [[spoiler:and when the population climbs too high, they are sacrificed just as callously as the tailenders in Wilford and Gilliam's revolution]]. Wilford cannot risk interacting with the population, as they have come to see him as a divine figure - breaking the illusion risks the system breaking down. The frontenders are as dependent on the tailenders for survival as the tailenders are on the frontenders - and the architects of the revolution are the least free of all. Unless everyone is free, no-one is.

* SpiritualLicensee: The film shares a '''lot''' amount of similarities to the first ''VideoGame/BioShock'' game. The class division, a protagonist with a shadowy past, Wilford's egocentric propaganda, [[spoiler:children being brainwashed to serve the society]] - [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1utJKkMEXE it's all there.]] Some fans even go on calling this film "''VideoGame/BioShock'' as directed by Creator/TerryGilliam"

* SpiritualLicensee: The film shares a '''lot''' amount of similarities to the first ''VideoGame/BioShock'' game. The class division, a protagonist with a shadowy past, Wilford's egocentric propaganda, [[spoiler:children being brainwashed to serve the society]] - [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1utJKkMEXE it's all there.]]

** Was Gilliam [[spoiler: truly a traitor to the tail-end section]] or was he so traumatized by [[spoiler: the cannabilistic melee from]] the train’s early days that [[WellIntentionedExtremist he thought population control was the only way of preventing another outbreak]]? Also, he urged Curtis to just kill Wilford outright, and not even give Wilford a chance to talk with him. Was Gilliam regretful [[spoiler: that he let Wilford manipulate him for all these years and didn't want the same thing to happen to Curtus, or did he just want to keep his collaboration with Wilford a secret?]]

* {{Narm}}:

* RewatchBonus: Watch the movie again [[spoiler: with the revelation that Curtis killed Edgar's mom.]] It really puts their interaction in a new light.

* EsotericHappyEnding: The shackles of tyranny have been cast off, and life is returning to Earth, but, [[spoiler:humanity might be effectively wiped out, and that beautiful polar bear sure seems awfully interested in our two remaining heroes…]]
** [[spoiler: ''Terminus'' however confirms that our two remaining heroes have not only survived, but made it to a safe spot.]]