Edge of Winter

This film is actually a tragedy. A parent who is on the verge of losing his two sons goes off the deep end. This is not too much of a stretch from reality. I can easily relate to a divorced father who is having trouble keeping his relationship going with his children; so can a few million other men. The fragility of life is extremely apparent in this film. Just one harsh random event can change lives forever. If the car doesn't crash, the rest does not happen. But it does crash. And the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

Wow, this movie really caught me by surprise. I remember watching the preview and thinking "whatever". I couldn't really tell what it was about but I saw that Joel Kinnaman was in it so I had to at least see. My first experience with this guy was on "The Killing." Didn't like him or his character at first, but by the end of the series I got it. I remember rooting for him to make it big and then saw him on Robocop and some other big movies. I hope Hollywood doesn't ruin him. I'd like to see more of his "flawed hero" in the future. Could just be me, but I think I could see him doubting himself in certain scenes at the beginning of the movie that wasn't just the character. He needs more roles like these I think to get his chops around. Really, I think he has the potential to turn out some interesting characters given the chance. Now about the movie. Like I said, the beginning of the movie, I thought, came across a bit stiff. Maybe the dialogue, I don't know, people in real life act and say things all the time that I don't really understand why they'd say or do it that way. All the same it was okay. Then about half way through the movie I had to stand up and say, "Holy S--t!" From then on it was a nightmare for everyone involved. This movie took turns I did not see coming and I thought it was pretty realistic. Once it all fell apart I could see the insanity of the situation and it was scary. I've always been interested in how a parent can come to the conclusion to kill their own children. That doesn't happen here but the colors are there. I don't know if this movie is for everyone, probably not. I sure liked it though. I liked it a lot.

It started off promising. The lead role is mostly played well and everything seemed set for a good movie. The feel and the production value was good. However, as the film progressed, it began to fall flat. Despite a good effort from the lead character, the character is not well written. I am not complaining about initial ambiguity, but at the overall way the lead character as well as all the other characters are scripted poorly. None of the characters have any depth and the whole story became 2 dimensional and irritating well into the film. But since my wife and I had invested good part of an hour by then, we continued watching anyway. This turned out to be an error on our part.

The problem is two fold. The viewer is not allowed to connect with either children even though there is every reason to. The viewer is also left hanging at the end of the movie with a very unsatisfactory outcome. I would not recommend it for that reason.

No idea why people are harshing on this movie. Yes, the plot is simple, but that's because it's not a horror flick or action flick - - it's a psychological family drama thriller. As in, tense.

There's beautiful scenery, minimal music, and other than a few scenes (not going to spoil that), most of what happens is fairly straightforward. Joel Kinnaman, looking a bit haggard, (the delicious co-star of The Killing) delivers top-notch acting, as do both of the boys. Their relationship and interaction is believable, and thankfully, there isn't any annoying precociousness or preciousness in the kid's characters.

I'm not sure what people were expecting from the movie, but after reading some of the reviews/comments, I watched it anyway, and I wasn't disappointed. If you're looking for something with a lot of violence or gore, or some feel-good story with a dramatic ending, this isn't the film for you. If you are looking for a somewhat bleak story line with great acting, then check it out.

Usually I go by the review from IMDb ...

This one I totally disagree with... It holds you on the Edge/ as the title reads. It is about an abusive situation and very realistically done. Most of know someone like this guy or have known ... He continues to make stupid decisions and the kids are trying to respect him as their parent until their sense of survival kicks in. This is a don't miss movie!!!