The 2017 thriller The Snowman, starring Michael Fassbender and supported by Charlotte Gainsbourg, Rebecca Ferguson, and J.K. Simmons, has earned the dubious distinction of being the lowest rated Martin Scorsese movie, holding a mere 7% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes. Despite having Scorsese as an executive producer and the promising foundation of being based on a bestselling novel by Jo Nesbø, the film failed to connect with both critics and audiences, resulting in a global box office take of just $43 million against a $35 million budget.
An Overview of the Movie’s Concept and Cast
The Snowman adapts the 2007 novel centered on detective Harry Hole, portrayed by Fassbender, as he investigates a chilling series of murders in Oslo. The film features an ensemble cast that also includes Chloë Sevigny, Val Kilmer, and Toby Jones, with Tomas Alfredson directing. Alfredson, known for acclaimed films like Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, was initially expected to deliver a compelling thriller. Martin Scorsese’s involvement at the executive producer level further raised expectations, especially since he was attached as a potential director during early production phases.
Plot Promises That Fell Short of Expectations
The story followed an alcoholic detective who, bored and disillusioned, teams up with a rookie officer to catch a serial killer targeting mothers trapped in broken marriages. The killer leaves ominous snowman figures at crime scenes and taunts the police with cryptic messages, evoking a tense cat-and-mouse dynamic similar to the real-life Zodiac case. Parallel to this investigation, the protagonist grapples with personal struggles involving his fractured relationship with a boy’s mother, whose son he has come to regard as his own.
However, this intriguing premise disintegrates quickly within the film. The thriller element—the killer’s taunting letters—is reduced to a single, unused letter, removing the tension the trailers had promised. Fassbender’s portrayal of Harry Hole fails to add depth, with the character‘s substance abuse feeling superficial rather than integral. Instead of facing a clever adversary, Hole contends with what seems like mere police incompetence, and the narrative fails to develop the detective’s persona beyond a hollow outline.
Rather than a gripping thriller, the movie falls into boredom and confusion, with tension dissipating early on.
Behind the Scenes: A Disjointed Production that Hurt the Final Product
The most glaring issue with The Snowman lies in its fragmented assembly. Director Tomas Alfredson openly disowned the film, revealing that a rushed shooting schedule in Norway resulted in only around 85% of the script being filmed. This critical loss left significant gaps in the story, comparable to an incomplete jigsaw puzzle missing key pieces. Alfredson told the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK),
“Our shoot time in Norway was way too short. We didn’t get the whole story with us and when we started cutting we discovered that a lot was missing,”
—Tomas Alfredson, Director
“It’s like when you’re making a big jigsaw puzzle and a few pieces are missing so you don’t see the whole picture.”
—Tomas Alfredson, Director
These unfilmed segments led to a narrative lacking coherence and emotional impact, which neither the cast’s efforts nor the source material could salvage.
The Editing Room Could Not Fix What Was Lost
The challenges continued through post-production, where Alfredson, editor Claire Simpson, and seasoned editor Thelma Schoonmaker—known for her long-standing collaboration with Scorsese—endeavored to patch together a coherent film from the limited footage. Nevertheless, the final cut contains several disjointed scenes that disrupt viewer immersion, such as the bewildering moment when the protagonist opens a garage door to find his girlfriend and her son inexplicably seated on the living room floor, a sequence criticized extensively by film analyst Dan Olson in his video breakdown of the film’s editing.
Additionally, the quality of dialogues suffered. Many conversations were recorded after principal photography, resulting in unnatural Automated Dialogue Replacement (ADR) sequences. Val Kilmer, portraying a former detective, had recently undergone throat cancer treatment causing slurred speech, necessitating heavy dubbing. This added to the jarring auditory experience and distracted audiences from the storytelling.
Factors Leading to the Film’s Failures
The Snowman ultimately represents a convergence of unfortunate factors—a compressed shooting schedule, an incomplete script, compromised editing, and inconsistent performances, particularly from Fassbender. Rather than a suspenseful thriller, it spirals into a cautionary tale about how even a talented cast and high-profile executive producer cannot salvage a project lacking in execution and vision. The film’s poor reception reflects broader frustrations with failed adaptations and missed opportunities in cinematic storytelling.
Despite its flaws, The Snowman remains accessible for viewers interested in examining why the film struggled so profoundly. It is currently available for streaming on Netflix in the United States.
