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Tell Others About This Page By Using This Button "WHITEOUT" (2009) (Kate Beckinsale, Gabriel Macht) (R) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons Moderate Extreme Extreme Heavy Extreme Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Moderate Minor Extreme None Heavy Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Extreme None None Moderate Extreme QUICK TAKE: Suspense/Thriller: A federal marshal attempts to solve a murder mystery in Antarctica before a raging storm prompts an early seasonal evacuation of the U.S. research base there. PLOT: Carrie Stetko (KATE BECKINSALE) is a federal marshal who took a post at a U.S. research facility in Antarctica to get as far away from a troubled past as possible. There, she serves as the sheriff of sorts, all as pilots such as Delfy (COLUMBUS SHORT) and Russell Haden (ALEX O'LOUGHLIN) fly researchers, geologists and the like back and forth between distant work locations. Having had enough of her line of work, Carrie is about to resign and return to the States, but that's before she, Delfy and the station's resident physician, Dr. John Fury (TOM SKERRITT), discover a frozen body out in the middle of nowhere. Realizing the victim was murdered, Carrie is determined to solve the case, but has little to go on. Complicating matters is that winter is quickly approaching, and base commander Sam Murphy (SHAWN DOYLE) is itching to get everyone off the continent before a big storm hits. Not everyone is headed out, however, as U.N. special investigations agent Robert Pryce (GABRIEL MACHT) shows up. He's not only interested in the murder, but also in something several geologists were searching for buried somewhere under all of the ice. That arouses Carrie's suspicions, but when a masked assailant tries to kill her and attacks others, she realizes this isn't a normal murder case. From that point on, and racing against the clock before the station is evacuated, the marshal tries to get to the bottom of what's occurring. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? They might be if they're fans of anyone in the cast and/or the "graphic novel" on which the film is based. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: R For violence, grisly images, brief strong language and some nudity. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: Please Note: To preserve revelations in the third act, the following does not include late character information regarding the identity of the villain(s). KATE BECKINSALE plays a U.S. marshal who took the Antarctica post to get over a troubling incident stateside a few years ago and is now prepared to resign. An unlikely murder case there, however, draws her back in, and she tries to get to the bottom of who's responsible and why. She briefly drinks and uses some profanity. GABRIEL MACHT plays a U.N. special investigations agent who arrives on the scene, initially arousing Carrie's suspicions about his sudden and unlikely appearance, but he eventually assists her with the investigation. He drinks some. TOM SKERRITT plays the base's doctor and friend to Carrie. He drinks some. COLUMBUS SHORT plays a pilot who flies Carrie around and assists her on her investigation. He uses strong profanity and briefly drinks. ALEX O'LOUGHLIN plays one of the pilots, a tattooed man who makes some suggestive comments to Carrie. He uses strong profanity. SHAWN DOYLE plays the commander of the U.S. base who wants everyone to clear out before the big storm hits. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a quick look at the content found in this R-rated suspense/thriller. Profanity consists of at least 4 "f" words, while other expletives and colorful phrases are also uttered. Some male streakers are briefly seen (full frontal) while the camera lingers on a woman in her bra and panties before she showers and there are two brief views of a female magazine centerfold. Violence consists of several murders via various means, the wounding of others, attempts on others' lives, and a plane crash. Some of that has bloody results, while various frozen and chilled corpses show bad wounds and blood. That material as well as moments of potential peril might be unsettling and/or suspenseful to viewers. Various bad attitudes are present, as is imitative behavior, while drinking occurs in several scenes. If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may be interested in seeing it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. For those prone to visually induced motion sickness, there are varying amounts of camera movement (bouncy as well as point of view moving forward) at various points in the film. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE Various Russians onboard a flight drink from the same bottle of liquor. There may be brief, general talk of drugs between Carrie and John (the audio at our screening was not the best in terms of clear dialogue). Various people drink whiskey at a base party. John retrieves a bottle of booze, but doesn't have any. We see empty liquor bottles in a Russian base. We see bottles of vodka in the old Russian plane wreck. Later, and back in their snowcat, Delfy takes a swing from one bottle and then shares that with Robert and Carrie before having another swig. John has some liquor and then does so again. BLOOD/GORE A few people who are shot during a gun battle onboard a Russian flight in 1957 are bloody, but nothing too bad. Carrie, John and Delfy come across a frozen body out in the middle of nowhere. After Carrie and John struggle to turn it over, they see that part of the head is missing and there's frozen blood everywhere. In a flashback, Carrie's face is bloody and she shoots a man who then falls back through a high-rise window and falls many stories before slamming onto the street, with bloody results there. John and Carrie examine the above frozen body more closely back at the base. There are more views of the badly damaged head and the frozen blood, and they also find a crudely sewn-up wound on the leg, and a big puncture wound on the body. We see a flashback to earlier in the above flashback where a guy grabs Carrie's head and slams it into a mirror (bloodying her) and then tries to strangle her. Carrie enters a Russian base and finds a badly wounded man, barely alive with a very bloody gash around his neck. As Carrie tries to elude a killer and get back inside a station, she places her bare hand on the ice-cold spinning wheel handle on the hatch door, and her skin then pulls away as she yanks her hand off that to get inside. Robert has a little bit of a nosebleed. We see blood down the wall of an ice cave. We see various long-dead and frozen bodies (with frozen blood on them) in the wreckage of the Russian plane, as well as similarly frozen but fresher blood on the floor. The bandage is removed from around Carrie's hand (from the skin pulling off after getting frozen to the hatch door) and two of her fingers are black and blistered. John then uses a syringe needle to see if she feels anything, poking it into one finger twice and the second finger once (she feels nothing). He then states he'll have to amputate those before the infection spreads, and we later see him prepping to do that, followed by picking up a pair of shears. We then hear the snap/crunch sound of the first amputation (but don't see it, although Carrie is fully awake during this). We see another flashback to Carrie having her head slammed against the mirror (with bloody results). We see a flashback to the geologist cutting his leg while trying to open the locked case, and this time we see the bloody results. Delfy is very bloody from having been stabbed (not seen). Carrie slowly makes her way through the now nearly deserted station, looking for clues with her flashlight. She eventually figures out what's occurred, goes into the morgue and opens various body bags (we see the bloody bodies, including the one with part of the head missing, while she removes her bandage to compare the stitches on her hand from her amputation to those on a dead leg). She then cuts open those stitches on the dead man's closed leg wound, places her hand inside that (we hear squishy sounds) and retrieves a bag that had been placed inside. DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE Russian pilots conspire against their crew over some cargo they're carrying and attempt to murder them for it, resulting in everyone dying. We learn from a flashback that Carrie's work partner tried to conspire with a criminal against her. Seeing that she's now missing two fingers, Haden makes a callous sexual remark about her doing a strip search on him with that hand. After Carrie nearly cuts off his finger to make him talk, Haden says, "You crazy bitch." Those responsible for the murders and related activity obviously have bad attitudes. FRIGHTENING SCENES Scenes listed under "Violence" and/or "Blood/Gore" may be unsettling and/or suspenseful to younger viewers and/or those with low tolerance levels for such material. The co-pilot of a Russian cargo plane flight in 1957 shoots one crewmember, followed by some struggling and then a gun battle (handguns and at least one machine gun). Various people are hit, a bullet goes through a window and depressurizes the plane, and the pilot is hit and falls into the yoke, sending the plane into a dive. It clips the top of a mountain, tearing off one engine and sending one man bashing up against a wall, and continues its descent, eventually crash landing belly up, sliding along the snow and coming apart. In the end, everyone onboard is dead. As Robert, Carrie and Delfy investigate an old Russian plane wreck buried in something along the lines of an ice cave, the snow above them suddenly collapses and fills not only the passage leading down to the plane, but also part of the plane itself through the open door on the side. That means they're trapped, and Robert then gets the idea to try to blow the hatch on the top of the plane. As he tries to hotwire that, Delfy and Carrie take cover should the explosive bolts blow inward rather than outward. The bandage is removed from around Carrie's hand (from the skin pulling off after getting frozen to the hatch door) and two of her fingers are black and blistered. John then uses a syringe needle to see if she feels anything, poking it into one finger twice and the second finger once (she feels nothing). He then states he'll have to amputate those before the infection spreads, and we later see him prepping to do that, followed by picking up a pair of shears. We then hear the snap/crunch sound of the first amputation (but don't see it, although Carrie is fully awake during this). Delfy is very bloody from having been stabbed (not seen), and Carrie, Robert and John agree to stay behind to help him as the rest of the station is evacuated due to the approaching storm (meaning those staying behind will be stranded there alone for months). Realizing the killer has escaped, Carrie and Robert go outside the station and try to stop him before he takes off in a plane, but when they get inside that with their guns drawn, he's nowhere to be found. They then find themselves locked outside of the main station in the middle of a raging windstorm, trying to hold on while blindly aiming their guns out into the near whiteout conditions. Carrie slowly makes her way through the now nearly deserted station, looking for clues with her flashlight. She eventually figures out what's occurred, goes into the morgue and opens various body bags (we see the bloody bodies, including the one with part of the head missing, while she removes her bandage to compare the stitches on her hand from her amputation to those on a dead leg). She then cuts open those stitches on the dead man's closed leg wound, places her hand inside that (we hear squishy sounds) and retrieves a bag that had been placed inside. GUNS/WEAPONS Handguns/Machine guns/Ice ax/Knife: Carried and/or used to threaten, wound or kill others and/or cause property damage. See "Violence" for details. Carrie aims her gun at Robert upon first catching sight of him at a murder scene and obviously being suspicious. After entering what turns out to be an empty plane with their handguns drawn, Carrie and Robert find themselves locked outside of the main station in the middle of a raging windstorm, trying to hold on while blindly aiming their guns out into the near whiteout conditions. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "We're f*cked," "Take your f*cking hands off me," "I'm not your f*cking mate" (nonsexual), "Some sh*t like this," "You clumsy bastard" (in subtitles), "Screwed up," "Jeez," "What the hell /were they doing out here/happened here?" "Get the hell out of here," "You son of a bitch," "Hell of a lot," "You crazy bitch," "Where the hell are you?" and "It's a hell of a show." The fighting, action and other stunts might be enticing for some kids to imitate. We see several men streak by Carrie outside in the cold (full frontal nudity for all of them). Haden has various tattoos. To get the killer to talk, Robert first strikes him, followed by Carrie taking a pair of shears and threatening to cut off one of his fingers. He talks, but not before she draws a little blood. A man goes outside without protective winter gear, thus committing suicide by freezing to death (we don't see the latter). JUMP SCENES The sudden view of a frozen human face might startle some viewers. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) An extreme amount of suspenseful and ominous music plays in the film. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) None. PROFANITY At least 4 "f" words, 4 "s" words, 10 hells (1 mouthed), 2 damns, 2 S.O.B.s, 1 ass (used with "hole"), 1 crap, 4 uses of "Oh my God," 3 of "G-damn," 2 of "Oh God" and 1 use each of "God" and "Jesus." SEX/NUDITY A man in 1957 looks at a magazine centerfold and the view is of a woman turned sideways, with a partial view of her bare breast. We see several men streak by Carrie outside in the cold (full frontal nudity for all of them). After arriving back at the base, Carrie strips off her warm gear and continues down to just her bra (we see the shape of her nipples in that) and small panties (of which we get a close-up rear view when she leans into the shower to start the water running). She then removes that bra (rear view, nothing seen) and then showers (shown from outside the shower, and the fogged up glass prevents any explicit views -- we just see the muted shape of her body). We see Haden in just a towel, and he suggestively jokes with Carrie, wondering if she's going to strip search him. Carrie shows a little cleavage while bending forward in a flashback. Delfy finds the old centerfold from above (the image is partially ice/snow covered) and jokes that they don't make them like that anymore. Seeing that she's now missing two fingers, Haden makes a callous sexual remark about her doing a strip search on him with that hand. SMOKING None. TENSE FAMILY SCENES None. TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT Antarctica and those who choose to work there. What some people will do to others to get their hands on something valuable. Dealing with a past traumatic event. VIOLENCE The co-pilot of a Russian cargo plane flight in 1957 shoots one crewmember, followed by some struggling and then a gun battle (handguns and at least one machine gun). Various people are hit, a bullet goes through a window and depressurizes the plane, and the pilot is hit and falls into the yoke, sending the plane into a dive. It clips the top of a mountain, tearing off one engine and sending one man bashing up against a wall, and continues its descent, eventually crash landing belly up, sliding along the snow and coming apart. In the end, everyone onboard is dead. In a flashback, Carrie's face is bloody and she shoots a man who then falls back through a high-rise window and falls many stories before slamming onto the street, with bloody results there. We see a flashback to earlier in the above flashback where a guy grabs Carrie's head and slams it into a mirror (bloodying her) and then tries to strangle her. Carrie enters a Russian base and finds a badly wounded man, barely alive with a bloody gash around his neck. Just then, a masked man tries to attack her with an ice ax, with the first swing landing in that injured man. She hits that assailant with something and then flees, with him in hot pursuit inside the station (with her avoiding more swinging of that ax) and then outside (after she hurries to don protective winter gear). The assailant grabs and attacks her, but she manages to get away, and then tries to move along a horizontal safety line (clipped onto it) as fast as possible, with the man still in pursuit. As she opens a hatch door, the skin on one hand freezes to the spinning wheel handle and pulls away, but she gets inside and then struggle to push the door closed as he tries to push his way in. Carrie has a nightmare featuring images of the Miami attack (the guy bashing her head to a mirror) as well as the recent Antarctica attack (the masked man swinging an ice ax at her). Delfy tries to wake her up, and she hits his face hard while coming out of that nightmare. After taking a snowcat out into the middle of nowhere looking for whatever the geologists found, Carrie, Robert and Delfy get out and start walking around. Just when Carrie thinks she's found something, she ends up falling through a hole and lands hard down inside an ice cave of sorts (she's shaken up, but okay). We see a brief flashback to the gun battle onboard the Russian flight. We see a flashback to a geologist accidentally striking and cutting his own leg while trying to open a locked case. We see a flashback to a body falling from the sky and hitting the snow-covered ground quite hard. Upset about having two fingers amputated, Carries swipes some things aside and kicks a chair. We see another flashback to Carrie having her head slammed against the mirror (with bloody results), followed by the guy trying to strangle her. She kicks him away and hits him with something, only to encounter her now bad partner at whom she aims her handgun. As he reaches for his, she shoots him, and he crashes through the high-rise window. Carries encounters a troubled-looking man carrying a knife. He then flees and knocks various people aside as he tries to get away, only to have the killer slam an ice ax into him. The first man manages to get outside only to be grabbed by the killer and both tumble down the steps. The first man tries to crawl away, but the killer grabs him and breaks his neck. Carrie then hits the killer with a shovel, knocking him out, and then drives that shovel down into him twice again before Robert stops her from continuing. We see a flashback to the geologist cutting his leg while trying to open the locked case, and this time we see the bloody results. To get the killer to talk, Robert first strikes him, followed by Carrie taking a pair of shears and threatening to cut off one of his fingers. He talks, but not before she draws a little blood. Delfy is very bloody from having been stabbed (not seen). Out in the middle of a blinding, snow-driven windstorm, Robert is hit by flying debris, while the killer tries to hit Carrie with his ax, and she's knocked down and loses her handgun. She does manage to hit him with something she finds outside, but he knocks her down, followed by Robert tackling and struggling with the killer (punches, kneeing, etc.). The safety line all are using is then cut or otherwise comes free, sending all them flying, and they barely grab various things to stop from being blown away. The killer then slowly pursues Carrie along a safety line, but she cuts that and he's blown away, banging into two things quite hard before disappearing in the distance. A man goes outside without protective winter gear, thus committing suicide by freezing to death (we don't see the latter). Reviewed September 9, 2009 / Posted September 11, 2009

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