MovieChat Forums > The Ice Storm (1997) Discussion > Black and white version?

Black and white version?

posted 14 years ago by BebeBirdie
4 replies | jump to latest

I saw this movie about eight years ago on television. It was in black and white, and the only colored thing in it was Christina Ricci's red plaid cloak. Has anyone else seen this version? I've since seen the version of the movie in color, and I have to say, the black and white worked much, much better for this film, the script, and its characters.

Just wondering if anyone else has seen the black, white & red variant, and if so, how you think it compares to the one in full color?

[–] 14 years ago

[deleted]

[–] scottythefield 14 years ago

It was in black and white, and the only colored thing in it was Christina Ricci's red plaid cloak.

Hahaha, I think you're confusing this film with "Schindler's List"!

I've never heard of such a version. (But one time I got really high at a friend's house party, and wandered into the living room where some of the partygoers were watching Hitchcock's "I Confess", and it was a full five minutes before I realized it was in B&W!)

[–] BebeBirdie 14 years ago

Hah, yes, there was the little girl in the red coat in Schindler's List, but I swear I saw the black and white version of THIS movie!

The only reason I know my tv wasn't broken when I watched the b&w version of The Ice Storm was because of Ricci's bright red poncho or cloak or whatever it was.

In any case, the movie loses something in full color. I highly recommend to anyone who liked this film to rewatch it with the color saturation setting on your tv turned all the way down.

I wish there was someone out there who saw the same version as me!

Also, look at the dvd cover- black, white, and red (well, sort of)! That's not just a coincidence- the entire film was like that at one point.

I still like the movie even it's full-color state (actually, the colors are a bit muted- another indication that the idea of black & white wasn't completely overlooked). It was just a little bit better in b&w. The black and white gave the movie a starkness that worked extremely well with the cold, odd human interactions in the story. It makes sense that Ricci's character's cloak was red, as she was the most emotional, in-touch character out of all of them. She was this little bleeding heart kid, and all the other adults were too busy acting cool and uncomfortable.

[–] zarathustra2k1 14 years ago

"The only reason I know my tv wasn't broken when I watched the b&w version of The Ice Storm was because of Ricci's bright red poncho or cloak or whatever it was."

The only reason I think you were high when you dreamt that one up is that you seem to think Ricci would be in two version of the _same_ flick...

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