'Snow Falls' is the first feature length directorial debut from director Colton Tran. Tran is someone who's experience behind the camera mainly consist of short films and an extensive back catalogue of music videos, something that is rather noticeable when watching this movie. From the constant lack of focus to the insistence on framing his shots from a low angle, at times makes 'Snow Falls' an unenjoyable watch. And whilst Trans shows potential with his moments of creativity, his overall vision somewhat lacks substance. That being said, I have certainly witness far worse directorial debuts.
Considering the movie consists of mostly unknown actors without any prior credits to their names, I was quite impressed with their collective performances. I will say though, that their limited experience does show in moments that require them to deliver something more substantial than what I can only imagine is them playing a more scripted version of themselves. One of the more stand out performances comes from Victoria Moroles who plays Em. As an actor she is given the most demanding performance of the group, something I feel she more than delivered on.
As for the plot itself, 'Snow Falls' centers around five teens staying in an isolated cabin get trapped by a heavy snow storm and as the cold sets in, so does the hallucinations and delirium. Unfortunately, what starts out as a compelling premise that injects a few engaging ideas along the way, soon becomes rather generic and formulaic, leaning heavily on lazy jump scares to keep momentum flowing. As someone who enjoys isolation movies that deal with human trauma, its disappointing to watch something like 'Snow Falls', a movie that showcases so much potential in its narrative only to get lost in its execution and concluding third act.
I know I've given this movie a hard time from a critical standpoint, however there are worse movies out there that you could be spending your time watching over the holiday season. 'Snow Falls' does implement some interesting ideas that kept my engagement for the most part, and I believe given a stronger production and writing team behind it, it could have been something quite unique. Unfortunately as it stands, its concept feels wasted in its rather unsatisfying execution.
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