The Ice Harvest

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The Ice Harvest ★★½ 2005 (R)

It's Christmas Eve in Wichita, and mob lawyer Charlie (Cusack) still has a pretty long todo list. But things got complicated when he and his partner Vic (Thornton) skimmed $2.2 million from crime lord Bill Guerrard (Quaid). Now, in the midst of an ice storm, Charlie has to dodge Bill's hit man Roy (Starr), withstand the dangerous charms of topless bar manager/femme fatale Renata (Nielson), baby-sit his drunken brother-in-law Pete (a hilariously over-the-top Platt), and finish his shopping. A lovely bit of screwball comedic film noir, but with a director like Ramis, things should have been funnier. 88m/C DVD . US John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, Connie Nielsen, Randy Quaid, Oliver Platt; D: Harold Ramis; W: Richard Russo, Robert Benton; C: Alar Kivilo; M: David Kitay.