Thin Ice

Thin Ice‘s troubled production history – the film was famously taken away from director Jill Sprecher and re-edited following its Sundance premiere – can’t quite dampen what is, for the most part, an entertaining little comedy/thriller, as Sprecher and cowriter Karen Sprecher offer up a briskly-paced caper that’s been populated with a host of intriguing figures. The expectedly convoluted storyline follows struggling insurance agent Mickey Prohaska (Greg Kinnear) as he devises a scheme to steal a valuable violin from a clueless retiree (Alan Arkin’s Gorvy Hauer), with problems ensuing as Mickey’s efforts are complicated by a wide variety of outside forces – including the ongoing meddling of a dimwitted repairman named Randy (Billy Crudup). Thin Ice unfolds at a leisurely pace that never becomes as off-putting as one might’ve feared, as Sprecher does a solid job of establishing the Midwestern locale and its oddball inhabitants – with Kinnear’s typically strong work as the movie’s beleaguered central character matched by a strong supporting cast that includes, among others, Bob Balaban, Lea Thompson, and David Harbour. (It’s clear virtually from the moment he first appears, however, that Crudup stands as the movie’s M.V.P., as the actor delivers a scene-stealing performance that remains a consistent highlight within the proceedings.) And although the film remains vaguely watchable for the duration of its short running time, Thin Ice doesn’t wholeheartedly grab the viewer’s interest until it enters its revelation-heavy third act – with the surprising nature of the final stretch ultimately compensating for the otherwise familiar, deliberate atmosphere.

**1/2 out of ****