Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

Blistering performances.

Definitely not the worst film from the 90s, but it just seems that the one and primary goal of Tykwer was to fill his effort with as much artsiness and stylish camera-work as possible. Making a cohesive and believable plot was supposedly the last of his intentions. The characters in WS are too dumb and under-developed, delivering some brain-dead lines rarely heard in the dumbest horror flicks (as the one about "maybe it's better to live only 3 years", which was said by a character sitting near the 10-years old girl who had just died). Or another artsy moment of bewitching emptiness, when the blonde stopped on her way to the granny's funeral and started to urinate on the roadside with some grief on her face. Also, all these multiple coincidences in the end didn't make any good to the film.Anyway, the setting is quite beautiful and it lends some charm to this lame story. Hence 2,5/5. At least.

This is one of best german movies ever. If you disagree, you might didn´t understand it! Great story with awesome actors, incredible music and a thrilling atmosphere. It´s the first movie of director Tom Tykwer and it´s still his best!!

Nice audio/visuals and good performances make this a watchable character study that's highly derivative of the more complex stuff by Canadian director Atom Egoyan (particularly THE SWEET HEREAFTER, as noted by many reviewers here). It's all rather contrived and simplistic to be significant intellectually, but it's decent enough adult melodrama to warrant a look.

This is the first I have seen of Tom Tykwer's work. In a word, outstanding. This movie has all the necessary elements for a successful production and ensures a completely entertaining evening. The opening (and what an opening!) sets the mood..... A chilly landscape of deep snow with helicopter shots racing across treetops heavily weighed down with a recent fall.....And the music with its tremulous monotone suggests impending drama. I wait expectantly.....Into the picture comes Rene. At first glance an odd-looking guy who suffers from a kind of amnesia. He knows his name and where he lives but can't remember anything else. That's why he photographs every little incident to jog his memory. Laura who works as a hospital nurse agrees he's a bit weird but is fascinated just the same. You get the feeling he's up to something.Her friend Rebecca, an attractive blond who works as a translator is having trouble with her boy friend Marco. He's so possessive. They congregate in Laura's house where much of the dialogue takes place. Rebecca and Marco are continually arguing, falling in and out of love. These scenes are exceptional.In some strange coincidence these four characters are in one way or another involved in the aftermath of a serious accident involving two cars swerving on the slippery highway. In one of the cars a farmer who is taking his horse float to the vet. is knocked unconscious. Later he is unable to convince the police that a second car was involved. So he sets out on a mission to find the other car and the man responsible for the death of his daughter who died in hospital as a result of the accident.Marco the skiing instructor has an eye for the girls and there are some exciting scenes on the ski slopes as they engage the treacherous terrain. It's a matter of "Hold tight!" as the skiers disappear into the foggy atmosphere.The snow bound landscape is for me a most unusual setting for the drama and I enjoyed every exciting minute. The ending left me almost open-mouthed! And I'm not telling!