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Kate Beckinsale (The Aviator, the Underworld series) plays Carrie Stetko. Her overall appearance, though quite a bit taller than she appears on the page, is not completely out of line with how she looks in the comic book. The big difference here is in the personality. Stetko in the comic book is tough as nails with a crassness to her demeanor that keeps up a tough exterior in the harsh nearly all-male environment of the science stations in the Arctic. Here she's still extremely tough, but her vulnerable side is quite a bit more visible. The good news is that Beckinsale still manages to maintain a tough professionalism in her portrayal of Stetko that actually feels a lot more authentic to actual policewomen. The reason why this works so well is that the culture of the Antarctic is seen in the movie as being much more co-ed. Regardless of whether or not this is authentic, it certainly feels a lot more authentic than things appear in the comic book because the world outside the murders is much more firmly established onscreen than it is on the page. Supporting characters have been shifted around, but the important thing is that the charming doctor who Carrie is friends with takes on a rather significant role and he's played with remarkable charm by Tom Skerritt.

While it maintains many of the same plot points and overall pacing of the comic book, the film adds a few interesting twists the make for a far more compelling story. The film's story (written by no fewer than four credited people) twists the original premise of murder involving gold deposits found in the Antarctic into a murder involving diamonds on a crashed Russian plane from the Cold War. Everything else is more or less intact, with all kinds of clever bits thrown in. The most appealing scene added to the film has to be the exploration of the crashed Russian plane from the beginning of the film. The plane has been preserved in an icy cavern. As Stetko and two others explore the plane, they find themselves trapped there in an avalanche, entombed with the dead crew trying to find a way out. It's a pretty compelling scene and it's nowhere in the comic book.

Also, there's a little scene that establishes some cultural background and it's never fully explained for people who might not be familiar. At one point, a woman in a lab is pulling out a core sample of ice. She says to a student, "let's see how long it'll be before they're surfing in Kansas." She's referring to the atmospheric record in ancient, untouched ice. Later on, people on the base are drinking liquor chilled with some of those ancient ice specimens. It's probably not all that realistic, but it is cute. The film is filled with all kinds of little touches like that that establish a solid world outside the murders.

The plot does lag a bit in places. Somewhere around the second physical combat along a lifeline between buildings at the end of the film, it becomes apparent that the flow of events isn't nearly precise as it had been in the comic book. The rest of the film is put together so competently that it hardly seems to matter.

The Verdict

At its heart, Whiteout is a murder/mystery with a gimmicky setting. It's Mickey Spillane meets Jack London. It may not be terribly deep, but it's got a nice pop feel to it that would theoretically work in almost any format. The problem with the comic book is that the author never bothers to pump in enough of the unique feel of the setting to make it feel like anything other than a murder in a small town. The artwork does little to improve the situation, as it lacks the kind of impact that could turn an uninspired story into something better. The film is a far better handling of the premise. Though far from flawless (particularly with respect to some of the pacing) the film has a profoundly better visual appeal. It may not have been filmed in the Antarctic and the culture of the science outposts down there may not be terribly authentic, but the background feel of the film goes a long way toward delivering on the potential of a murder/mystery in the harshest possible environment on the surface of the earth.

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