Fantastic Characters and Writing, NOT an Action Flick

Rating: 10/10 (3 July 2018)

Ok real talk, anybody giving this movie anything under a 5 is absolutely tripping balls, the kind of person who only watches Fast and Furious and Triple X, and thinks that movies like The Purge and 50 Shades of Grey are classics and standards for storytelling. How can this movie be under average, even when judged purely by "was I entertained or not?" Movies like The Room are rated 3-4, and yet this high quality film is getting 1-3 stars. WTF.
As for my 10/10, I understand that raises skepticism, but what it comes down to for me, like all of you, is whether I was highly entertained or not, and for me to be entertained I need great dialogue and great characters. And this movie has fantastic characters and fantastic dialogues. And every moment throughout this movie I was captivated and wanted to know what was going to happen next. AND, it is NOT predictable. This movie navigates the complex space of 8+ characters whose fates have overlapped in a small outpost during a blizzard, and as the story unfolds so do, in parallel, the complex personalities and relationships these characters have with each other. For some pasts are intertwined, for others the future, and for everyone the present. Not one of these characters is good or bad, they are just people with their own motives, life experiences and understandings.
I think that those people saying that there are strong political undertones in this movie, they are just projecting and it's something they've carried with themselves into this viewing experience. I did not even think there was anything like that until I read some reviews on here. All I saw a story told in a snapshot of time.
Highly recommend this movie -- reserve an evening, put your phones and distractions away, turn the lights and noises off, and hit the play button.