Two employees of a Kansas gangster decide to lift $2 million from their boss and blow town -- on Christmas Eve, of all inconspicuous days -- but their plans derail typically: booze, women, the odd bit of bad weather and double-cross. Harold Ramis aims for black comedy, a bit of ha-ha Xmas noir, but everything about Ice Harvest seems so been-there, done-that - whether it's the cheesy holiday decorations at the low-rent strip club, the dinner-from-hell at the in-laws', or the trouble disposing of dead bodies. Even the film's stars simply unpack their familiar roles: John Cusack (befuddled nice guy), Billy Bob Thornton (thinly veiled psychopath), Oliver Platt (lovable loser) and Randy Quaid (dangerous dirtbag). There's few laughs here, especially as the film grows increasingly violent. Ho, ho, ho. (AH) 
THE ICE HARVEST
