Tomas Alfredson is the director of the 2017 mystery-thriller “The Snowman.” It is based on the identically named Jo Nesb book from 2007. This film, which stars Michael Fassbender, Rebecca Ferguson, J.K. Simmons, and Val Kilmer, chronicles a string of homicides committed by a serial murderer who leaves distinctive snowmen at each of his crime scenes. Detectives Harry Holes and Katrine Bratt, a newcomer from Bergen, are in charge of pursuing a string of mysterious disappearances involving women that have a connection to one another. The Snowman presents a gripping tale about a sociopath that is deeply packed with suspense at every turn. Here is all the information you need to know about the conclusion of “The Snowman” if you’re interested in seeing where Holes and Bratt’s investigation takes them and what it reveals about the characters. Spoilers follow!
The Snowman Plot Synopsis
In the beginning of the story, a mother named Sarah and her small son are living in a secluded home. The boy’s biological father, Jonas, who is prone to rage and abuse, pays them a visit. Jonas departs right away and gets in his car when Sarah threatens to tell his family about the existence of Jonas’s son. After losing track of him, Sarah and her son try to catch up with him, but the automobile veers out towards a frozen lake when Sarah loses go of the steering wheel. Sarah observes as her son exits the vehicle but chooses not to leave the perilous circumstance on her own. As her kid watches, the ice below breaches, and Sarah and her car fall through the sea.
A few years later, Harry Hole is an inspector in Norway who is struggling with alcoholism. Although he split up with Rakel, he remains close to her son Oleg. Oleg despises Mathias, Rakel’s new boyfriend, and doesn’t know who his biological father is. He does, however, like being around Harry since he treats him like his own son. Harry runs into Katrine Bratt, a transfer recruit from Bergen, at the office. Later, when he asks her to give him a ride, Harry steals the private document Katrine is carrying out of her car. Harry discovers case reports regarding a police officer named Gert Rafto’s investigation into the disappearance of Frederik Aasen’s wife in that file.
In the meantime, Birte Becker, the mother of a young child named Josephine, is reported missing, and Katerine rushes to the call. Birte had vanished in the middle of the night, leaving her daughter home alone. Harry and Josephine engage in conversation after Harry notices a snowman constructed in the front garden. She replies that she did not make the snowman when he inquires about it. Harry initially dismisses the issue, but Katerine is sure that there is a problem. Harry then receives a call from Katerine informing him of other missing person reports the station had received while he and Oleg are attending a concert. This time, Sylvia Ottersen is the subject. Her spouse made the call and asked for Harry in particular.
The following morning, Sylvia Ottersen and her chickens are still alive and well in the barn when Harry and Katerine arrive at the house by car. Sylvia replies to the two’s inquiries about her husband by saying that he has left to pick up her sister from the airport. However, after the two depart, Sylvia contacts her husband and threatens to report him to the police if he tries to get in touch with her once more. Later, while heading back to the station, Harry and Katerine receive another call regarding Sylvia’s abduction. They discover Sylvia’s dead body with her head severed when they get back to the barn. Additionally, her head is discovered in a mill, fixed over a snowman’s body.
Idar Vetlesen, a doctor, is a common denominator across all the victims, and the pair attempts to question him but is unsuccessful. Katerine believes Arve Stp, a friend of Vetlesen’s, is responsible for the killings. In the meantime, Harry makes a trip to Bergen to investigate Rafto. After speaking with Rafto’s former supervisor, Harry learns that Rafto allegedly shot himself in the face in his cabin to commit suicide. Harry, however, believes Rafto’s passing was related to the Snowman Killer after viewing the photos from the crime scene. Katerine gets a call regarding a signal coming from Birte’s phone while Harry is away. Katerine leaves to arrest Vetlesen after tracing the transmission to his residence. Similar to Rafto’s passing, Katerine discovers Vetlesen’s dead body in his garage. At Vetlesen’s home, the police discover the remains of Birte and another victim, and they suspend Katerine for breaking protocol.
Harry follows a strange lead after the most recent murder committed by the Killer by going to see Brite’s husband, Filip. Harry realises there is one man at the centre of it all after finding a devastating connection between all the victims. However, the Killer has already turned his attention to Harry’s ex-girlfriend Rakel and her child.
The Snowman Ending: Who is The Snowman?
The Snowman serial killer serves as the central figure and inspiration for the entire film. The murderer appears to target women who may have made questionable decisions in life, such as having an abortion or having extramarital affairs. He also leaves a snowman with coffee beans for eyes at each crime scene after each murder. The snowman the killer built is an exact duplicate of the one Sarah’s child is holding at the beginning of the movie.
As the narrative develops, Harry and Katerine look into the case and identify unscrupulous businessman Arve Stp as their main suspect. However, after speaking with Brite’s husband, Filip, Harry realises their suspicion is incorrect. Filip reveals to Harry that he saw Mathias Lund-Helgesen, a hormone expert, and learned he was infertile. Harry finds Mathias in a cottage in a rural region after realising Rakel and Olgen are in danger. The identical cottage that Sarah and her child occupied is still there.
Rakel and Olgen are restrained to chairs at the dining table inside the cottage by Mathias. In order to kill Rakel, he has a wire harness trained around her neck. From the beginning of the film, Mathias is Sarah’s child, and after seeing his mother die, he begins to hold Sarah responsible for all of his problems. As a complicated form of retaliation against his own mother, he started killing any woman who he personally thought was a bad mother. Harry tries to convince him that Sarah was also a victim and that Jonas was really the villain throughout the entire ordeal. Harry chases after Mathias as he flees the house. Mathias shoots Harry in the arm as Harry searches for him in the clearing beside the frozen lake. The ice gives way beneath him as he makes his way to Harry, and he drowns to death in the frigid water, just like his mother did.
What Happens to Katerine Bratt?
Katerine is fervently interested in this case and fervently wants to identify the Snowman Killer and prosecute him. She has stronger motivation because she is the daughter of Inspector Gert Rafto. Shortly after discovering Frederick Aasen’s wife’s body, Gert Rafto passed away. During their marriage, she had cheated on Frederick and was expecting a child by a different man. The Snowman had committed the murder of Mrs. Aasen. Rafto was assassinated by The Snowman in his own home because of his involvement in the investigation. The murder of Rafto was disguised as a suicide. But Harry discovers the truth when he looks at a snapshot of a crime scene and spots the coffee beans in the backdrop. Katerine probably reached the same conclusion and began looking at similar incidents.
Following Katerin’s termination by the police, Katerine is no longer able to look into the serial killer. She pursues Arve Stp as he is there at an event despite not letting it deter her. She lures him and gains entry to his bedroom. Katerine waits for Stp in his room after installing covert cameras to gather proof. Katerine eventually runs across the Snowman, but it’s not who she expected. Unprepared, Katerine makes a heroic effort to kill the killer but fails. The following morning, when Harry awakes, Katerine’s car is parked in front of his house with a snowman drawn on the hood. He discovers her dead body in her car.
Do Harry and Rakel Get Back Together?
The friendship between Harry and his ex-girlfriend Rakel and her son Ogel is extremely important to him. He spends the majority of his time with them outside of the office and frequently assumes the role of a father figure for the young child. Despite the fact that the two are no longer dating and Rakel even has a new boyfriend, it is obvious that Harry and Rakel still have affections for one another. Even an occasion where they almost fell asleep together again is shared. Despite the closeness and connection that all have, Harry and Rakel are still merely friends and appear pleased with their current circumstances.
Mathis attempts to put his own anguish onto Oleg when he kidnaps both Oleg and his mother. Because Oleg’s biological father isn’t actively involved in his life, he blames Rakel of being a horrible mother. Similarly, Mathias questions Harry as to why, despite Oleg looking up to him, he isn’t really there in his life. Harry acknowledges that Rakel’s addiction is why their relationship didn’t work out. While this admission makes a passing allusion to his actual alcoholism problems, it also makes mention of the fact that he is dependent on the ongoing rush of adrenaline brought on by his work as a homicide detective. Harry feels unworthy of being a part of Rakel and Ogel’s lives. He’s still selfish enough, though, to be unable to entirely give them up. At the film’s conclusion, Harry is at his office and offers to take on a challenging homicide case. Although the movie doesn’t say definitively whether Harry and Rakel reconcile, it is safe to presume they don’t. Harry is still Harry, and he probably still thinks Rakel deserves better than someone who is similar to him.
