Second in Krzysztof Kieslowski's Three Colors trilogy (following Blue and preceding Red), this film tells the story of a man down on his luck in extraordinarily painful ways. Unlike Blue, it's more of a black comedy -- though the film's style does not treat it as such -- than a drama. This is both to its credit and to its detriment. It's clever and layered with irony, but it also has less to do with reality. White is, in essence, an exploration of character and irony, framed by an unconvincing story. The cinematography, while it's still fun to pick out the use of color and symbolism, is not as visually dynamic as it was in Blue.

So unlike the other two in the trilogy, I'm not convinced there's the depth of thought and feeling that there appears to be. I came away with less to think about. On the other hand, the themes that run through the trilogy -- among them how large a role freakish chance plays in shaping our lives -- are certainly present and incarnated in a unique and often amusing way. And there's no question that the trilogy's study of life would be incomplete without this particular facet.