Into the White

I had started the night out planning to watch some iconic war movies that I hadn't seen before, such as Saving Private Ryan or Braveheart (had seen it but its been so long I might as well not have). It was while looking at recommendations for one of these movies that I came across "Into The White." I don't know if it was poor marketing, low budget, or if it simply had no popularity but I had never heard of this movie and was even more astounded when I saw that Rupert Grint starred in it, considering I'm a huge fan of the Harry Potter series and enjoy watching the actors movies.

When I read Grint had a part in it I found my interest piqued and began reading up on the plot line, which instantly sold me. I always love a movie about a group of strangers banding together to survive brutal elements. Add in that the strangers are WWII pilots on opposite sides of the war all stuck together in a small shack and I was immediately hooked. I quickly found the movie and settled down to enjoy the hour and something odd movie. I'll admit it started off slow and I almost turned it off when I found the characters to only speak German for a good 10 minutes or so, with no subtitles, but thanks to some other reviewers I learned that the film would eventually break into English.

I'm extremely happy I persevered to watch this amazing film. Granted it wasn't the greatest thing I've seen in the world nor is it as tense and emotional as you would expect from reading the plot but its still a very solid movie. The environment is truly beautiful and terrifying at the same time. At times you could feel the harsh reality that surrounded the characters and it made me quiver at the thought of it. The cast did an exceptional job bringing their characters life, even Rupert who I thought I could never see outside the role of Ronald Weasely did a fantastic job portraying a somewhat loud mouthed but loyal gunner(a token to his acting ability). As the film moved along I felt myself loving and pushing for the characters more and more and felt elated when they were happy or tense when they were tense basically I was drawn in so well I ended up reflecting their emotions.

I have to say the best performance by far, in my opinion, was by Florian Lukas who played Horst Schopis or basically the German leader in the shack. I felt his character was the center of the group throughout most of the film providing a calm and reasonable head when tense situations arose. Of course his character might of been too nice and kind to be realistic or maybe he was just smart enough to know that their was a time and place for arguing and a time for working together. I also felt the British acted a little too recklessly, arrogant and all together unintelligent at certain points that would make others keep their mouths shut ( those who watch the movie we'll see what I mean). Other then that though I have no complaints whatsoever about this film. The script was good by any standards, the scenery and directing was pretty top notch and the cast was brilliant you could easily feel the sense of bonding they began to share as characters and, I imagine, in the real world.

All in all I would definitely recommend this movie to anyone who doesn't mind sitting down and enjoying a good movie, pure and simple. Not a bunch of action, nothing too emotional or high strung just a feel good movie that promotes friendship, togetherness and coming to respect and care for others. I'd rate "Into the White" a solid 7 out of 10.

"Into the White" is similar to an old Frank Sinatra film "None But the Brave". Both are set during WWII and both are about a small isolated group of soldiers from both sides MUST work together to survive. In the case of "None But the Brave", it was a fictional story about American and Japanese soldiers. Here with "Into the White", it's about two groups of fliers--one German and the other British. However, instead of taking place in the nice, warm Pacific, this film is set in the frozen wastes of Norway. When both planes are shot down, five airmen all converge on a hut--and there just isn't enough food and fuel to keep them alive unless they can figure out something.

So, is this film worth seeing? For a guy like me who has taught history AND loves WWII airplane films, of course--I am the perfect audience. However, for the rest, it might be a tougher sell. But, if you let yourself watch the film and don't give up on it quickly because there isn't much action, I do think you'll appreciate and enjoy the film. Plus, it's a nice opportunity to see Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley from the Harry Potter films) in a VERY different role. All around, lovely acting, direction as well as a nice respect for real history. Based on what I've read, aside from inexplicably changing the names of the British fliers, it's a highly accurate representation of what really occurred--believe it or not!

In World War II, the German pilots Lieutenant Horst Schopis (Florian Lukas), Josef Schwartz (David Kross) and Wolfgang Strunk (Stig Henrik Hoff) crash their airplane in the wilderness of Norway after shooting down a British airplane.

They walk through a snow storm until they reach shelter in an abandoned hunter cabin. Soon the British pilot Captain Charles P. Davenport (Lachlan Nieboer) and the gunner Robert Smith (Rupert Grint) arrive in the cabin and they become prisoners of the German pilots. However, after the initial friction between the enemies, they realize that they should team-up to survive in the wilderness in the beginning of an improbable friendship.

"Into the White" is based on the true story of German and British pilots that crash in the mountains of Norway in the winter and in order to survive, they conclude that they need to work together. In the end, we are all equals and the enemies become friends. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Entre Inimigos" ("Among Enemies")

This is inspired by a true story.

On 27 April 1940, a German plane shoots down a British plane in the mountains during a brutal Norwegian blizzard. The German plane crashes for some reason that is unknown. The Germans find a cabin to take shelter in until they can move out. The Officer and Airman from the British plane also survived their crash and find the same cabin. The Germans capture the British. After a while it is decided that the only way to survive the severe weather is to forget the Rules of War and find a way for all to get out of this alive. Can it be done?

I am not familiar with any of the actors but they all performed exceedingly well. We are told that the names of the Germans are what you hear in the movie. For some unknown reason, the names of the British were changed.

The movie opens with the crashed German plane on the ground. We didn't see the battle or the crash landing - so much for any action we might have seen. We didn't see the British plane at all. In the cabin tensions between the German and British soldiers are high, but should have been higher and with more grit. There are political stances as to be expected, raggings, insults, some ill advised jokes and once all that is out of their systems the enemies settle down to a somewhat more civilized behavior. They realize they aren't going anywhere and decide to make the best of a bad situation.

They had no food and the cupboards only held a small bag of oats. Later on the cabin reveals a secret.

The snappy/critical dialogues, suspicious eyes, guns pointed, a line on the floor as a border between the Germans, and British all help to keep the movie from dragging. Two only matches flamed out and British Captain Davenport (Lachian Nieboer) had a lighter to light the stove within. That was lucky.

Yes, it is slow in places, but keep in mind there is a war going on and each side would be okay with killing the other side in a New York Minute. The British Captain Davenport will remind some of Hugh Grant as they look and act alike, almost.

At the end of the movie we are told what happened to each of the soldiers. (7/10)

Violence: Yes. Sex: No. Nudity: No. Language: Yes.

Although it does not really qualify as war film, 'Into the White' ranges among the best WW2 films I have seen. The makers as well as the actors deserve praise for getting the most out of a fascinating story: The film is beautifully shot, the soundtrack fits perfectly and the characters are convincing. Indeed, great care must have been taken when choosing the actors, for they not only have the correct origin (except for Strunk, though this will probably go undetected by non-native speakers) but also look like people did back then.

All in all it might not be an overly thought-provoking film, but nonetheless it is very watchable - highly recommendable.