Far North

In an indefinite time somewhere in the Arctic with Soviet soldiers, the nomads Saiva (Michelle Yeoh) and her stepdaughter Anja (Michelle Krusiec) are permanently moving seeking a safe place in the arctic tundra. They camp in a remote area far north where Saiva believes they will be safe and survive fishing and hunting reindeer and small animals. Their lives change when Saiva finds Loki (Sean Bean), a frozen stranger that is dying in the ice. Saiva brings him to their tent and recalls when she met her boyfriend and his tribe; how soviet soldiers have slaughtered them and raped her; and how she rescued Anja and killed the aggressors. When Loki is recovered, he and Anja fall in love with each other, affecting her relationship with Anja.

The independent "Far North" is a disturbing and frightening movie about curse and love. The story is open regarding the location and time, but is an excellent study of solitude and human behavior. The landscapes and locations in Svalbard are wonderfully shot and the performances are top notch. The unexpected conclusion is scary. The "Making Of" on the DVD is a must-see. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

FAR NORTH is one of those simple little under-the-radar movies that you never heard about until it turns up in the middle of the night and you gradually become enthralled watching it. With no buzz, publicity, or plot spoilers, I had no idea what to expect when I sat down to watch this, and I was pleasantly surprised by a film that confounded all of my expectations. The film is almost like a fairy tale in its simplicity: a mother-and-daughter team, living alone in the icy Siberian wastes, are joined by a soldier gone A.W.O.L. The film is about what happens next: how the power shifts and inevitable romance affects each character, and three people in such an isolated setting can never really work.

Visually, the film is stunning. The inhospitable climate is a personality all in itself and the harshness of the landscape is captured in stunning detail – no more so than in the shocking opening sequence. There isn't a great deal of dialogue, but what we do get is natural and realistic. Key flashbacks add to the viewer's understanding and the film finishes on a shocking twist. Best of all is the acting: three actors giving excellent, against the grain performances.

Michelle Krusiec is the young unknown, holding her own against two experienced hands. Sean Bean is a gentle and romantic man, giving a more touching performance than we usually see. Michelle Yeoh is the older woman, an outsider struggling to come to terms with the meaning of her life. Out of all three, it's Yeoh who gives the most stunning performance; she's totally cast against type (usually playing a kick-ass kung fu heroine) and she gets her character across wonderfully. What a revelation!

Far North is like a half whispered tale told round a campfire way out in the tundra, a tale that keeps the fire going while freezing your blood. I'm not sure if it's based on some Inuit parable or fable, but it certainly has the aura of such. There's a whole lot of land up there, and most likely centuries of stories just like this one, witnessed only by the wolves and the winter cold, as well as the few hard bitten inhabitants who call it home. Michelle Yeoh is Saiva, an outcast from her tribe after being deemed cursed by her shaman at birth, left to wander the expanse alone. Her only companion is a young girl (Michelle Krusiec) who she rescued from marauding soldiers as a baby, and has raised somewhat as a daughter. The two live an isolated existence, until Saiva finds half dead soldier Loki (Sean Bean) wandering the tundra, and reluctantly takes him in. That's where trouble begins, as he takes a liking to the young girl, a bond is formed, and another is soured and broken. There's a third act shocker that will have your skin crawling, a jarring act of violence, deception and betrayal that leaves us feeling as cold and cast out as Saiva, an existence which probably foretold such horrors years ago when the shaman gazed upon her face. It doesn't quite fit with the lyrical beauty and ambient pace that came before, but it's definitely an unforgettable way to end the story, and a reminder of humans and their capacity for darkness. Roaming caribou, miles of ice, wandering wolves, and the few humans who survive out there, perhaps affected by something deeper, something elemental that lives in the very air. Not a perfect film, but fascinating and quite unlike any other. Oh, and a warning: there are some graphic and suspiciously realistic scenes of animal violence.

This film truly is Far North of anything you've seen before. It caught me by surprise. Had second thoughts before seeing it. Was very happy to have seen it. Unusual story. Interesting. Well made. If there is something typical here its the way the director takes his time to depict the entire situation of the characters. He is not unlike other directors who are not concerned about not showing something every few minutes just to engage, excite or keep his audience. Patience is a virtue I am happy to have and which served me well in viewing this film. Those who are more into usual Hollywood fare (and those who like their films to be easily explained/understood) will probably not like this film. If you want to appreciate this film (and most works of art), you have to keep an open mind. I highly recommend this film.

Something I set to record more on the basis of its setting than anything else, Far North is something of which I'd never heard, nor indeed would have by anything other than chance. Chance was in my favour however, thrusting me and this little production together.

Saiva and Anja are two women, the former the adoptive mother of the latter, living an isolated life away from the community from which they originally came, Saiva alleged at birth by a shaman to be cursed. Their lives are interrupted when a wounded soldier stumbles into their camp, affecting the routine of their days.

The tundra-central setting—the primary motivation for my opting to devote recording space to this film—is the first thing about Far North to attract our attention. The vast whiteness of this unoccupied land is explored beautifully through the usage of wide angle lenses, a sweeping opening shot, and the sole spot of blackness that is the yurt of our protagonist duo. Theirs is a quiet relationship, the intimacy they share communicated through the slightest of gestures rather than expository dialogue. The film is impressively silent, much of its running time featuring no sounds other than the constant bitter wind which pervades the soundtrack. The combination of image and sound in the film is meditative, such beautiful images as the Aurora Borealis, the great snowy mountains, and the rolling hills so covered in impenetrable whiteness that it is hard not to be lost in their banal perfection entirely unforgettable. Largely a three-hander, the film's performances are the tent-poles which support it, the particularly commendable quietness of Michelle Yeoh lending a dignified tragedy to her character. The relationships form the film's centrepiece, the evolution of these over the course of the narrative compelling and unpredictable. Twist is an inaccurate word to apply to a film of this sort, but it stores a number of surprises up its sleeve, the particular paths taken towards its denouement rather unconventional and, often, shocking. It is an emotional film, structured masterfully around these three characters and reinforced fantastically with splendid cinematography. The cold whites and blues of the arctic are contrasted wonderfully with the warm yellows and oranges of Saiva's flashback to times when she was with her community: when she had love, friendship, and hope. It is difficult not to be saddened by the melancholy the film presents, punctuated though it is by moments of silent beauty.

An entrancing spectacle, Far North offers the very best of the fine combination one can craft with cinematography and setting. Expressing itself slowly and almost silently, it is a film that relies on artistic expression rather than speech; on the strength of its performances rather than action. Added to unquestionably by its wonderful score, it is a highpoint of modern independent cinema.