Honestly? It looked like Mads Mikkelsen had it all figured out until that darn rescue helicopter showed up. Overgård (Mikkelsen) was downed in the Arctic a week ago, maybe? Two weeks ago? Last night? Hard to say, exactly. What we know is his plane is ruined; his partner is dead, and -despite the big “SOS” carved into the ice- he’s making a pretty good go of it on his own without fire.
We know his accident didn’t “just happen.” Overgård has been overguarded on the ice long enough to make us believe he could live in this frozen desert indefinitely: whatever food or fire the plane had is long since gone. But his cooler full of caught fish, his sheltered bed, and his many-layered outfit suggests he knows how to survive alone in this world. His watch alarm tells him when it’s time to check the fish traps, signal potential rescue vehicles, and go to bed. This must be the summer when there’s nothing but sunlight; perhaps in the winter, his life resources are in greater jeopardy, but for now, he’s got food, water, and shelter. What more do you need?
The first thirty minutes of this film are wordless. I always appreciate a dialogue-free film. We know where his head is at, and there’s nobody to talk to, anyway. It doesn’t matter what language the film is in when there’s nothing a character need say. Of course, the solo routine cannot be a full film, now, can it? sigh A helicopter shows up, crashes itself (when did the Bermuda Triangle migrate?), and instead of a three act play with Mads Mikkelsen, there’s now a three act play with Mads Mikkelsen and the living corpse of Maria Thelma Smáradóttir. What nationality is this imdb described “Young Woman?” It doesn’t matter; she’s little more than paralyzed zombie and will remain that way for the remainder of the film.
I’m not kidding on that last point. “Young Woman” doesn’t move by herself, ever, and is lucid for, perhaps, 20% of her scenes, which -even if these two could speak the same language- doesn’t exactly make for My Dinner with Andre, dig? This is a survival film; we get that. The plot of Arctic followed so closely that of the 2018 Chinese film Till the End of the World that I had to look up if it were a remake. Arctic claims no. It is possible that there just isn’t a whole helluva lot to do with a character stuck on a giant ice floe, so the plot points are similar.
While the day planner and diary associated with characters from such films is a little thin, there is always appeal within the survivor genre – what would you do if you were Mads Mikkelsen? :shudder: While Arctic remained constantly compelling from a survival POV, it bogged down in the part where “Young Woman” added nothing but burden to the expedition. I don’t think Mads sells desperation or resignation nearly as well as he thinks he does, which also made for a less-than-perfect exploration of the unconquered human spirit. On the whole, however, I’d call this effort above average. But somebody seriously has to start looking into how all these planes are being downed without rescue relief on their heels. Does “black box” mean nothing to you guys at all? How about GPS?
My puddle jumper had quite a fall
But that isn’t the worst thing, y’all
Adding to fears
Get ready for years
With Wilson, my spouse volleyball
Director: Joe Penna
Writer: Joe Penna, Ryan Morrison
Genre: Ice, ice, baby
Type of being most likely to enjoy this film: Survivors, especially those attached to the outrageously dependent
Type of being least likely to enjoy this film: The anxious
