The Snow Walker (2003)

The Age of Commercialism

As Good As It Gets

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

The Snow Walker is as bleak and tragic as they come, attempting to find scant traces of beauty, kinship and compassion amidst a hopeless tale unfolding on the edge of the world. Charlie (Barry Pepper) is an ex WWII pilot who has flown a lot of missions, but none quite like the one he embarks on here. On a remote plane trip in the Arctic, he comes across a nomadic family of Inuits who are in desperate need of help. One among them, a girl named Kanaalaq (Annabella Piugattuk, fantastic), is sick with what appears to be tuberculosis, and will die if not treated soon. Charlie agrees to fly her back to civilization in exchange for a few wares, but during the voyage his plane develops mechanical problems and he is forced to make a crash landing in the middle of the wilderness. Stranded with little food, a sick girl and no hope of rescue, he and Anaalaq are brutalized by the incoming winter, tested beyond the limits of endurance by the harsh terrain around them and pushed to the point of despair. Charlie's old friend (a sincere James Cromwell) sends a cocky bush pilot (Jon Gries) in hopes of locating him, but because Charlie took a detour en route, it's worse than finding a needle in a haystack. There's a mournfully poetic sense to the landscape around them, a dry and unforgiving vista that is shutting down as winter looms on the horizon, indifferent to the two of them, clinging to survival. Charlie is a loner, an outsider, and this situation tests his interpersonal skills as well as his stamina. Anaalaq speaks little to no English, and he not a word of Inuktituk, forcing deeper methods of communication and a trust in each other, warm compassion to ward off the cold anguish threatening their existence. This is not a Hollywood film (except for a random cameo from Michael Bublé, of all people), and as such is never predictable, easy or familiar. It walks it's own road, a road into utter hopelessness. Watch something lighthearted after, your emotions will need the counterweight.

If someone doesn't walk away from seeing this with a greater respect for another culture altogether, they weren't watching this movie. It was intense, with a lot of emotions (and changes of emotions), after they have an airplane crash in the middle of nowhere. Had she not been with him on the journey, it was clear that he wouldn't have survived. The humanity and respect she maintained, along with patience with him, gave an awe inspiring experience on the journey. I can see why it was nominated for so very many awards and received 8 (to this date). It was well done and the music score was amazing. Being a photographer I was also entranced with the phenomenal cinematography in the film.I would certainly encourage you to watch this, if you have any questions about what your own journey may be looking like and what changes you might be seeking and not really knowing it at the time.

I would say without a doubt that this is perhaps the finest Canadian movie I have ever come across. The cast is strong, the scenery beautiful (the movie is set in Canada's Northwest Territories but I believe filmed in northern Manitoba, and makes full use of the exotic bleakness of the Arctic wilderness) and the story both interesting and emotional.Barry Pepper put on a fantastic performance in a demanding role as Charlie Halliday, an Arctic pilot who crashes en route to Yellowknife while taking a young Inuit woman named Kanaalaq (played very sensitively by an Inuit actress named Annabella Piugattuk) suffering from TB to the hospital. Kanallaq speaks little English, and so Pepper does have to carry a big chunk of the story (or at least the dialogue) and he does so very well. The two have to find a way to survive in the middle of nowhere, with an Arctic winter about to set in and little hope for rescue. The movie traces the growing bond between the two as they face this situation together, a bond made more noteworthy by the fact that Charlie seemed to have little use for the Inuit as the movie opened. You see the bond developing, and you suspect there's sadness ahead, as Kanallaq gets progressively sicker as time goes on. Back in Yellowknife, James Cromwell was effective in a limited role as the owner of the company for which Charlie flew, confident at first that he would be found, then he also gradually losing hope as time goes on.Some might feel that the movie sputters a bit at the end, going out with a whimper rather than a bang, but I thought the ending was quite effective. After Kanallaq dies, Charlie continues his trek through the snow, until finally discovering Kanallaq's people, who (in a scene shot from a very long distance) welcome him into their encampment. I have rarely found a movie as emotionally moving as this one. There's a certain similarity to the powerful Andean survival adventure "Alive." This movie is a very different movie, with a feel all its own, but it's every bit as effective.

This is one of those rare English films that is focused on a plot not an agenda. I saw a piece of the film on TV. Then I rented it not expecting much. I was very impressed. I had not seen a real tear jerker in years. This is not the typical Hollywood template. Real time and effort was invested in its creation. The female playing the Eskimo girl is actually an Eskimo girl! Wow. What a concept! I"m serious! She has actually done all of the things she is depicted doing in the movie in their attempts to survive. Remember the classic western where all the indians are white men painted red? And you kept seeing the same actors in movie after movie? The fact that she's a new face and an Eskimo makes it all the more believable. Standard Hollywood fare would have had someone like Julia Roberts or Nicole Kidman on the back lot in a parka eating simulated raw meat. That would not have been convincing or memorable.The extras about the making of the film were outstanding such as the difficulties they encountered in making the film from dodging polar bears to arctic blizzards. Extras, worthwhile or otherwise, are another rarity in English films today hence the rare memorable film.This is one of those unique films you can buy absolutely anyone for a gift and it is appropriate and appreciated.Don't miss this one!