Hey, folks. Capone in Chicago here, with a film that is making is way into art houses around America this week (maybe even taking up one whole screen at a multiplex near you). Enjoy…
NORTH FACE
Wow, just wow! I have no clue how director Philipp Stolzl made this utterly authentic and death-defying story about a group of men who, in 1936, attempted to scale the Eiger-- the treacherous north face of the Swiss Alps, at the behest of the Nazi Party, which was still looking for some German heroes to push forward as the new face of the German people. Based on a true story, NORTH FACE focuses on three childhood friends--two men and a woman--who wind up at the base of the mountain together by chance. The men are there to climb and the woman is there to cover the story for a Berlin newspaper. Toni Kurz and Andi Hinterstoisser (played by Benno Furmann and Florian Lukas) were best friends in the military but drop out to make this dangerous journey. Johanna Wokalek plays Luise, who Kurz clearly has a lingering crush on.
Once the premise is established, the bulk of the two-hour NORTH FACE is all about the climb, undertaken by our two Nazi heroes and a small group of other men from other European nations, none of whom have quite the experience that Toni and Andi have. One of my favorite characters is that of Luise's mildly lecherous boss (Ulrich Tukur, who can also be seen in THE WHITE RIBBON) who also has a gift for knowing exactly what will sell papers and sell the National Socialist Party on these men as heroes. He believes that nothing short of either an outright victory or a complete tragedy will make the government consider this operation a success.
But the film's real success comes with the climbing sequences which made me dizzy from the height, and wince from the pain of twisted limbs, scraped skin, frostbite, and a dozen other maladies these climbed suffered through on their trek. The unpredictable weather, unstable snow banks (avalanches were a given), and the overall fatigue of the climbers was a recipe for disaster, and NORTH FACE captures every harrowing, bone-chilling moment, sparing us no graphic detail.
This is not an easy film to shake, especially if you have a fear of the cold or the completely reasonable fear of dying on a rocky Alpine mountain. This movie feel dangerous just to watch, and I never stopped being awe-struck by the complete and utter reality of every scene, complete with ancient equipment, ill-suited clothing, and no clear means of rescue should something go wrong on the climb. A film that combines a critical commentary about the price of the Nazi propaganda machine with jaw-dropping scenery and stunts, NORTH FACE is well worth seeking out.
-- Capone
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