Movie Summary of North Face by Michael The Moviegoer.
NORTH FACE = ****
“Extreme Adventure”
“North Face”, from German writer/director Philipp Stolzl, is the best mainstream adventure film to come out of Germany since Wolfgang Petersen’s “Das Boot” in 1981. It also joins “K2” and “Touching The Void” as one of the best films about mountain climbing ever made.
The film is based on the true story of a 1936 attempt by two German climbers to be the first to reach the summit of the notorious Swiss mountain The Eiger.
Set against the backdrop of World War II, the climbers, Toni Kurz and Andi Hinterstoisser are also relectuant soldiers in Hitler’s new army. Mountain climbing is what they live and breathe. So, after some hesitation, they set out to climb the north face of the mountain, dubbed as the “Murder Wall”.
But what goes up must come down. It is in this film’s second half, when they are on their way back down the mountain, that things start to go really wrong for them.
Stylistically, “North Face” is a throwback to old-fashioned epic film making of the kind once made by people like David Lean. It is a sweeping adventure epic with a surprising romantic twist. Luise, a photo-journalist on the scene, is in love with Toni. Her passion is both heroic and heartbreaking.
With stunning cinematography, real locations, amazing stunt work, and a cast of actors that seem fearless and ready to die for these roles, “North Face” is a film that will leave you breathless.
DVD Double Feature: A plane crash in the Andes Mountains leaves a Chilean rugby team stranded for 72 days. The movie of this true story is Frank Marshall’s excellent 1993 film “Alive”. In “North Face”, the mountain climbers willingly put their lives in danger. But for the passengers on this plane, they were given no such choice. To survive, they must test the very limits of human courage and endurance.
Michael The Moviegoer
