The Way Back
Edifying war drama focuses on the survival of man against the regime, “The Way Back” by Peter Weir breath for its magnificent scenery and the devotion of its performers. Although far too long, the journey worth the trip.
The Second World War in full swing. Janusz (Jim Sturgess), Mr. Smith (Ed Harris), Valka (Colin Farrell) and some other prisoners managed to escape from a Russian prison camp. In Siberia they look a little mercy and tranquility, walking over 4,000 miles to arrive in India.
Headwinds meet the new feature film by Peter Weir, who had not been offered since its overrated “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” in 2003. On a simple human level, this adaptation of the book “The Long Walk: The True Story of a Trek to Freedom” by Slavomir Rawicz of its impressive anti-war message that human beings are prepared for anything to survive. Regardless of the elements and adversity, he stands and will eventually triumph. Cons by political notions are much less developed, being limited to just a battle between good and evil, the latter personified by communism will eventually fall …
This game weighs Manichean fortunately not too much on the story. Commencing a little in the way of “The Great Escape” with these prisoners (echo “Lord of the Flies”) in developing their own social class, the book carries the wild quickly when conditions get rough: the icy snow and the hellish desert, depriving men of our poor food and water. Thoroughly exploit its beautiful landscapes, the director who is also needs to films as different as “The Truman Show” and “Dead Poets Society” develops its proper moral dilemmas. This does not stretch all (some episodes are unnecessary, as the addition of an orphan honestly camped by Saoirse Rona), especially in the last section, almost as endless as in “Alive”.
The prior distribution eclectic works pretty well, all thanks to the addition of excellent actors with little or unknown. As for stars Jim Sturgess known to forget his leading man’s face, while the penetrating gaze of Ed Harris promptly impose respect. Only Colin Farrell tends to be uneven, it has recently provided much more convincing performance in “Triage” and “Ondine”.
At once intimate and spectacular, “The Way Back” lets himself look like a lesson in courage. One on exceptional people who prefer to live – or die – that remain free in a cage. A demonstration may be more attractive to watch as feeling, emotion too rarely arriving at the final scene, for example, driven by melodic strings that appear to come from the grandiose “The Thin Red Line”. To look into the company than “Katyn” by Andrzej Wajda, only to understand the climate of the Soviet era.
