Against The Ice Review: Danish Drama Brings The Engaging True Story Of An Ice Expedition
Cast: Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Joe Cole
Director: Peter Flinth
Streaming Platform: Netflix
Filmyhype.com Ratings: 3.5/5 (three and half star) [yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
Against The Ice a co-production between Denmark and Iceland that arrives on Netflix after being presented out of competition at the 2022 edition of the Berlinale, we go back to the times of explorations, of journeys with an uncertain outcome, of the adventurous climate in territories not entirely known. We return to the Arctic area, at the beginning of the twentieth century, with a true story linked to the Greenlandic question. Very dear to the protagonist Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, who is also a producer and screenwriter here.
His wife, the actress and singer Nukâka, is from Greenland, and with this film he pays homage to a land and a culture to which he is very attached, drawing inspiration from the real story of two men who went to those (at the time) desolate lands to reaffirm the link between the island and the Kingdom of Denmark, which still continues in a peaceful way: Greenland is officially Danish territory, but with abundant doses of autonomy, so much so that since 2009 Greenland is the.
Against the Ice Review: The Story
Against the Ice is set in 1910, at the time of the great polar expeditions: Greenland is a Danish colony, but there is a dispute with the United States about a slice of territory that, according to the Americans, would be an island apart. and therefore free to colonize separately. A previous naval mission, between 1906 and 1908, had an indeterminate outcome, as the body of only one of the three men was found who had advanced into the heart of Greenland, and it is not known what conclusions they had reached regarding the litigation with the USA.
A second expedition then begins, led by veteran Ejnar Mikkelsen (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), who decides not to put the entire crew at risk and asks that only one person volunteers to accompany him. To accept the proposal is the Icelandic mechanic Iver P. Iversen (Joe Cole), despite the lack of experience, and the two set off with their sleds in search of clues in the ice. Mikkelsen has estimated that it will take a few months to get there and back, but the climate, fauna and other factors could compromise everything, and the Danish government, in the person of Minister Neergaard (Charles Dance), does not necessarily have to to heart the fate of those who left aboard the Alabama.
Against The Ice Review and Analysis
The direction was entrusted to Peter Flinth, a veteran of the Scandinavian small screen (he has episodes of the adventures of Kurt Wallander and Annika Bengtzon, two of the most popular characters in Nordic detective literature) who also signed the adaptation of the cycle of Arn, a well-known series of novels set at the time of the crusades. We go from sands to ice, and from great battles to a smaller story (the bulk of the minutes is dedicated exclusively to the main duo), but with the same epic inspiration, increased by the use of real snow-covered locations, between Greenland and Iceland, with a not indifferent visual impact in times of climate change. It is a sincere and heartfelt tribute to a more peaceful age.
It is an operation with an international flavor, as can be seen from the use of the English language and some non-Nordic actors (Flinth says he chose Cole because he, like Iversen, did not know Greenland), but the Scandinavian spirit is also perceived. , particularly in the painful performance of Coster-Waldau, who dominates the screen with a stoicism light years away from the arrogance of his best-known characters. Stripped of every fragment of heroic personality, he becomes the real avatar of the public, struggling with something familiar (in our case, an adventure with a classic flavor in a hostile environment) but at the same time able to be amazed by the vastness of that land candid and pristine, whose visual and emotional impact remains powerful even in a “reduced” format on Netflix.
The narrative of the movie is linear, trying to be raw, reasonable, not out of the world, taking us to explore the realistic life of the characters. mixed with psychological idealism and the cold-blooded torture of dog lovers mixed with the characters’ knots But after that, the second half became stuttered with hallucinations. The thrills that were supposed to come out to be exciting in the later days have turned out to be lacking in the emotion that invites them to join. Whether it’s the tone of the narrative that’s rather clunky and the drama through the few main characters on the ice that the movie should have made it look more. but because it is a movie based on a true story in history So it became dull. The ending was hardly difficult to guess. Finishing the successful formula of this type of movie, admit that the movie is not bad. It’s just that nothing is impressive after half the story. no power It’s tedious and wastes a lot of time exploring the lives of characters on missions that aren’t as important as exploring the territories the movies are trying to sell. But on the inside, it really isn’t like that.
Against The Ice Review: The Last Words
Against The Ice highlighting how Danish drama brings the engaging true story of an ice expedition to Netflix, with a great Nikolaj Coster-Waldau in the lead role. The story is not new but defiantly a must watched survival drama that engages you till end. The environments contribute to the eerie charm of adventure.
