SLIFF 2009 Review: THE NORTH FACE

It’s not much of a qualifier, but writer/director Philipp Stolzl’s THE NORTH FACE, NORDWAND in its native German, could very well be the greatest story about mountain climbing put to film.  Full of staggering cinematography, incredible performances, and an epic sense of bravery in the face of tragedy, it is a truly engaging tale of man versus nature that never fails to rise to the heights set forth by its natural antagonist.

The film is based on the true story of Toni Kurz, played by Benno Furmann, and Andreas Hinterstoisser, played by Florian Lukas, two, young German men who always had a knack for climbing things, challenging themselves all along the way.  In the Summer of 1936, as Germany was preparing to host the Olympic games, these two men set out to do something none had ever accomplished.  In July of that year, they set out to climb the north face of the Eiger, the 13,000 foot mountain in the Bernese Alps.  Accompanied by two Austrian climbers, Willy Angerer and Edi Rainer, played by Simon Schwarz and Georg Friedrich, who began the climb as competition for Kurz and Hinterstoisser, the team works through perilous ice and rock attempting to achieve success where none has ever been found before.

This story is broken up by the presence of Luise Fellner, played by Johanna Wokalek, and Henry Arau, played by Ulrich Tukur.  Arau was a newspaper editor covering the glory or tragedy at hand, whichever was to come to pass, and Fellner was his photographer.  Fellner was also childhood friends of Kurz and Hinterstoisser, so, when tragedy appears to be looming, she puts down her camera and turns towards her own sense of bravery.

While the setting up of the story is solid and effectively engaging, the film doesn’t truly kick in until the climbing team sets first foot on the Eiger.  At this point, Stolzl’s direction and Kolja Brandt’s breathtaking cinematography truly begin their own ascent into greatness.  Not only do the climbing scenes of THE NORTH FACE offer powerfully suspenseful moments of real intensity, they do so without the blatant use of cheap special effects.  This is a story about men who knew how to do something incredible, and they did it time and time again in effortless manner.  Stolzl’s task here was to take these effortless skills and transcribe them onto film, doing so with actors and mountain climbing consultants who had to contend with the gear and techniques of the film’s era.  Not only is this done successfully, it is accomplished with very little in the way of noticeable movie magic.

The acting involved is commendable, as well, though, for the most part, the performers on the mountain are covered by whipping snow and bulky clothing.  Furmann and Wokalek are given moments to shine, and they take them.  Tukur, most notable from THE LIVES OF OTHERS, gives a rousing performance, even though his is a fairly thankless role.

The resounding score by Christian Kolonovits must not go unmentioned, either.  Equaling the epic sense of the story and the task at hand in one moment and alluringly simple in the next (his usage of a piton being hammered in for certain notes is a thing of true brilliance), it captivates its audience just as the scenes do.

The true stars in this film, however, are the story, the mountain, and the way the film crew shoots it.  THE NORTH FACE is a beautiful film in so many ways.  Tragic and bold in its story, your breath is taken away in more than a handful of scenes.  Never mind that these were German men in the beginning of the Third Reich.  That aspect is a formality and is barely brushed on.  THE NORTH FACE tells a humanistic story, one whose fascination is derived twofold.  It first grasps your attention wondering if the team is going to be successful.  Then, it becomes a simple matter of survival.  All the while, your attention is hammered into the story, and you cannot let go.  THE NORTH FACE is a thing of beauty, both in story and in its execution.

THE NORTH FACE will screen at Plaza Frontenac on Friday, November 13th at 6:45pm and on Saturday, November 14th at 7:00pm during the 18th Annual Whitaker Saint Louis International Film Festival.