North Face

"One has lived if one has loved." Luise

In 1936, Nazi Germany was eager to propagandize the race for "the last remaining problem in the Alps," scaling the face of the treacherous Eiger. Enter into the race dutiful Germans Toni (Benno Furmann) and Andi (Florian Lukas); the race is on with two Austrians as competitors in a climbing romance called North Face. Touching the Void (2004) was more harrowing and less boy-girl romantic, but this emphasis on non-climbing romance I can love or hate depending on how demanding I am at the moment about the purity of the climb.

The political subtext is apparent—as Germany is about to annex Austria and the Olympics are imminent, a win on the Eiger would be good for the Nazis. Much as this is a suspenseful adventure of love for climbing, based on a true story, it is also a love story, connecting climber Toni and Luise (Johanna Wolkolek), a photographer and childhood friend of both mountaineers. It is she who watches the adventurers throughout the suspenseful climb and return, kissing Toni only once.

That minimalism pervades the film as no kiss goes any further and no rappel is overly dramatized—they are what they are set against the majestic Alps and the cruel Swiss massif. (That the Eiger "ogre" waits to devour anyone who tries the North Face may be fanciful; nonetheless what happens to the best of climbers would give even the sternest skeptic reason to pause about that legend). The editing is first-rate: Never for a moment did I think it is a movie made not on location and with actors because the shots are believable and wild.

Parallel cutting to the comfortable lodge with waiting reporters, dignitaries, and telescope gawkers serves as a convenient counterpoint to the harrowing climb. At times, I wanted to throttle the insouciant ones who seemed oblivious to the life and death struggle on the mountain.

The most beautiful day I ever spent hiking was down the Jungfrau with the Eiger seemingly all around. My Facebook portrait is of me standing at a crest with that most dangerous Alpine rock face as background. I loved that day, that mountain, and this film.

Interesting, gripping, docu-drama about a 1936 German expedition in its attempt to be the first to successfully climb the North Face of the Eiger. Moving story, well told.

Solid performances all round.

I wasn't familiar with the story behind Nordwand which is absolutely essential to get the most out of this masterpiece. I also watched, like I always do, the movie in it's original language, German, with English subtitles. Even though I don't speak German I could tell the cast was absolutely stunning in their performance, perfectly casted and directed.

Due to the Swedish distributor Atlantic Films commercial need to picture Nordwand (a.k.a North Face) as a WWII-movie the Blu-ray cover is covered in Nazi-symbols and references to Der Führer. I thankfully found very little of this in the movie. Instead the director choose to invest the first third of the movie into the characters which he did great. Then the story moved to the Eiger and the Nordwand.

Watching Andi and Toni climb in their 1936-gear is breathtaking. I was totally on the edge of my seat most of the time, and remember, I didn't know how the story would end. The experience was amazing and I really connected with the actors and their story.

It's now been 12 hours since I finished watching Nordwand and I have been thinking about it ever since. Nordwand is a heartwarming story unlike everything that could ever come out of Hollywood. It's up there with another German masterpiece; Das Boot. A perfect 10 and a Must See!

This is one of the best mountaineering films I have ever seen. It is one of the great mountaineering stories in the history of climbing. If you have a chance to see it, go the extra mile to get there. I was fortunate enough to see it at UC Irvine, Sneak Previews with Michael Berlin. I have been climbing most of my long life and have been watching climbing films for 40 years, this one really gives a sense of what it is really like in full conditions. This movie opens in the USA in January in New York and in Feb in the Los Angeles area. I really hope that people will support this film and that it gets to travel to other more remote parts of the country. Made in Germany in 2008, and widely supported there, I was pleasantly surprised by the non Hollywood style. It is almost like it was filmed in 1936 when the actual event transpired. Enjoy and support!

It's 1936. The Eiger North Face is last unconquered challenge in the Alps. The Nazi propaganda machine wants it defeated by German climbers before the upcoming Olympics. Luise Fellner is a secretary working in a Berlin newspaper. She tells her bosses that she knows men who could do the climb. She, Andi Hinterstoisser and Toni Kurz are childhood friends. Hinterstoisser is eager to try anything. Kurz is more level-headed and refuses to do the climb. Luise goes along with her boss Henry Arau anyways to cover two Austrians making the ascend. Kurz relents and the two friends make the attempt.

The relationship between Hinterstoisser and Kurz is great. The cynical sexist reporters are great. The romantic element isn't quite as compelling. I almost wish that part gets less attention after the climb starts although it's compelling to see the juxtaposition between the comfortable resort and the harsh climb. The climb up is harrowing. It treats mountain climbing seriously where rock falls causes real injuries. This doesn't feel fake except for the girlfriend.