The Snow Walker

I hired 'Wimbledon' but upon opening the case there was the wrong disc. Instead it was this film called 'The Snow Walker'. Had full intentions of taking it straight back to the video store but it was late at night and figured I'd just put it on while I did something else.

I found myself fully engrossed in this film. It was such a nice simple story that's been wonderfully acted. Some of the scenery was nice and what was there was very well shot. Good use of what was available. The music really fit the film well.

Sometimes the films that we have no intention of watching turn out to be nice little surprises.

All too often, people write off movies that come from countries that don't have the Hollywood budgets. The Snow Walker is a Canadian production and every bit as good as anything produced in Hollywood. This is NOT a "Hollywood" film, however, and that's what makes it so great. The movie is made by veterans of the industry (directed by Charles Martin Smith (American Graphiti) and stars Barry Pepper with James Cromwell. It takes place in northern Canada and tells the story of a pilot who crashes is a desolate area of the north along with a young sick Inuit girl who he is trying to get to a hospital to save. Much of the story is about the survival of these two people in the desolate north.

The scenery is amazing and very genuine as the movie was shot in Nunivut, northern Manitoba and B.C. It is based on a story by one of Canada's great authors, Farley Mowat.

This is a definite must to go and see or rent. If you like a great story, this story is for you. If you love movies that are true to the culture they are portraying, this definitely is for you. The Inuit woman (Annabella Piugattuk) who stars in this film is from Nunivut and in real life really does live in a traditional Inuit fashion. This movie is very real to the Inuit way of life.

A very touching movie and one that everyone will enjoy. I completely recommend it for everyone.

My wife and I are educators who spent 9 years in Nunavut and presently work in the NWT. In fact I was the Principal in Igloolik for four years and Anabelle was one of my students. I am very proud of her for the truth she brings to this role in creating a wonderful character . Unlike every other film about the North except Atanarjuat this movie struck my wife and I as "true" It had an accurate depiction of Inuit culture, white arrogance and colliding cultures.

We think Pepper's character was white-washed a bit..... selling cola to Bathurst? Well we know that a lot of bush pilots made their fortune on the Whiskey trade but I guess this would have made the pilot a harder sell for redemption. As for another commentator suggesting he made every survival mistake in the book...he seems about as bright as most new-comers to the Arctic, myself included. If we stay and survive we get smarter in a hurry though.

What we liked is that the characters went beyond stereotypes, Pepper's character went through an amazing learning arc and was treated with respect. This is not a cartoon buffoon though he starts that way. The gentleness and power of Inuit culture is on display but Annabelle is not a cartoon either. Her humanity and sense of humour come through wonderfully.

The struggle for survival is a bit optimistic but hey... We were still able to suspend our disbelief. The land came alive in a way that made us both homesick for Nunavut. Fantastic.....

Pijuyuk, Annabelle.

I just finished watching this film and it was absoloutly gorgeous. The vastness and emptiness of the arctic tundra is so foreign in this day and age of big cities and suburbs, it was just refreshing to watch. Barry Pepper has never been a good actor in my mind, but this film shows his real potential, he made the character of Charlie a believable one, and the change he experiences didn't come off as clichéd like in so many other movies. The young Inuit girl who played Kanalaaq(sp) was so impressive, more so when you learn she can do many of the things her character in the film did!!! She is very beautiful and talented and i can't wait to see where this takes her!

The directing is very good as well. The idea to use as little music as possible adds to the feeling of isolation and barreness of the arctic, and the shots of the sky especially the Northern Lights were gorgeous!!

All in all i loved this film ***/5

A tale of survival, The Snow Walker is the story of a Canadian hot shot pilot who flies a single engine prop plane into the Canadian wilderness near Manitoba on a regular basis. One day, Charlie drops off some drums at a remote area where he meets some Inuit Eskimoes who give him a pair of valuable ivory tusks as trade in order to have him take back a young woman to a hospital, as she is coughing up blood and may have tuberculosis. He reluctantly agrees, and while on the journey, the plane breaks down and they crash land in the middle of nowhere. He jumps up and down, cursing their dilemma, while the Eskimo girl calmly uses a piece of string to catch fish. Her outdoor skills are formidable, and he soon realizes that she is much better then he is in the great outdoors. They walk a long way and eventually he decides it would be better to return to the plane to await a rescue. They set up camp and most of the film shows the two learning to communicate and teaching each other their very uncommon cultures. The scenery is beautiful, and the young actress a natural, which makes The Snow Walker a trip worth taking.