Society of the Snow

Society of the Snow
Starring Enzo Vogrincic, Matias Recalt, Agustin Pardella, Tomas Wolf
Directed by J.A. Bayona

What would you do to stay alive? What are your morals, and how would they play into it? Your religious beliefs? Your sheer will to live? Thankfully many of us will never be tested in this way, but what if we were? Would we have the strength to survive, or would we just give up and let death take us? This was the question posed to a group of travelers in 1972 when their plane crashes on the unforgiving Andes Mountains. With their food dwindling, hope fading, and their friends dying, they resort to unspeakable acts to survive - but more than that, they rely on one another to get through it alive.

In 1972, Uruguayan Air Force flight 571 crashes in the heart of the Andes Mountains. Out of the 45 passengers on board, only 16 manage to survive, and "Society of the Snow" tells their harrowing story and the lengths they go in order to survive.


The Good:
This is one of those films that hit on a truly visceral level. It hits you right in your soul, because this isn't a fictionalized story created for Hollywood - this actually happened. While it's not a documentary, director J.A. Bayona interviewed survivors, the deceased families, and others closely associated with the tragedy to craft his narrative, as well as relying on the novel La Sociedad de la Nieve by Pablo Vierci. It's a long movie - over two and a half hours - but not one single minute is wasted, as you develop a deep connection with the survivors and the victims alike, so much so that they leave an indelible imprint on you after the credits roll. This is their story, this is their journey, this is their tragedy, and this is their survival - and it feels like you're right there with them through it all.

This can only be accomplished by the perfect blend of directing, acting, writing, and cinematography, and "Society of the Snow" delivers in each with perfect precision. Bayona is no stranger to directing real-life tragedies, as he also directed "The Impossible" about the 2004 tsunami that struck Southeast Asia. As with "The Impossible," he doesn't solely rely on the tragedy itself, but the rousing feel of the human spirit to overcome the impossible to survive. The characters are given full stories, their emotions fully felt, and their plight fully enveloped. He makes you feel like you're the omniscient third person in the movie, pitting you against the elements like the characters did, leaving you wondering if you'd be able to survive the harrowing 71 days with little food, little water, and little hope for survival.

The performances are top notch, and soar above the 1993 film "Alive" which was a more fictionalized version of the events. This one feels more connected to their true story, and the actors did an impeccable job at making you feel their emotions to the deepest, most primordial level. While it was difficult to keep the names straight, it didn't matter in the end because all the actors combined gave a compelling performance where no one was elevated from another, as they all had to live together to survive. They utilized their strengths to the utmost, and relied on one another as a sort of family to see it through.

The writing is powerful and profound, blending the aspects of religion, faith, determination and grit. Much was said about "Alive" when it came to the theme of cannibalism, which the real life survivors had to resort to in order to live, but here it's not as sensationalized. It's discussed among the survivors and they feud over the morality and the legal aspects of it, ultimately choosing to live by any means necessary. When they were discovered, they kept that part a secret until they were forced to reveal it, and sadly it led many to despise them for that decision - but unless you're in that predicament, you don't know how far you'd go to survive. Yet here, it's merely a moment in the movie that's filled with tremendous writing that gives each character moments to shine and see their true characters to develop. The film also takes care to honor not just the survivors, but those who lost their lives as well, showing their names and ages the moments after the perish. It's tear-jerking moments in a film filled with them.

The cinematography is awe-inspiring, terrifying, and extravagant in equal measure. The crash itself is shown in full graphic detail without, again, sensationalizing it - but you see the plane literally get torn apart by the mountain, which in itself is a terrifying vision, like a monstrous force of nature bent on destruction. Pedro Luque's cinematography is one of a kind, with the mountain snow being endless and unforgiving, the long sweeping shots showing the survivors as nothing more than ants, and the juxtaposition of light and dark paralleling in a melancholy beauty. The film was shot in chronological order so you see the weight lost by the actors (with one actor losing up to 45 pounds). There was nothing wasted in this film - from directing to acting to writing to design - and you felt like you endured the hardships they went through, but from the very safe comfort of your home.


The Bad:
At times it was difficult to discern who was who, as Bayona casted relatively unknown actors for the roles so the audiences wouldn't see famous faces and be taken out of the story. But that's one very small flaw in an otherwise impeccable tale.


The Summary:
Showcasing the power of the human spirit to conquer anything - as well as honoring those who didn't make it - "Society of the Snow" is the most grounded, close to fact film about the most harrowing plane crash in history.


The Score: A+