When a climber gets caught in a blizzard, she encounters a stranded stranger and must get them both down the mountain before nightfall.
A little over a year ago, Malgorzata Szumowska’s fantastic, and fantastical, “Never Gonna Snow Again,” signaled a change of pace for the prolific, multifaceted Polish filmmaker, and now she surprises again by migrating to the U.S. and tackling survival drama. Based on the life of Pam Bales, “Infinite Storm” impresses in how unconventional it is. Unlike, say, “Cast Away,” which fell apart once its hapless hero made it back home from the island, the latter parts of Szumowska’s imperfect but intriguing feature are the ones that sear themselves into memory.
Pam (Naomi Watts) is a nurse who lives by herself in a mountain shack. She goes hiking up a dangerous trail, slipping on rocks, weathering a massive blizzard, and plummeting into a ravine after the discovery of fresh footprints in the snow. They eventually lead her to a half-frozen, seemingly intoxicated man (Billy Howle), whom she calls John. Pam’s quest becomes a struggle: “John” refuses to be guided, tripping out, possibly breaking his leg, and taking a dive in a river. “We’re not gonna make it, we’re gonna die,” he sobs hysterically. “I wanna go home.” Her response? “Save the tears. Not now.”
Spoiler alert: they find their way back down. Normally, this would be the film’s finale. Szumowska, however, reserves the most wrenching revelations for the last minutes; while the first half grips, the latter one is where things deepen and attain dimension. The auteur subverts expectations with true artistry, an appropriately contemplative tone, and an admirably minimalist approach. What could’ve been a corny interlude — a flashback montage to Pam’s daughter — is unexpectedly moving. The heartrending sight of Pam drinking a beer while experiencing all the emotions, realizing her recent brush with death was a salvation of sorts, is perhaps eclipsed only by an unforgettable mom and daughter scene.
Szumowska, with the help of her cinematographer, captures nature at its most beautiful, volatile, uncaring, and deeply humbling. Never one to back away from a challenge, Watts shines against this epic backdrop. She plays Pam with a glint of madness in her eye, a madness that can only be offset by the madness and enormity of nature, madness as a consequence of unspeakable grief. Billy Howle more than holds his own, particularly in the latter half, where the actor impresses in a poignant moment set in a cafe.
“Infinite Storm” is not perfect by any means. Some of Pam and “John”’s interactions verge on ludicrous. Certain parts prove difficult to swallow, such as John not only surviving the river fall, and a serious leg injury, among other things, without any visible frostbite, but also being able to walk, and even run, afterward.
Mind you, I’m being nitpicky: Szumowska’s skill as a filmmaker, her poetic, almost radical approach, along with the themes she explores, make “Infinite Storm” infinitely more compelling than your run-of-the-mill survival drama. It brings to mind Robin Wright’s recent “Land,” wherein the isolation of nature also proved to be both a salvation and a curse for its heroine. The poetry on display feels like a breath of fresh, frosty air.
In Theaters Friday, March 25th
