Read Mixed User Reviews for The Way Back (2011)

6

MrFugiReviewsJan 26, 2011

"The Way Back" is a movie I really don't ahve too much to say about. Saiorse Ronan (The Lovely Bones) was good and I definitley see her as a future Oscar-winning actress, like I did with Natalie Portman when she was in "The Professional"."The Way Back" is a movie I really don't ahve too much to say about. Saiorse Ronan (The Lovely Bones) was good and I definitley see her as a future Oscar-winning actress, like I did with Natalie Portman when she was in "The Professional". But, latley, the spotlight for actress youth has bin on Hailee Steinfeld (True Grit). The film follows a dramatic tone of soldiers trying to find the way back home. Colin Farrell and Ed Harris are also in this movie and they give the best performace you can give when playing a soldier who has escaped from a prison camp. Anyway, its good, but its truly nothing special. [PG-13] 6/10… Expand

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6

ShiiraFeb 4, 2011

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Janusz(Jim Sturges) won't sign the paper, the document which purports him to be a party subversive, an enemy of the Stalinist state. Charged with making critical remarks about the Soviet dictator, the Polish calvary officer knows that by endorsing the charges leveled against him, he'll be sent on a one-way trip to Siberia, no questions asked, so the pen remains on the desk, untouched, next to the death warrant. The hand is in rebellion; the hand has eyes. It can practically see the snow looming on Janusz's horizon. Siberia, the source of so many Russian jokes about the red days of the former U.S.S.R., in its original context, was obviously no laughing matter. The administrator, growing ever impatient with the stalemate at hand, expedites the process of obtaining his charge's signature by employing an old totalitarian antic on the railroaded man. A crying woman is shown into the room; his wife, they got to her, and by the tortured look on her face, Janusz knows right away that he better start packing, and even though the accusing words which freely flow from her lips are a mere formality, the husband still can't believe what he's hearing. Inside the gulag, the cold, cold gulag, situated against the worst that the wilderness has to offer, a prison that offers all the comforts of hell, it would only be natural if Janusz turned into a misogynist, especially when he's selected for mining detail. The coal mine looks like a place that could change a man. Down in the shaft, the betrayed husband has a vision of home, a fever dream which stops just before his first-person self spies a rock next to the front door. Although the hallucination looks like a nostalgic projection of longing to resume with an old life as it was, the dream self's fleeting occupation with the rock may indicate a murderous desire to use the seemingly innocuous object as a weapon against the person who sentenced him to oblivion.This vision, a reoccurring one, demonstrates how, in bypassing the rock, Janusz never allows his hurt feelings to congeal into a deep-seated grudge. Too bad. "The Way Back" could sure use an angry man, but that anger never rises to the surface. Nothing rises to the surface. Sex and cannibalism is not on the filmmaker's menu. He's a good man, this Janusz, who escapes from the gulag with some other men, also good(the Russian, notwithstanding), perfect gentlemen, as it so happens, when on their journey to escape from the Soviet Union, they encounter a pretty young girl(Sairose Ronan), and none of them, not even Valka(Colin Farrell), who had stabbed a fellow inmate for his sweater, makes a pass at her. What is this? A film from the nineteen-forties? But even a nun, Ruth from Michael Powell's "Black Narcissus"(1947), also set in the Himalayas, had sex on the brain. The problem with "The Way Back" is that the filmmaker does sexualize the Siberian prisoners, then forgets about their virility, and proceeds to give them blue balls. If anything, "The Way Back" tries to prove that exposure to pornographic images doesn't necessarily lead to sexual deviancy on the peruser, or the pornographer's part. Back at the gulag, Valka had commissioned an artist named Tamasz(Alexandru Potocean) to do pencil drawings of denuded women, and interestingly enough, it's the pornographer who goes back for Irena, right after they capture and kill an animal trapped in mud. It's interesting because pornographers are often accused of treating women like meat, but alas, the girl goes unmolested, which means that "The Way Back", in the absence of sexual tension, fills the void with walking and talking, walking and talking, and a lot of starving and dehydration for the duration of its running time. It didn't have to be that way. When the prisoners reach the Russian border, Valka, the hardlining Communist, decides to remain in the U.S.S.R., which would be perfectly plausible for a man who has Lenin tattooed on his chest, but still, you can't help but shake the feeling that there's a little contrivance at work here, since Valka's removal makes the filmmaker's job of keeping Irena chaste, a whole lot easier. In Mongolia, en route to the Himalayas, some men on horseback stop the weary travelers and ask Smith(Ed Harris) if she's his wife. "Daughter," replies the American, who, perhaps, had decided on a strictly platonic relationship with the Polish girl back in Russia, where the girl came on to him like a filial daughter, in which she tenderly washed his bloodied foot at a nearby stream. When the Mongolian inquires about the girl's relationship to Smith, it's virtually the only mention of sex, however oblique, throughout their long and arduous journey.… Expand

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6

JamesLJan 30, 2011

The scenery is the star in this film. I was slightly dumbfounded how a film with this subject matter could lack suspense or emotion. Still, it is watchable but it never delivers. Walk, walk, walk, sand, sand and more sand.

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6

RyanGeeJan 22, 2011

If an epic comprises of too many repetitive details, it would be best to keep it short and to the point. These were the thoughts that went through my head when watching The Way Back. With that said, by no means is this film lackluster, theIf an epic comprises of too many repetitive details, it would be best to keep it short and to the point. These were the thoughts that went through my head when watching The Way Back. With that said, by no means is this film lackluster, the cast is strong and the plot fascinating; But it is a disappointment that this compeller of a story is only half of the epic that it is intended to be.

Academy Award nominated director Peter Weir returns from a seven year hiatus with the quasi film adaptation of The Long Walk, a proclaimed true story of six men who walked 4000 miles from Siberia to India. While the validity of this story still remains questionable, Weir uses solely the premise of this epic, substituting the characters with ones of his own creation. The beginning of the film we see the main protagonist Janusz (Jim Sturgess), a Polish prisoner of war who has been accused of sabotage and espionage towards the Communist Party. He is then sent to serve twenty years at a Siberian gulag. There he meets an American, Mr. Smith (Ed Harris) who insists that kindness can kill you here. Janusz and Mr. Smith, along with four other men including Russian criminal Valka (Colin Ferell), devise an escape plan to escape the gulag. Peter Weir is really brief in this portion of the movie with the escape being described in under half an hour. As a result, the characters are hastily developed, placing a subtle wall between the audience and the main figures. After the escape, Janusz leads the party through 4000 miles of different terrain with obstacles opposing their will to survive and attain freedom. They also encounter a young Polish girl, played by the rising star Saoirse Ronan (Atonement, The Lovely Bones), who joins the party in their venture for freedom.

While the premise is strong, the walk is long (yes, it rhymes). The film goes into an hour of directionless plot, while also maintaining a rinse, wash, repeat style of story telling. The plot direction is as follows: walk one terrain, face natural obstacle, look at a another daunting terrain. While the direction in which the story is told is ultimately weak, the cast and the cinematography surely make up for it. Even though the cast is not as emotionally involved with the audience as it should be, the performances are solid. Ferrel and Harris are multi-dimensional as there is a mystery within both of the characters. If any emotion is involved with the characters, it will be towards these two. Saoirse Ronan, who by the way I am a big fan of, plays a small role but provides the much needed pathos. The main protagonist played by Sturgess is somewhat of a bland character, but it is he who creates the most dramatic moment at the end of the film. Another strong point of the movie, as said, is Russel Boyd's cinematography. The Way Back is from National Geographic Entertainment (which also produced March of The Penguins), resulting in images that illustrates nature in an eye-pleasing and interesting manner. Overall The Way Back is a superbly well-made film. Even though it has it moments of monotony, the cast and fascinating plot contributes to an entertaining experience as well providing a small commentary on communism. It may not have the strong emotional connection seen in Weir's other films (The Truman Show, Master And Commander), but the cast's efforts make the film compelling enough for a watch. Grade: B-… Expand

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6

avatar16Aug 23, 2011

Un trÃ¨s beau film, il n'y a pas Ã dire. Mais alors que Peter Weir voulait faire un film plus intime que Master and Commander, il en oublie d'approfondir ne serait-ce qu'au minimum les personnages de cetteUn trÃ¨s beau film, il n'y a pas Ã dire. Mais alors que Peter Weir voulait faire un film plus intime que Master and Commander, il en oublie d'approfondir ne serait-ce qu'au minimum les personnages de cette Ã©popÃ©e, les rendant beaucoup moins attachants que prÃ©vu. Un comble pour un film du genre, rendant ce spectacle lÃ©gÃ¨rement ennuyeux...… Expand

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6

AutiTakahashiJul 6, 2012

Siberia. Mongolia. India. What these places have in common in "The Way Back" is the footsteps of a small group of people who have a matchless desire to go home. The latest film by Peter Weir, director of "The Truman Show", follows theSiberia. Mongolia. India. What these places have in common in "The Way Back" is the footsteps of a small group of people who have a matchless desire to go home. The latest film by Peter Weir, director of "The Truman Show", follows the extensive and exhausting journey of convicts who are imprisoned not just by guards and fences, but by lands that have been conquered by communism.

Escaping the Siberian gulag was the easy part; a 4,000-mile walk awaits them. During this journey, our eyes are treated with some magnificent imagery. The snowy mountains and scorching deserts are exhibited through great cinematography by Russell Boyd. It's weird how these paintings of nature are also what could drive our "Walkers" to death. "The Way Back" causes mixed emotions in its irony that the things that could bring so much pleasure to our eyes are the same things that torment the film's heroes.

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6

SpangleApr 19, 2017

Peter Weir's The Way Back is just the legendary Australian directors second film in the 21st Century and, like the rest of his work, it highlights his ability to make his films as slow as they are dramatic. In the case of The Way Back, it isPeter Weir's The Way Back is just the legendary Australian directors second film in the 21st Century and, like the rest of his work, it highlights his ability to make his films as slow as they are dramatic. In the case of The Way Back, it is certainly slow. This slow pace really does hold it back as, though it allows Weir to show the pace at which the journey of the protagonist occurs, it does not make it overly watchable. This was one where I was undoubtedly mentally clawing for my phone and wondering what else I could think about. It was that slow. That said, it is certainly an epic journey with incredible visuals as Weir wrings drama out of their situation in an epic tale of survival and forgiveness that may get too schmaltzy at the end for my tastes, but is certainly an interesting WWII film nonetheless.

Depicting the journey from the gulag in Siberia to India undertaken by a group of Soviet prisoners and a girl who they meet along the way, The Way Back is a true story of epic proportions. The main players here are Janusz (Jim Sturgess), Mr. Smith (Ed Harris), Irena (Saoirse Ronan), and Valka (Colin Farrell). Convicted as a spy after his wife stated he was a spy and tortured as a result of her husband's unwillingness to sign a sworn statement affirming this, Janusz is a man who must forgive himself for putting his wife in that position. Mr. Smith is an American who moved to Russia and must now forgive himself for doing so, as it cost the life of his son. Irena is a girl who is all alone after her Polish parents became communists and were still arrested, leaving her and her brother in an orphanage, from which she ran away. Finally, Valka is a criminal who is escaping a debt in the prison that would see him beheaded, but is a Russian to the core. These four people, along with a few other interchangeable people, intend to travel from Russia to India, passing through Mongolia, Tibet, and the Himalayas, in the process. A harrowing journey, it is one that will test every resolve they have.

While the human core should be the focus of the film, it is only really the case for a few characters in the film with the remaining escapees relegated to obscurity. The film develops its main characters very nicely, but refuses to do the same for their fellow travelers. People die in this journey, yet are still hardly memorable. The faces and names fall into the back of your mind as the film operates like Survivor as it dwindles down the people who you will forget about anyways and focus in on those you actually care about at the end. Considering these are real people, it is unfortunate to see men who went through the exact same journey get relegated to bit players just because it was not their initial idea to escape or because they did not have somebody left behind in their lives that they had to forgive. This somewhat lends itself to the overly schmaltzy ending in which we see that forgiveness take place for the main characters. It is overly sentimental and seems to lose sight of what made the film work so well beforehand: its emphasis on survival.

It is this emphasis that really makes the film work as we see the desperation, the need for water, and the need for food overcome everybody. As they enter Mongolia, we see their horror when they realize just how much further they have to go to get to safety. Yes, they are out of Russia, but their journey is just beginning. It is a mentally taxing journey that, when it seems over, it is never over. Weir does an excellent job capturing this emotional strain, exemplified by when they actually do reach India. Until then, the journey was arduous and full of moments where it seemed to be over only to pick back up again, that Weir is able to make this moment seem surreal. How can it be over? Are they actually safe? Weir, up to the end of this film, had succeeded in making this journey seem so unending that when it finally ends, it feels like it is just beginning again.

Arming the film with excellent cinematography that captures the beauty of the terrain that they walk from extreme cold to extreme heat, The Way Back is a beautifully shot. Blending this nicely with the horrors on display as these escapees try to go from Russia to India on foot, the film is packed with tension as we see them all struggle to survive. Yet, the film's characters are extremely lacking for those the film does not consider important enough to develop. That said, the few it does develop provide enough of an emotional core to latch onto, even if the film is absolutely terrifyingly slow.… Expand

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6

NYHawk808Dec 11, 2014

Beautiful visuals and a great cast but the connections aren't well developed or even fully explored between the characters and the audience or between the characters themselves. Saoirse Ronan adds an element of life to the group that wasBeautiful visuals and a great cast but the connections aren't well developed or even fully explored between the characters and the audience or between the characters themselves. Saoirse Ronan adds an element of life to the group that was badly needed but never manages to pull the group together in a way that I could find satisfying. Difficult scenes like the escape from the Siberian camp were done entirely too briskly in favor of more long, drawn out travel scenes which still don't use the time to effectively connect you to the cast. Worth watching but clearly a film that could have been much more.… Expand

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4

amheretojudgeOct 29, 2019

Mountains and forests and deserts and war, everything is surpassed victoriously, except for the building that we call, "home".

The Way Back Peter Weir, the co-writer and director fails to novelize the idea of seeking and losing. There areMountains and forests and deserts and war, everything is surpassed victoriously, except for the building that we call, "home".

The Way Back

Peter Weir, the co-writer and director fails to novelize the idea of seeking and losing. There are hints in the film where you can see him finally getting the right message communicated to you, the audience. But these glimpses come in rare. You are asked to earn them just as those characters earn drops of water amidst hot dry desert drowning them on their own decisions. But I would argue that those are improvisational and not actually the crux behind the scene. That- the notion that tells you that you are present in that moment, among these brave men- scene doesn't seem to be the motif.

And I could be wrong and presumptuous in this note but then there is never anything, any final result that amounts all those speculative innuendos or emotional delights to something. Anything. I would take anything. What it has in its mind as the big finale- and I don't mean just the film's climax but each last scene of the acts throughout the film- has nothing to do with the journey that we embark upon. And that is that there is no real reason for them to expect us to care for these moments that they are building towards.

If you are about to snatch away something from the viewers or are about to gift them with something they desire, you'd have to at least make us inseparable from that element or yearn for those treats like a child. The film lacks romance between it and us. For the romance between the characters is easily communicating with us through brilliant performances especially by Colin Ferrell, Saoirse Ronan and Ed Harris. Colin oozes a threateningly irrational vibes making us speculative towards his character. Saoirse and Ed makes you go back with a soothing and satisfyingly empty heart in The Way Back.… Expand

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