The Way Back: A Movie Review

The Way Back is a historical work based on the true story of three men who literally walk out of Siberia to India. Based on the book The Long Walk: The True Story of a Trek to Freedom by Slavomir Rawicz. A true story based on several Soviet prisoners who escape from a Soviet Siberian labor camp and walk to freedom.

Starring Jim Sturgiss, Ed Harris and Colin Farrell, the movie explores life in a Soviet gulag, in effect a slow death sentence for those unlucky enough to draw this sentencing. The Soviet gulags were used as dumping grounds for for those considered threats to Stalin and his Communist regime. Often a death sentence, men and women, struggled to survive in primitive conditions, and struggled to survive as long as possible. With excruciating detail, Peter Wier directs this movie, working to recover from his Master and Commander debacle, focuses on a favorite theme of his, human interaction under duress.

Weir focuses on the human relations of the escapees, who upon escaping from the gulag head south in an effort to escape imprisonment. With limited resources, the party is forced to live off the land, weather it by stealing from villagers, or setting onto a wolves kill. The men set out on what will eventually be a 4000 mile walk to freedom.

Crossing inhospitable terrain such as Siberian forest, the Gobi desert and the Himalayan Mountains, the men become endurance champions. Scavenging on the go, which at times includes insects and bark, the escapees, who, eventually are joined by one woman, focus on what each needs need to focus on for survival. Some seek redemption for past sins, some revenge on their captors, others the need to give forgiveness, each is propelled forward based on human emotions that are able to overpower the suffering that each incurs during their ordeal.

This movie is long, and at times it drags, essentially becoming one long Survivor episode. I found myself looking at my watch, something I do not think I have ever done before. The soundtrack is limited and adds little to the movie. During one close up scene Irena, played by Saoirse Ronan, her legs are shown and it is quite clear her legs are cleanly shaved, a difficult task for one living in the woods of Siberia. So once I found the first error, I began looking for others. The acting though is excellent; Ed Harris continues to deliver his consummate acting performances, as does Colin Farrell and Dragos Bucur.

Not necessary a movie for a date, not an action movie and not a thriller, this movie will have difficulty gaining an audience in a period of declining movie audiences. This movie is best for students of history and those who are fascinated with human endurance.