In this unique cinematic experience, filmmaker Margreth Olin allows viewers to experience Norway’s landscapes of mountains, glaciers, and fjords, guided by her 84-year-old father, Jørgen, enabling us to escape the hyperactivity of modern times and absorb the profundity of nature.
With the film’s first image of a lone elderly man trekking through an untouched snowy landscape, we sense that director Margreth Olin is taking us somewhere special. That promise is fulfilled over and over in this stunning cinematic experience that’s unique from anything else in this year’s documentary selection. Its artistry has won the support of executive producers Wim Wenders and Liv Ullman.
The man is Olin’s 84-year-old father, Jørgen, who has been exploring Norway’s wilderness all his life. A vigorous trekker who uses two walking sticks to explore the mountains around his hometown, he invites his daughter to join him over the course of four seasons to share his insights.
Jørgen takes us to stunning vistas of glaciers, waterfalls, and fjords. We can supply our own awareness of increasing man-made eradication of similar wilderness. The film offers us a profound vision of what we lose when we grow disconnected from nature.
At the heart of the film is the relationship between Jørgen and his wife, Magnhild, who have been together for decades. They still delight in singing songs, dancing, and making the most of the precious time they have. “She is the best I have, no matter what happens,” he says.
Olin is operating at the highest level of image-making, whether she’s capturing the epic scale of a mountain valley or looking into the face of a snow white owl. You may not realize how much you need this communing with nature until you give yourself up to it.
THOM POWERS
Official Selection, 2023 Toronto International Film Festival