Into the White is a beautiful and compelling film based on an actual historical event set in WWII when British and German aircrafts crash in Norway after a battle, and the survivors must overcome their ideologies to survive in the wintry wilderness. Initially the men are obsessed with which side will control the few resources available to them, but they set aside their power struggle and find common ground in their universal humanity to forge unlikely friendships in their struggle to live. Into the White manages to humanize the German soldiers as they explore what is really important to them versus what is expected of them.
Into the White stars German and British actors and has a Norwegian director. Norwegian films are coming for Hollywood’s crown and adhere to classic formulas in a way that I find utterly appealing. Into the White does not minimize the Nazi sympathies of German soldiers during WWII, but shows how it is necessary for the German soldiers to discard that identity and remind themselves of their humanity in order to live fully. The German soldiers are forced to compare their image of themselves as superior with the reality of their human shortcomings and desires. I was completely invested in every character’s well-being and was unexpectedly sad when the war reemerged as a germane aspect of life.
Into the White may paint a stark picture of survival in the wilderness, but even facing the possibility of death to the elements is preferable to the false narrative imposed by the inhuman constructs and evils of war. Into the White is a must see as we once again enter an era where we must reassert our humanity in the face of human constructs of evil such as Nazism and false narratives of superiority.