This is a movie that should not have worked. It's five guys in an isolated arctic station, philosophizing, drinking and bonding because there is nothing else to do other than work. Yet, through the soundtrack (yeah, I know) and the photography and the careful attention to details it makes for a beautiful ethereal experience. If I had to compare it with anything, it would be Into the Wild (2007), which also presents the exceptional perspective of a young man with artistic vision and in which the soundtrack and the visuals trump the story itself.
Speaking of story... there is none to trump. I mean, you can read the description of the film and that sounds like a linear progression of events, but it does not a story make. Even the characters are not actually explained or grounded or anything. It's just a bunch of guys, of which you see just glimpses from their actions and short conversations. Yet the way the movie makes you feel is special.
Bottom line: less a movie and more an experience, it probably requires an availability from the viewer, although to me it did not feel like a difficult movie to watch at all. I just watched and enjoyed it. There was no actual need for understanding.
Speaking of story... there is none to trump. I mean, you can read the description of the film and that sounds like a linear progression of events, but it does not a story make. Even the characters are not actually explained or grounded or anything. It's just a bunch of guys, of which you see just glimpses from their actions and short conversations. Yet the way the movie makes you feel is special.
Bottom line: less a movie and more an experience, it probably requires an availability from the viewer, although to me it did not feel like a difficult movie to watch at all. I just watched and enjoyed it. There was no actual need for understanding.