The Snow Walker (2003)

A pilot and his passenger struggle for survival after crashing in the Arctic tundra.

Director:

Charles Martin Smith

Writers:

Charles Martin Smith, Farley Mowat (based on the story "Walk Well My Brother" by)

Stars:

Barry Pepper, Annabella Piugattuk, James Cromwell

8 wins & 20 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Barry Pepper	...	Charlie Halliday
Annabella Piugattuk	...	Kanaalaq
James Cromwell	...	Walter Shepherd
Kiersten Warren	...	Estelle
Jon Gries	...	Pierce
Robin Dunne	...	Carl
Malcolm Scott	...	Warren
Michael Bublé	...	Hap
Brad Sihvon	...	Mr. Izzard
Greg Spottiswood	...	Mr. Moss
Samson Jorah	...	Sammy
William MacDonald	...	Miner in Bar
Mariano Aupilardjuk	...	Elder Inuk
Peter Henry Arnatsiaq	...	Young Inuk
Peter Ipkornerk	...	Inuit Snow Camp

Storyline

1953. Charlie Halliday, a former WWII fighter pilot, is a Yellowknife-based bush pilot. Like many of the white in the area, he does not associate with the Inuit except for what he can get out of them in bartering. On a personal plane trip, he runs across a small family of nomadic Inuit. The female of the group, named Kanaalaq, has what Charlie suspects is tuberculosis. In exchange for some ivory, Charlie agrees to fly her to a hospital in Yellowknife. En route back to the city, Charlie is forced to make a crash landing when the plane develops mechanical problems. Although both Charlie and Kanaalaq are unharmed by the crash, the plane is totaled, they are in the middle of nowhere, the radio doesn't seem to be working, they have a meager amount of supplies, and Charlie's whereabouts are probably unknown to others since he made a detour from his original route. Furthermore, they can't communicate with each other as Kanaalaq only knows a few words of English, whereas Charlie knows no ...

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Plot Keywords:

pilot | inuit | survival | tuberculosis | bush pilot | 

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Taglines:

Their Fight For Survival Formed An Unbreakable Bond.

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for thematic elements, language, some disturbing images and brief nudity

Details

Country:

Canada

Language:

English Inuktitut

Release Date:

5 March 2004 (Canada)

Also Known As:

Agizontas to Theo

Filming Locations:

Churchill, Manitoba, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

CAD 10,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Infinity Media, Téléfilm Canada, Canadian Television Fund

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min 103 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Winter scenes were shot in -28 C (-18 F) weather - -45 C (-49 F) with wind chill.

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Goofs

Early in the film Charlie's girlfriend Estelle takes a photograph of Charlie and his fellow pilots. When the photo is snapped Charlie is clearly inhaling a cigar and has his eyes closed. Later in the film this photo is presented to Charlie's boss but the cigar is absent, his eyes are open, and he's smiling.

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Quotes

Shepherd: Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth, And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings; Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth Of sun-split clouds, - and done a hundred things You have not dreamed of - Wheeled and soared and swung High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung My eager craft through footless halls of air... Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue I've topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace Where never lark or...

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Connections

Featured in Weird Sex and Snowshoes: A Trek Through the Canadian Cinematic Psyche (2004)

User Reviews

Lost!

We meet Charlie Halliday, a young bush pilot, as he and his friends are spending a night of drinking and just having fun. Halliday, and his friends, are mean toward one Inuit man that comes to the tavern trying to sell them a little animal skin. Little prepares this young man for what happens to him the following day.

Director Charles Martin Smith does wonders in this movie. The action takes us all over the Canadian arctic tundra. The director, and his cinematographers, captured in all its glory this part of the vast country most of us will never see. This movie celebrates the human instinct of survival and deals with how Halliday, a man who clearly shows his disdain toward the Inuit, at the beginning of the film, has to depend on a young girl that shows him a thing or two about how to survive in that hostile climate.

Barry Pepper surprises us in the film in the way he portrays Halliday. We see the transformation, for the better, as he realizes how his salvation depends on Kanaalaq. Annabella Pingattuk, who plays the young Inuit girl is an asset in the film. James Cromwell is seen as Shepherd, the man in charge of the pilots.

"The Snow Walker" shows a lesson in acceptance, and endurance when all hope is lost by a person. Thanks to Charles Martin Smith and his collaborators for a satisfying film.