The Way Back (I) (2010)

Siberian gulag escapees travel 4,000 miles by foot to freedom in India.

Director:

Peter Weir

Writers:

Keith R. Clarke (screenplay), Slavomir Rawicz (novel),

Stars:

Jim Sturgess, Ed Harris, Colin Farrell

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dragos Bucur	...	Zoran
Colin Farrell	...	Valka
Ed Harris	...	Mr. Smith
Alexandru Potocean	...	Tomasz
Saoirse Ronan	...	Irena
Gustaf Skarsgård	...	Voss
Mark Strong	...	Khabarov
Jim Sturgess	...	Janusz
Sebastian Urzendowsky	...	Kazik
Zahary Baharov	...	Interrogator (as Zahari Baharov)
Sally E. Brunski	...	Janusz's Wife, 1939 (as Sally Edwards)
Igor Gnezdilov	...	Bohdan
Dejan Angelov	...	Andrei
Stanislav Pishtalov	...	Commandant
Mariy Grigorov	...	Lazar (as Marii Grigorov)

Storyline

In 1941, three men reach India from Tibet, having walked 4000 miles after escaping a Siberian gulag. The film tells their story and that of four others who escaped with them and a teenage girl who joins them in flight. The group's natural leader is Janusz, a Pole condemned by accusations secured by torturing his wife; he knows how to live in the wilds. They escape under cover of a snowstorm: a cynical American, a Russian thug, a comic accountant, a pastry chef who draws, a priest, and a Pole with night blindness. They face freezing nights, lack of food and water, mosquitoes, an endless desert, the Himalayas, and moral questions of when to leave someone behind.

---

Plot Keywords:

gulag | desert | night blindness | priest | american | 

---

Taglines:

Their escape was just the beginning

---

Genres:

Adventure | Drama | History

---

Certificate:

14A

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [France]

Country:

USA United Arab Emirates Poland

Language:

English Russian Polish

Release Date:

21 January 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Camino a la libertad

Filming Locations:

Morocco

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$1,208,196 (USA) (21 January 2011)

Gross:

$2,677,401 (USA) (18 February 2011)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Exclusive Films, National Geographic Films, Imagenation Abu Dhabi FZ

Technical Specs

Runtime:

133 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Early in the film, as the prisoners are marched up to the front gate of the Gulag prison camp, a slogan written in Russian Cyrillic letters is seen over that gate. It is a slightly shortened variation of a famous propaganda slogan from Communist-era Soviet Union, which translates approximately to "Labor in the USSR is a matter of honour, a matter of valour and heroism."

---

Goofs

Janusz demonstrates a method using shadows of a stick and rock to find the compass direction of south. Yet, many of the scenes show them walking in a direction inconsistent with sun angles i.e. sun at their backs, which would have them walking north.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
[in Polish, using English subtitles]
Interrogator: [presents pen to sign confession]
Janusz: No.
Interrogator: Bring in the witness.
Janusz's Wife, 1939: [brought in]
Interrogator: Do you know this man? His name?
Janusz's Wife, 1939: Janusz Wieszczek.
Interrogator: Witness, what's your relationship with this man?
Janusz's Wife, 1939: [crying] I am his wife.
[...]

---

Connections

Featured in Breakfast: Episode dated 7 December 2010 (2010)

User Reviews

When Irish actors go all Polski

Peter Weir's first film in seven years is another exercise in sturdy direction with strong social themes running through it - recalling many of his previous works in style and content. It follows a group of escaped prisoners from a Siberian gulag in 1940 as they brave the treacherous wilderness of Asia for freedom from the Soviet regime. It's tough viewing for the most part but there is a surprising amount of comic relief along the way, provided chiefly by Colin Farrell's salty character. The group scavenge for food, even fighting off wolves for the carcass of an animal at one point - but the constant bickering and relentless doom and gloom does begin to wear. The film picks up however once Saoirse Ronan enters the picture and her youthful feminine presence brings an interesting dynamic. Emoting with a flawless Polish accent (almost like a mini-Streep) her character is one of the more compelling and layered and gives this emerging young actress a chance to display her skills. The cinematography is serviceable but hardly spectacular - capturing a harsh, arid landscape as opposed to Malick-like celebration of nature.

As the film wears on, the struggle to survive intensifies, particular when they reach the Ghobi desert - the scenes are very well done but viewing becomes quite grueling. Harris bring a certain integrity to his role in a rather unshowy performance with not much character introspection (I can see why his Oscar buzz has disappeared). In fact character development across the board is quite lacking, and watching the plot unfold, with the knowledge of the outcome of the story already provided in the opening titles - the narrative becomes quite arbitrary and the story doesn't always sustain interest. The final leg of the journey through the Himalayas almost seems rushed compared to the bloated second act. Still, it's a very well-made film with good acting and visuals - just don't expect to be inspired.