Directed By Malgorzata Szumowska

Starring – Naomi Watts, Denis O’ Hare, Billy Howle

The Plot – As an experienced climber (Watts) ascends Mt. Washington, she turns back before she reaches the summit as a huge blizzard approaches. But on her way down, she encounters a lone, stranded man, and takes it upon herself to get them both down the mountain before nightfall arrives and they succumb to the storm. Based on a true story.

Rated R for some adult language and brief nudity

INFINITE STORM | Official Trailer | Bleecker Street – YouTube

POSITIVES

I’m a sucker for a survivalist film because at the very least I know I will be treated to enveloping production value that wholeheartedly immerses the audience in the elements of the environment, and that’s certainly the case here. For starters, the film’s blanketing sound designs channel authenticity inside of the various settings they vividly adorn, based entirely on the vantage points of the movie’s cinematography. For instance, when the framing is of a wide shot of characters, their dialogue volume is faint because of our distance to their proximity, yet in the eye of the storm that persists surrounding our protagonists, it absorbs with the kind of intensity and velocity that transcribes a corresponding chill to the interpretation, swallowing the dialogue between them whole with a meticulously defined aspect of authenticity. This is equally mirrored with the nuance prescribed to the movie’s minimalist musical score from Jillian Ennis, which only persists during establishing shots, and is absent from the fold during scenes in the heat of the moment, for what I interpret as maintaining a quality that can’t be broken by an aspect of production that doesn’t exist in that dynamic. It seems like an idea so simplistic in execution, yet one that very few films actually transfer seamlessly to the execution of their engagements, instead preoccupied with the importance of dialogue interpretation that shouldn’t be as clear when we’re literally standing outside of their bubble of volume appropriation. Beyond this, the aforementioned cinematography also from Szumowska is equally invigorating, instilling breathtaking imagery with picture perfect framing that makes the most of the on-site production blazing the path of believability for the duo’s most troubling instances. Naomi Watts gives her all to a performance that is every bit psychological as it is physical in the limitations she continuously crosses. There’s an unmentioned frailty to her character design that continuously persists despite her shielding resiliency, and it leads to an internal struggle between past and present that not only weighs in to her various motivations, but also unravels the exposition for her character’s backstory naturally instead of heavy-handed, which I always appreciate.

NEGATIVES

Unfortunately, “Infinite Storm” was more disappointing than pleasant, and more boring than compelling. This is mostly because the script itself is a completely uninteresting mess full of plodding progress and derivative outlines that never distance itself from better films like “Arctic” or “Land”, which remained at the forefront of my mind during the entirety of the experience. For roughly one hour of the film’s 99 minute run time, it refuses to build a narrative in defined structure, or even nourishing characterization for Howle’s character, which dramatically undercuts the logic behind why he’s worth all of this trouble in the first place, especially considering he’s intentionally making the rescue all the more difficult for Watts’ character. It does eventually flesh out his discord with life, but at a point that is far too late in the film to care, bringing with it a confusing turn in creative direction that alienates the intention of the film that was promised. That’s right, this isn’t just a survivalist film, but also an inspirational one that intercepts the intention for the entirety of the third act and climax (If you can call it that). The problem is certainly that the movie’s conflict is settled far too early in the experience, resolving the only compelling aspect about the film, but beyond that the deviation is never truly earned in a way where the transformation of Howle’s character feels believable, especially in the balance of a film and mission he constantly deconstructed. There’s also condensed chapters stitched together by various time frames meant to convey when each aspect of the script happened and when. The problem with this structure, like most movies in chapter form, is that some chapters are certainly less meaningful than others, while the entirety of the structure lacks the momentum of transferring seamlessly from one to the next. Instead of feeling like one cohesive continuation, it instead feels like a collection of various scenes that frequently disrupt the focus of the conflict and the patience of the audience, over-complicating storytelling that already had its own uphill climb because of everything previously mentioned. Aside from this, not all technical elements receive a passing grade, as the movie’s editing, full of long-winded pause and unintentional padding, continuously nag until they frustrate. This is especially the case during flashback sequences, where I found myself mentally yelling “GET TO THE POINT!!!” during scenes of valued exposition. It forcefully strains for aspects of the dynamic that could easily be deduced to twenty second instances, but instead stretch necessity because of the lack of compelling angles that come from the aforementioned limitations of the screenplay that it abruptly halts periodically. Finally, while Watts shines with an urgency and intensity that is far too good for this film, Howle’s performance is slightly off the mark tonally for where he properly should be. I blame this more on the direction over Howle’s incapability as an actor, as very little is solidified about this harrowing story to make it translate seamlessly to the screen, so in moments of tension when Howle retorts to Watts’ helping hand, it creates unintentional laughs in scenes that call for the exact opposite, and for such a pivotal arc to the film’s resolution, undervalues Howle as a meaningful piece to the proverbial plot, speaking volumes about the problematic disconnect hurt instead of enhanced this meaningful story.

OVERALL

Like the conflict that sold the movie, “Infinite Storm” feels brutally inescapable in a way that is baffling for all of the potential in production that constantly exudes itself on-screen. Watts’ mesmerizing turn, nor the breathtaking imagery of the on-site production can prominently save the film from a disastrously dull screenplay and creative limitations by a documentarian turned feature film director who never chases the urgency or vulnerability of the storm that stirs this story.

My Grade: 4/10 or D