Strong performances in 'The Way Back'

Cert 12, 127 mins, Drama/Action

Starring: Jim Sturgess, Colin Farrell, Ed Harris, Mark Strong, Sebastian Urzendowsky, Alexandru Potocean, Gustaf Skarsgard, Dragos Bucur, Saoirse Ronan.

In Soviet-occupied Poland, officer Janusz (Jim Sturgess) is falsely incriminated as a foreign spy and sent to a Russian gulag in Siberia surrounded by miles of snow.

Behind the camp’s walls, Janusz meets Khabarov (Mark Strong), who claims that escape is possible if they head south to Lake Baikal, using the elements to cover their tracks.

Russian thug Valka (Colin Farrell), enigmatic American prisoner Mr Smith (Ed Harris), youngster Kazik (Sebastian Urzendowsky), Tomasz (Alexandru Potocean), Voss (Gustaf Skarsgard) and Zoran (Dragos Bucur) complete the escape party.

Teenage refugee Irena (Saoirse Ronan) joins the remarkable odyssey but as the gulag chief predicted, Mother Nature shows no mercy. The Way Back is a harrowing true story of courage and endurance against the odds during the Second World War.

Cinematographer Russell Boyd captures the rugged beauty of the frozen wastelands of Siberia and the Mongolian desert, where the story unfolds.

We get a vivid sense of the physical ordeal that lies ahead for the characters as they embark on a 4,000-mile trek to freedom that we know, from a caption at the beginning of the film, will end in tragedy for more than half of the cast.

Australian director Peter Weir maintains a deliberately slow pace so we are with the escapees every arduous step of the way.

Sturgess, Harris and Farrell deliver strong performances, while Ronan once again demonstrates emotional depth beyond her tender years in a vivid supporting role.

For all of the film’s grandeur, the enormity of what the real escapees achieved overshadows anything that Weir could ever commit to celluloid.

Star Rating: 3/5