Nordwand – Northface (2008)

Directed by: Philipp Stölzl | 121 minutes | drama, adventure, history, sports | Actors: Benno Fürmann, Florian Lukas, Johanna Wokalek, Georg Friedrich, Simon Schwarz, Ulrich Tukur, Erwin Steinhauer, Branko Samarovski, Petra Morzé, Hanspeter Müller, Peter Zumstein, Martin Schick, Erni Mangold, Johannes Thanheiser, Arnd Schimkat, Klaus Ofczarek, Martin Brambach, Peter Faerber, Traute Hoess, Marcus Hauser

As long as there are mountains, there will be people who want to climb these mountains. As long as mountains are being climbed, there will be people who want to record the ascent on film, photo or in books. As in the German feature film ‘Nordwand’. In this alpine drama we follow the 1936 ascent of the Eiger mountain by two young Germans and two Austrians. We also follow a journalist and a photographer who want to cover the spectacle from the foot of the mountain.

The result is an exciting and compelling climbing drama. The film is built according to the book: first we get extensive time to get to know the heroes, before we follow them on the perilous journey. That trip is spectacularly portrayed, showing both the attractive and less attractive sides of mountaineering: beautiful panoramas, which look less beautiful if you dangle from a rope above with wind force nine.

‘Nordwand’ is more than just climbing drama. We see how individual achievements are claimed by media and politics. The climbers clamber up the mountain not only for their own honor and glory, but also for that of the homeland. And in the case of the Austrian climbers also for the glory of Aryans, NSDAP and Adolf Hitler. The German climbers don’t care about fascism and are therefore less interesting for the homeland and therefore less interesting for the media.

In ‘Nordwand’ the rough scrambling up the mountain alternates with civilized conversations between journalists and spectators in the valley. As the film progresses, the mountain scenes take over, with the images becoming more and more chilling. In this way the viewer is drawn more and more into the story until he reaches the end breathlessly.

Almost everything in ‘Nordwand’ is of high quality: from the excellent acting to the breathtaking cinematography to the eye for detail. It is not for nothing that a large load of mountain guides and climbing trainers pass by in the credits. The only thing you can fault on ‘Nordwand’ is the all too present music and the obligatory epilogue. But if a movie gives you the chills in the middle of summer, you’ve done well as a filmmaker.