Zwischen zwei Leben (2017)

Zwischen zwei Leben: Directed by Hany Abu-Assad. With Kate Winslet, Idris Elba, Beau Bridges, Dermot Mulroney. Stranded after a tragic plane crash, two strangers must forge a connection to survive the extreme elements of a remote snow-covered mountain. When they realize help is not coming, they embark on a perilous journey across the wilderness.

“Idris Elba after scoring a mammoth hit with UK TVu0026#39;s u0026quot;Lutheru0026quot; has really struggled to make a breakthrough as a leading man into A-grade movies. Although heu0026#39;s had some strong supporting roles (u0026quot;Mollyu0026#39;s Gameu0026quot; and u0026quot;Star Trek Beyondu0026quot; for example) and small bit parts in the Marvel universe, when he has landed a lead role they are in films best forgotton (e.g. u0026quot;Bastille Dayu0026quot;; u0026quot;The Dark Toweru0026quot;). This is seldom down to his performance. Here he is given more of a chance to shine, in what is almost a two-hander with Kate Winslet (u0026quot;Triple 9u0026quot;, u0026quot;Steve Jobsu0026quot;) for most of the film. And he is the best thing in the film: lots of the brooding look that he is so famous for.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eElba plays Ben Bass, a neuro-surgeon stranded at Boise airport who has to get back to Baltimore for an important operation. Winslett playing Alex Martin, a famous photo-journalist, is stranded with him and equally desperate to travel as she is due to get married in New York the following day. The two club together to hire a plane from charter pilot Walter (Beau Bridges, u0026quot;Homelandu0026quot;, u0026quot;The Descendentsu0026quot;). But in terrible conditions, and with a medical emergency, the plane crash lands in the snow of the Rockies, and Ben and Alex (together with Walteru0026#39;s Labrador) need to struggle to survive in the wilderness. The problem is that they are an odd couple, and constantly wind each other up the wrong way.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eItu0026#39;s a well-worn tale that has been portrayed many times before in films like u0026quot;Aliveu0026quot; and u0026quot;The Greyu0026quot;, so what makes the film live or die is the quality of the screenplay and the chemistry between the characters. Unfortunately the former by Chris Weitz (co-writer on u0026quot;Rogue Oneu0026quot;) is rather clunky, and in the latter case I just didnu0026#39;t feel it. Winslettu0026#39;s character is just so incredibly whiney and annoying that the thought of Ben doing anything with her other than hitting her with the shovel and feeding her to the dog seems unlikely! Winslett seems to sense that too, since I never felt she was completely invested in her character. Aside from one (impressive) monologue, I found it to be a so-so performance from her.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAside from Elba the other star of the show is the landscape of the High Uintascape in North East Utah of the which is beautifully filmed, on location by Mandy Walker (u0026quot;Hidden Figuresu0026quot;).u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe story leaps from improbability to improbability and raises more questions than it answers: in a survival situation should you walk or stay put? If you have a dog, should you eat it* and what condiments are appropriate? Does an iced-over river have any current flowing under the ice? If they both died, would the audience care?u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eNo spoilers with answers to any of these (*apart from the dog… just joking, they donu0026#39;t!) , but the ending is as corny as you can get… but it still gave me a lump in my throat. #suckered!u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eDirected by Hany Abu-Assad, overall if you have a rainy afternoon you need to fill then this a perfectly pleasant movie to veg in front of, but it neither completely satisfies as a romance nor as an adventure flick but falls rather uncomfortably between the two stools.”