Into the Cold: A Journey of the Soul (2010)

"Into the Cold: A Journey of the Soul" (2010 release; 87 min.) retells the preparation for, and then the actual attempt, to recreate the polar expedition of Admiral Keary and his team from 1909 exactly 100 years later. It basically involved a 6 week trek on foot, covering over 300 miles, towards the north pole. As the documentary opens, we are introduced to Sebastian Copeland, the writer-director-photographer-editor and all-around "star" of this movie. We learn a bit of his background and then things start to get serious with the final preparations of Sebastian's and Keith's trek, which Sebastian calls "the Mount Everest of polar expeditions", but as the DVD jacket cleverly points out: "In the last century, fewer than 150 people have made it to the North Pole on foot. By comparison, 77 people summitted Mt. Everest on May 22, 2008 alone", so it's pretty clear which of the two is hardest. To tell you more would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.Couple of comments: first, the initial 40 min. or so of the documentary are devoted to background stories and preparations for the expedition. So when we finally do get to the actual expedition, I was more than ready for it. I'm happy to say it is very much worth it, and then some. We see Sebastian and Keith dealing with rubble fields, pressure ridges, fatigue, and the cold. Ah, yes, the cold! Temperatures exceed minus 50F at times, just unreal. Second, the footage from the North Pole is nothing short of stunning. And the beauty is that we get to see it in the comfort and warmth of our living room. Third, despite all the fluff about "searching for myself" or "a soul's journey", Copeland has a clear agenda for doing this, and the movie is basically a plea for a renewable and sustainable world. Last but not least, the documentary features a great soundtrack (courtesy of Didier Lockwood), and the occasional song (best of all: Canada's own Besnard Lakes' epic "Like The Ocean. Like The Innocent", which plays over the end titles). Somewhat surprisingly there are no bonus materials of any kind on the DVD (unless you want to call a 2 min. commercial for Copeland's "Antarctica: A Global Warning" book a "bonus feature", as the DVD jacket actually does).I stumbled upon this movie while browsing the documentary section of my local library. So glad that I found this. For another recent documentary with even better jaw-dropping footage, I can instantly and readily suggest you check out "Chasing Ice", dealing with glaciers in Greenland, Iceland and Alaska. Meanwhile, "Into the Cold" is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

This film is in serious need of an edit -- way, way too long and a complete ego trip for the filmmaker. A mere nod to the so much more harrowing Arctic expeditions that went before them and, really, didn't he realize where all that fancy high tech gear they were using comes from? That maybe, just maybe it's our love of high tech causing the problem of climate change the filmmaker preaches against? I bought this movie thinking it would take me to places I would never see in person, but all I saw were young men making endless preparations (boring), finally getting to their starting point, and then walking, walking, walking. The most interesting part were the still photographs, which were included at one point. Like another reviewer said, wait for TV -- save your money.

For over 90 minutes Sebastian Copeland takes us step-by-step on a fascinating and dangerous trip to the North Pole. Two men, on skis, brave incredible odds to do what few people have done before.The most important message to us all is the ecological one: and this is rightly and forcibly impressed upon us throughout the film. It's easy to sit back in an armchair in - for example - Glen Cove, New York, and decree that the film has "way too much talk about climate change"!! It's never "enough" to "drone on" about the appalling state of the earth that this generation is going to leave for the next ones! And how many people almost risk their lives to impress this upon us? The film is beautifully shot and the narration takes us from the beginning germ of an idea in Copeland's head, to his meeting, much later on, with Keith Heger, his companion on the trek, and the many agonizing days and nights they risk in order to reach their goal.I cannot urge you enough to see this film (I believe is is coming out on DVD). Show it to your kids! Not for one minute does one get bored with the fascinating account of what goes on in Copeland's head as he endures an eerie silence day after day, only broken by the scrape of skis on brittle snow. It is truly a wonderful opportunity that Copeland has given to us to share in this exciting adventure: one that we were actually able to follow on a daily basis exactly a year ago on his Face Book blog as the trek progressed --- from our armchairs all over the world.

During a time when our attentions are focused on many different global issues, this film is a welcome reminder that if we do not continue to work on protecting the planet - quite simply - nothing else will matter.So few people have made this dangerous expedition to the North Pole successfully. And nobody has covered it in this way - with such stunning camera work and images. The film allows us to really connect with a part of the planet that is so remote, and largely impossible to truly imagine. Mr. Copeland should be applauded for delivering the chilling Arctic ice cap to us (and so beautifully) in the comfort of our living rooms - so that we may connect with it and appreciate how very valuable it is to the future of humankind.