‘Society of the Snow’ grimly makes the Andes survival tale ‘Alive’ again

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN

(CNN) — More than 30 years have passed since “Alive,” the movie based on the true story of the Uruguayan rugby team whose flight crashed in the Andes in 1972, forcing survivors to resort to cannibalism. Now, “Society of the Snow” retells that tale under the guidance of Spanish director J.A. Bayona, in a Spanish-language production that grimly captures the harrowing ordeal without bringing much that’s new or distinctive to the portrait.

Indeed, while the heavily narrated film endeavors to present everything about what transpired in the most visceral way possible, the movie ultimately feels like a slightly protracted version of its 1993 predecessor, joining it under the heading of “Films you will likely never see on an airplane.”

Chosen as Spain’s Oscar contender for international film, “Society of the Snow” lands on Netflix (after an obligatory theatrical stopover), where viewers can take in what’s alternately a grueling story of loss and death and an uplifting demonstration of grit and the indomitable human spirit under the kind of circumstances where hopelessness seemed like a perfectly reasonable response.

Bayona (who shares script credit with three others, adapting a book by Pablo Vierci) doesn’t fully flesh out the characters despite spending additional time with them before the signature moment when the plane crashes into the mountains, which is executed in horrific detail.

Facing the frigid elements, lacking food and soon realizing that rescue might not be forthcoming anytime soon, the conversations turn to the question of what they must do to sustain themselves, and the morality of eating those who have perished.

While the earlier film provided a showcase for some of its then-youthful stars – Ethan Hawke and Josh Lucas among them – “Society of the Snow” plays like an ensemble piece, with a cast that endured its own challenges making the film on location, including Enzo Vogrincic, Matías Recalt, Agustín Pardella, Esteban Kukuriczka, Tomas Wolf, Diego Vegezzi and Esteban Bigliardi. Bayona does judiciously drop in flashbacks that serve more as fleeting glimpses of memories passing through their minds than ways of deepening our understanding of the individual players.

Having made a mark in the US with films like “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” and another disaster epic, “The Impossible,” Bayona attacks the material with stark efficiency, including the more lurid details, which is appropriate to the task at hand without making it a picnic to watch.

Both in its cultural specificity and the passage of time, “Society of the Snow” delivers a credible take on a remarkable story – augmented by the prolific Michael Giacchino’s score – while hampered somewhat by the limitations imposed by how those events unfolded.

As earnest as this new production is, whether that’s enough to make the case for watching it once, much less sitting through a reprise for those who have seen “Alive,” feels, frankly, like a pretty tall mountain to climb.

“Society of the Snow” premieres January 4 on Netflix. It’s rated R.

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