I have been waiting so long to see this movie that I basically forgot about it until I checked the schedule on HBO and seen that it would be premiering. I knew that this would basically be my only chance to see it, so I cleared my Saturday night and decided to sit down and watch this movie that I’ve been waiting so long to see. Did it live up to all of my expectations? Keep reading to find out.
The Mountain Between Us is about two travelers, Alex Martin, played by Kate Winslet, and Dr. Ben Bass, played by Idris Elba. Stranded at an airport because of a snow storm, Alex needs to find a way to get out to make her wedding while Ben has to find a way out to make it to his brain surgery operation the next day to save a little boys life. Both are stuck in this predicament and Alex hatches a plan for them to use a privately charted plane to go to another airport that will fly them to their destinations. This is all going well until their pilot, played by Beau Bridges, has a stroke midflight and the plane crashes. With the pilot dead and the only two people left alive, besides the pilot’s dog, they have to find a way to endure the mountain that they crashed on and try to survive. Will they be able to put aside their differences and do it or will they end up dying as they wait for help?
This movie was just brilliant. These two people go from tolerating each other in a time of need, to hating each other as they have to learn how to survive, to falling in love with one another and making sure that they both survive. I have to say that being the animal lover that I am, I was so worried about the dog that half way through the movie I had to do a quick check to see if the dog made it so that I could actually concentrate on the movie. SPOILER ALERT! The dog makes it so you can put your mind at ease. I found the concept of this movie an interesting one though since both Alex and Ben are two completely different people. Alex is this free spirit who seems a little hesitant on getting married while Ben is more structured. He lives his life a certain way and is happy. Alex and Ben will clash as they try to survive. Ben thinks it’s best to stay in the plane and wait for help, while Alex, who is severely injured, thinks that if they stay in the plane they’ll die because no one is looking for them. They’ll have to find this balance in order to survive and the falling in love thing kind of comes as a surprise for both the audience and the characters. I guess that’s what happens though when you’re fighting for your life and spend weeks on end depending on one another.
I don’t think that they could have found two better people than Kate Winslet and Idris Elba to play these two roles because they do it to perfection. They play completely different characters and yet they mesh together perfectly. Their on screen chemistry is undeniable whether it’s because of their differences or because they realize how much they’ve come to love each other is just acting at its best. In a movie where the whole thing centers around two main cast members for 95% of the movie. Both actors just nail it.
Overall I give this movie a 5 out of 5.
I highly recommend this movie if you’re into those survival type movies. Don’t worry, no one gets eaten alive in this movie, like the movie Alive, so you can take that burden off your shoulders of thinking that you’ll see some cannibalism. I will say though that this movie is so much more than a survival movie. It’s about two people who are complete opposites coming together to rely on one another in order to make it through this whole ordeal. They’ll fight, argue, and genuinely hate each other until they realize that they’re all they have. I would also highly recommend this movie if you just want to watch a great love story unfold. This movie is well balanced and has it all so it’s definitely worth giving it a try.
1 Broke Gamer Girl 