We don’t say it enough. In Antarctica, the islands often have the drawback of being deserted. That has its charm. However, the disadvantages are numerous. It’s not about being shipwrecked there. Ben and Laura learn this the hard way. A storm causes their boat to disappear. They had gone to visit this big rock planted in the middle of the sea and the weather got wild. Their sailing trip around the world is compromised. Here they are on dry land with their poor motorized inflatable boat, suddenly forced to take shelter in the ruins of an old whaling station. The couple has an interest in staying together. They are cold. They are hungry. They are afraid. No radio. They would have to last ten days, maximum. Without news from them, the husband’s brother will worry and notify emergency services. The man plays reassuring. The woman is more nervous.
The sand is gray, the sky heavy. They watch for it in the hope of discovering the helicopter that will save them. Ben probably remembers his childhood reading, manages to light a fire by rubbing two sticks, like in the Junior Beavers Manual. They feed on shellfish. Their meals unwillingly copy the menus of a Michelin-starred Scandinavian restaurant. A semblance of domestic life takes hold. Obviously, they argue. It occupies. Deep resentments rise to the surface. That’s not all that. What if we drew a gigantic SOS on the ground with boards, just to signal their presence to an improbable plane? More existential questions punctuate the monotony of the hours. “If I die first, will you eat me?”
Vegans don’t cry out loud right away, marital cannibalism is not on the agenda. The penguins being the only inhabitants of the place, animal rights activists will undoubtedly be shocked by the sequence where the hero stuns one before putting it in the pan. The screenwriters forgot to provide the recipe for this exotic dish. Suddenly Alone, inspired by a novel by Isabelle Autissier, has something quite physical about it. No offense to Sandrine Rousseau, nature has the gift of transforming itself into an enemy. Bad weather comes one after the other. Winter is coming. What is on the other side of the mountain? Time stretches. We furnish it as best we can, blowing a pipe or singing Brel at the water’s edge. Madness risks gaining ground. A ship slips offshore. Too far, too late. The man injures his leg. He will limp until the end. The woman becomes pregnant. The conditions are not ideal.
Gilles Lellouche and Mélanie Thierry delve into their characters with an intensity and fervor that command admiration. Obviously, they had a hard time. It’s for the good of the film. After a while, the roles reverse. This survival is very cinematic. The landscapes are there, with a malevolent humidity, a threatening green. They are hostile and beautiful. The suspense is there. Will they get through it? In which state? Thomas Bidegain successfully completed his Deliverance. He gets away with honors, breaks the moorings with the little French dramas. This will not be without drawbacks. Honey, for the Christmas cruise, maybe we’ll cancel, right?
The Note of Figaro: 3/4
