La Wally: Cold peaks, hot tempers, and old-school drama

Is this for you?

If you have a soft spot for grainy, old-fashioned melodrama where people yell at mountains, you’ll dig La Wally. If you need your pacing snappy or your dialogue modern, you will probably want to turn it off before the first ten minutes are up. It’s definitely not for everyone, but there’s a certain weird gravity to it that kept me watching.

There’s something about the way the film leans into the whole 'feisty woman against the world' trope that feels very of its time. You can tell the actors are really trying to push the drama to the back of the theater. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it just looks like they’re having a very loud argument in a living room.

Giannina Arangi Lombardi has this intensity in her eyes that reminds me of some of the sharper performances in Thoughtless Women. She doesn't have to say much to make you feel like she’s about to either slap someone or climb a cliff just to spite them. It’s a bold choice, and it mostly pays off.

Mountain vibes and bad decisions

The mountain scenery is... well, it’s mostly painted backdrops and some creative editing, but it has a charm. You can tell they really wanted it to feel epic, but the budget clearly had other plans. It reminded me a bit of the scrappy energy you find in The Yellow-Back, where the environment is almost another character in the story.

The pacing is definitely not 'modern.' There are moments where the camera just sits on a face for a few seconds too long, and you start to notice the texture of the film or a stray hair on the lens. It makes it feel like you’re watching a home movie from a century ago, which I honestly kind of liked. 🏔️

The ending is pure, unadulterated tragedy. It doesn’t pull any punches, even if you see the final 'disaster' coming from a mile away. It’s like watching a train wreck in slow motion, but the train is made of wood and the tracks are buried under a foot of fake stage snow.

• The costumes are incredibly stiff.
• The dialogue sounds like it was written for a stage, not a camera.
• Wait, did that extra in the background just trip?
• The intensity is almost exhausting by the halfway point.

I wouldn't say this is a masterpiece, but it’s a fascinating look at how people used to tell stories about heartbreak. It’s not trying to be subtle. It’s trying to be loud, sad, and memorable. On that front, it succeeds just enough to make it worth the watch. Just don’t expect it to change your life or anything. It's just a decent, moody flick. 🎬