You should probably watch this if you’re the kind of person who likes looking at old photos of people on mountains. It’s perfect for a rainy Sunday when you don't want to think too hard but want to see something *actually* pretty.
If you need fast cars and explosions, you’re going to hate this. It moves slow.
Mountain Man is basically about a guy named Anton who is a genius at climbing rocks but sucks at being part of a village. The people in his town are incredibly mean to him just because he was born out of wedlock.
It feels like a weird thing to hold a grudge over, but I guess that was the vibe in the mountains back then. 🏔️
The actor playing the guide has this very *stern* face. He looks like he’s constantly calculating the wind speed even when he’s just eating bread.
I really liked the shots of him on the cliffs. You can tell they actually went outside to film this.
It’s not like
Tricks of Life where you can sometimes spot the studio walls. Here, the wind looks cold and the snow looks deep.
One scene shows him helping a group of tourists and he just looks so annoyed by them. I relate to that.
Then the plot kicks in when a federal judge is found dead.
Suddenly, the guy who everyone already hates is the main suspect. It’s very predictable, but the way he flees into the higher altitudes is where the movie gets good.
He’s basically a mountain goat in a wool jacket.
The way the camera follows him up the rock faces is actually kind of nerve-wracking. There’s one shot where he’s hanging by his fingertips and you can see the whole valley below him.
My palms actually got a bit sweaty watching that.
The village scenes are way less interesting. They involve a lot of old men in hats shouting about the law and honor.
There is a girl, too. Her name is Marina and she’s mostly there to look worried and wait for him to come back.
She has this one reaction shot when she hears about the murder that lasts way too long. It starts to feel like she forgot her next line.
I noticed an extra in the background of the tavern scene who was just staring directly into the lens for about three seconds. It’s the kind of mistake that makes me love these old movies more.
Then there is the whole inheritance thing.
Apparently, our hero might be rich? It feels like the writers realized the murder plot wasn't enough, so they threw in some family drama at the last minute.
It’s a bit messy. The movie doesn't really know if it wants to be a thriller or a soap opera.
But honestly, the scenery saves it every time.
There’s a silence in this film that you don't get in modern movies. Just the sound of boots on gravel and wind.
It’s much more grounded than something like
Full Speed, which is just noisy for the sake of it.
The ending is a bit too happy, maybe.
Everything gets resolved with a big speech and a hug. It felt a little unearned after all the yelling the villagers did earlier.
I still can't stop thinking about the clothes they wore to climb. Everything looks like it weighs fifty pounds when it gets wet.
How did they not just freeze immediately?
Anyway, if you want to see some great 1930s mountain photography, give it a look.
Just don't expect the mystery to be particularly clever. It’s mostly an excuse to show off the peaks.
And the judge's hat is definitely too big for his head. 🧗♂️
