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6.6/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 6.6/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Tundra remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you like movies that feel like a cold breeze against your face, sure. It’s for the folks who don’t mind a film that moves at the speed of a tired hiker. If you need snappy dialogue or a plot that moves fast, you’ll probably be bored to tears within twenty minutes.
It’s a survival story that feels very much of its time. You know, the kind where nature is the main character and everyone else is just kind of… there to suffer through it. 🥶
Alfred Delcambre is doing a lot of heavy lifting here. Watching him walk through all that white space starts to feel almost hypnotic after a while. It’s not flashy. It’s just him, the snow, and a whole lot of silence.
There is a specific moment where he just stops to breathe, and I think I held my breath with him for way too long. The movie doesn't rush these beats. It forces you to sit in the cold until you start to feel a bit stiff yourself.
The cinematography has this raw, scratchy quality that makes the wilderness feel dangerous, not just pretty. It’s not like those glossy survival movies you see today. You can almost smell the damp wool and the old film stock. 🎞️
It’s interesting how this compares to something like The Great K & A Train Robbery, which is all about momentum and action. Tundra is the complete opposite. It’s about the lack of motion. It’s about the struggle to even take the next step.
I found myself wondering if they were actually freezing while filming some of these shots. Some of the expressions don't look like acting. They look like genuine exhaustion.
It’s not perfect. The story is thin. But it has this weird, persistent gravity that keeps you watching. It doesn't try to be profound. It just wants you to feel the cold. And honestly? It succeeded.