THE BOY IN THE SNOW | Omeleto

A soldier raids a village. A soldier raids an enemy village with his regiment, and in the melee, finds himself unable to kill a young boy. He also finds himself left behind, separated from his troop. He sets out in the surrounding mountains and wilderness to find his fellow soldiers, bringing the boy with him. The journey through the woods is arduous, full of cold and hunger. But as they battle the elements together, the boy's innocence slowly awakens the hardened soldier's humanity and they form an unlikely bond. That bond is tested, though, when the soldier unites with his missing patrol and must make a terrible choice that will decide both of their fates. Directed by Dieter Primig and written by Samuel Jefferson, this absorbing and moving short historical drama weaves together two different narrative strands. One is a simple, almost primal portrait of friendship and fellowship between two people from opposite sides of life; the other explores the brutal calculus of war and violence. Told with both intimate grit and visual grandeur, it brings together both themes in an unforgettable collision that feels both emotionally intense and epic in scope. The storytelling is told with a large canvas and a sense of epic sweep, embracing both its historical time period and the unforgiving natural environment of mountainous woods in winter. Opening with a suspenseful, action-packed set piece of soldiers raiding a village, we're immersed in the chaos and terror of war from the onslaught, tracking both the soldiers' ruthlessness and the villagers' terror. We're swept along with dynamic camerawork and stunning cinematography, landing on a soldier who finds himself both unable to kill a young child and abandoned by his regiment. His efforts to reunite with his side pull the film into a quieter tenor and form the bulk of the overall trajectory, joined by the young boy he brings with him. They don't share a language, culture or nationality, and subsequently, the film's dialogue is pared down to its most basic and essential. Yet as they make their way through the desolate winter countryside and deal with hunger, fear and the ever brutal chill of the season, the soldier discovers both a sense of moral obligation and decency with the child, a shared humanity that's captured in emotionally attuned, quietly tender storytelling, highlighting the terrific performances of actors Lukas Stoger and Claudio Magno as the soldier and boy, respectively. The transformation of their relationship is unsentimental yet tender; they discover they need to come together to survive, and in doing so, come to trust and care for each other. It's devastating, then, when the soldier finally reunites with his troop. It makes for a tense, propulsive final sequence, where the soldier finds himself in both literal and moral crosshairs and is forced to make a difficult choice. THE BOY IN THE SNOW is a powerful piece, one that takes special care in showing the beauty of shared humanity, in how two people from disparate walks of life can connect and help one another. So it's especially harrowing to see it challenged in the engines of war, run by those who seem to forget how ordinary people and lives are so easily destroyed in the turmoil and violence. It ends with a surge of strong heartwrenching emotion, as well as a reminder that we are better when we are united -- and no one truly wins in the destruction of war. THE BOY IN THE SNOW. Courtesy of Dieter Primig at https://instagram.com/theboyinthesnowfilm.