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Antarctica Movie Review

Antarctica is a 1983 Japanese historical adventure film directed by Koreyoshi Kurahara and starring Ken Takakura. It’s a beautiful, emotionally resonant movie.

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“All lives are equal.

No one has the right to end the lives of those dogs.

It took me such a long time to understand that“

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The film is about a 1958 ill-fated Japanese scientific expedition to the South Pole, its dramatic rescue from the severe weather conditions on the return journey, the relationship between the scientists and their loyal and hard-working Sakhalin huskies, particularly the lead dogs Taro and Jiro, and the fates of the 15 dogs left behind to fend for themselves. I hadn’t known anything about this real historical event prior to watching it, so the movie was entirely unpredictable and emotionally rewarding for me.

This is above all else a dog picture and it was refreshing to witness a film about dogs that is truly epic, historically accurate and brutally realistic without ever being cloying or too cutesy. The first half focuses on the expedition itself and this is where we get to see some unfortunate Japanese patriotism, but thankfully the rest of the movie was more about the human-dog bond than the expedition itself, which was a great choice from the filmmakers.

A phenomenal viewing for any dog lover out there, Antarctica is a true ode to dogs’ loyalty and perseverance, but again it never forsakes realism in favor of anthropomorphism. In fact, this is one of the most authentic films starring dogs that I have ever seen as the dog actors did a wonderful job throughout and their behavior was thoroughly believable in every single sequence.

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The heartbreaking scenes where the majority of the dogs met their untimely death were truly difficult to sit through, but the movie made you care for these dogs and it developed the bond between them and their owners so deftly that the final scene was emotionally earned instead of being manipulative. It ends with Taro and Jiro running toward the two men who came back to search for them. Couple that bittersweet imagery with the icy landscape and a timeless score and you’ve got one of the best movie endings of the decade. This scene honestly made me cry how powerful it was.

Yes, Antarctica features a score from Vangelis that is truly one of his best works. It is otherworldly during the Aurora Borealis scene, intense when it counts, epic throughout and beautiful and moving during the most emotional sequences. It’s one of the best and most underrated soundtracks of the eighties for sure. The cinematography is also absolutely gorgeous. They filmed it at the north tip of Hokkaido, but it very much felt like the titular continent, so it worked. Some of the scenery here was so mesmerizing.

Antarctica also benefits from excellent acting performances from its competent cast of actors. Even more development could have been given to these human characters, but ultimately the two main men were well developed and their PTSD from leaving the dogs there was powerfully explored. The movie depicts realistically how strong a bond between humans and dogs can really be.

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There is the issue of runtime here as two and a half hours was unnecessary for this great, but simple tale. The second act, thus, ended up being too slow. However, transcendence and serenity was achieved during those stretches and you come to care for the dogs so much, which was important in making you feel things during that final sequence.