BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

Solidrariol Am I Missing Something?

Ella-May O'Brien Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Degree7 Pathfinder is a Scandinavian fable set sometime in the 10th or 11th century involving a young indigenous Sami boy, whose family are massacred by the warring Tchudes, and flees to a nearby village to help defend them from the approaching pillagers. There is confrontation between some of the villagers and the boy, as some believe that they are no match for the superior in numbers Tchude barbarians, while a few others are willing to stay behind to help the boy fight them off.Once the Tchudes do arrive, the boy is taken prisoner and agrees to help them find a way through a pass in the mountains to get to the coastal village that the other Sami have fled to. But the boy has a final trick up his sleeve that will hopefully save them....It's a timeless coming of age tale, and of good versus evil. But what makes it unique is the frigid Arctic setting, as well as the insight into the native culture of the Sami people. Most interesting is the undercutting theme of interconnected destinies, as the pathfinder Raste informs the boy how important it is to find strength in others, even when it seems you are on your own in the darkest of times. No man is truly free, and the pathfinder serves as a beacon for guiding the boy to his destiny to save the village, as well as lead the Tchudes on their path to self destruction. Raste understands how the heart of nature is intertwined with that of his people, as shown by his sighting of the reindeer bull.

Rodrigo Amaro I literally had to fight to track down and watch this movie but it worth all the trouble for it. "Ofelas" ("Pathfinder") is one of those pictures that doesn't have the attention it deserves, neither a wider distribution that should have and it will stay in this underrated category for a long time. Even with an American remake made in 2007 (I don't think I'll ever watch for countless reasons, to be exposed later on this review) I don't know if people still talk about this precious gem. But all in all, thank you AMPAS for giving a nomination for this as Best Foreign Film, otherwise it'll probably been overlooked under my radar."Ofelas" works almost like "True Grit" in the sense of the audience seeing a teenager who wants to avenge the murder of his family. But instead of the Old West scenario and someone paying for an old Sheriff to do the job, we have the Scandinavian wilderness of many centuries ago, and this time a boy named Aigin (Mikkel Gaup) joins another tribe to help with his plan but they're not so willing since they're not trained warriors like the Tchudes (the brutal tribe that killed the boy's family) and they're in an astonishing disadvantage with plenty of women and children with them. So, the boy decides to go on his own, improvising an intriguing scheme against those murderers, things to make us gripped through the whole time.It's not about just butchery and vengeance, there's plenty of deep mind-blowing things that rare similar projects can deal with. Transcendental like very few pictures can be, I mean really, you can watch this without the captions on and you'll still have a clue of what the movie is about, "Ofelas" surprised me for its poetic presentation of themes like faith, companion, the power of love and also the power of hate and destruction, translated all that through expressions, actions, very few words and when they're used they're magnificent. The dialog in the tent between Aigin and the tribe "pathfinder" Raste (Nils Utsi) is the high point of the film, when the old man teaches the young man what faith is about. "You still can't see it? But now you can feel that something is there. You can't see it in the air, but your very existence is tied to it. In this way all things are bound together, intertwined. No man can ever tear himself apart from the whole." He goes on. "But it can happen that he loses sight of the whole. When he does, he is like the Tchudes. Men who lost the path. They stumble blindly towards self-destruction." This quote also says everything about the villains of whom we're never able to see them talking. They simply show up on the screen and kill everybody. Why? It's all they have. The actor who plays their leader doesn't say a word, not just because the script says so but also because he's the only member of the cast who isn't from Norway. Yet, even if he had lines he would be the perfect choice for the role thanks to his powerful expressions, frightening and controlling, menacing from the first minute his presence is noted.It's a small film but of a great effect. Perfect in every sense, from the acting, the beautiful cinematography, the scary yet majestuous scenaries of mountains and trees. The action sequences has to be one of the greatest ever filmed, including the fight with a bear; the tragic opening scenes with Aigin running away from the Tchudes; the spectacularly thrilling final moments, very nerve-wracking. With all that in mind, why would anyone bother to see the millionaire budget remake? I don't think all the money in the world could represent everything this movie had: heart, soul and a great meaningful story to present. Do whatever you can to watch it. 10/10

kosmasp This movie was remade in 2006 as "Pathfinder" in America. I watched this movie before I rented the remake. The director from the original intended to shoot the movie on 65mm, but didn't have the money to do so. So he did three blow-ups on 70mm of the film. One of these copies was shown in Karlsruhe and I watched it! I can only recommend to watch it that way! The story is quite simple and can be read here at IMDb. What is quite amazing is the complex story/character arc of the main person. Of course there are still some flaws in the storytelling and the usual holes in the plot ... or that's how you could interpret them. Because those flaws (maybe they are more character flaws?) are pushing this movie into another level (imo). Just don't expect (Hollywood) Blockbuster action here ...

ollie-53 The photography is beautiful. The story hooks you very quickly. The movie has something for everyone: action, romance, nature, mysticism. I saw it 20 years ago and forgot the name. I posted on IMDb and another viewer knew the movie based on my description. It takes place in prehistoric time, but the characters are very human: you feel as if they are family. While there are subtitles, there is not much dialog: you can follow the movie very well without even looking at them. The photography is stunning. Not only is the scenery gorgeous, but the camera angles and the scene composition is wonderful. This is a movie which will bless you with its memory for the rest of your life.