For Mads Mikkelsen, this survival adventure was the most difficult shoot of his long career, and he is extremely proud of the result.
Today we see just how cruel nature can be in the thrilling survival thriller Arctic by Joe Penna. Here, Mads Mikkelsen fights for survival in the eternal ice and is completely on his own. The film was shown at the Cannes Film Festival in 2018 and received a lot of praise. It was shown on TV last week
A man against snow, ice and cold: Survival with Mads Mikkelsen in the thriller Arctic
When a small passenger plane crashes in the Arctic, only the pilot Overgård (Mikkelsen) survives, who sets up a small camp and fights for survival. When help finally arrives, another disaster occurs. Now Overgård is forced to get himself and the seriously injured co-pilot across the ice. Again and again they encounter new dangers and their hope of reaching their destination dwindles
Arctic was the most difficult shoot of Mikkelsen’s career
The film won over 91 percent of critics on Rotten Tomatoes. The acting performance of Mads Mikkelsen, who makes it clear that hardly any dialog is needed for a thrilling survival film, is highlighted. The leading actor is proud of the film, as he reported in an interview with the Los Angeles Times.
He read the script and immediately agreed to do it. Filming began just a month and a half later and the actor had not told his agents about it.
It felt like a rock’n’roll project, ‘We have a camera, so let’s do it’. It was a bit like my first movie and it’s nice to have that feeling at the age of 50+.
The fact that there is virtually no dialog in the film initially seemed to be a positive for Mikkelsen, who was happy not to have to learn any lines, but as it turned out, the film became the most difficult shoot of his career. Working in the Icelandic countryside was tough, with winds so strong that car doors were ripped off their hinges, and the character was also a psychological challenge. “Mentally, it’s a lonely journey.” But as you can see today, the work was worth it
