I took in a second screening of Peter Weir’s “The Way Back” last night after seeing and loving it at the Telluride Film Festival last month (enough to write about it a second time while I was there, in fact). What was confirmed for me was that the majesty of the film and the overall sense of atmosphere Weir establishes and maintains makes it one of the very best films of the year.
A few other things stuck out, too. I was always taken by Ed Harris’s “Mr. Smith” character and his fatherly relationship with Saoirse Ronan, but it’s a defining arc within the piece that is transcendent and could help make a solid case for Harris in the supporting actor race.
I was also struck by the makeup, which feels authentic and adds a notch of intrigue when this wound or that is revealed. You’ll recall “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” was nominated in the field seven years ago for similar work. Both of these aspects were touched on in the post-screening Q&A with Harris, producer/co-writer Keith Clarke, producer Joni Levin and executive producer (and longtime agent for Weir), John Ptak.