"On the Ice"

Last night the five of us and Doria (a friend of ours that goes to college at Ilisagvik) went to the high school auditorium to see a movie called “On the Ice”. First off, why the auditorium? Because there is no movie theater here in Barrow. So why were they showing a movie if there is no movie theater? Because the movie was about Barrow. The movie was actually filmed entirely in Barrow and the surrounding snow/ice.

Of course this is not the first time a movie has been done about Barrow, Alaska. “30 Days of Night” is a vampire movie that takes place in Barrow during the winter when it is almost always dark (instead of the almost all light that we are experiencing now). I have not seen the movie because I hate horror films but from what I have heard the town in the movie looks nothing like Barrow and they did not even shoot the film in Alaska let alone the same hemisphere (It was shot in New Zealand and surrounding areas). They are also making a movie right now (“Everybody Loves Whales”) based on a true story about helping to save a whale; which happened here in Barrow. It sounds like they filmed a little bit up here which had everyone really excited, but then they decided to shoot the rest of it elsewhere in Alaska because it was cheaper.

So anyway, it seems like everyone was pretty happy that the film stayed on location. The film also stars many people from Barrow including the lead role played by Josiah Patkotak who is also a student in one of the classes that Britt is teaching.

I really liked watching this movie because the whole time I kept thinking in my head (okay, well sometimes out loud too) oh I know where that is, we just drove by that place, I’ve seen that person before. I was also impressed with the way the director kept the culture of Barrow and its people authentic. It show cased a lot of the native culture (dancing, hunting, and native language to name a few) along with the way things have changed with the way children are growing up today. It also did not shy away from some of the tougher topics that people deal with up here such as the trouble with alcohol and drug dependence and teen pregnancy.

This was a very fun and unique movie to watch and a great way to catch a flick and get a better feel for what Barrow is like.