The Way Back (2010)

  I don't know how much of this movie actually happened.  But that's not really the point of it.  This redeemed Jim Sturgess from Across the Universe for me and provided Saoirse Ronan another opportunity to shine.  I want to see that kid in more stuff.

When Hitler started grabbing up European countries, Stalin scrambled to get as many as he could, too.  It sucked to be Polish around that time, because you were either going to get shot by the Nazis or shipped off to Siberia by the Communists.  Janusz (Jim Sturgess) is accused of being a spy and sent to a gulag for manual labor.  There, he meets various prisoners of war, including an American (Ed Harris) and a Russian gangster (Colin Farrell).  Janusz is not about to die for the Russians, however, and formulates a plan to escape.  Seven men make their way out under the cover of a blizzard and head for the Mongolian border.  Along the way, they meet Irena (Saoirse Ronan), a young woman who may not be who she is pretending to be.

This was partially funded by National Geographic and the cinematography certainly reflects that involvement.  I'm fairly certain this is as close as I will ever actually get to the Gobi Desert, Siberia, and Tibet.  Which is a shame since at least one of those is gorgeous.

This isn't as horribly depressing as most POW movies, although it does have its moments.  I enjoyed watching it and it is available for streaming on Netflix, although you may want to spring for blu-ray if you want to be blown away by the vistas on display.