The Way Back

The Way Back follows a group of prisoners who escape from a Soviet labour camp in Siberia during the Second World War. The men come from different countries and backgrounds, among them a Polish officer, a Russian criminal and an American engineer. After breaking out during a snowstorm, they face a journey of thousands of miles on foot, crossing Mongolia, the Gobi Desert, the Tibetan plateau and the Himalayas, with the hope of reaching safety in India. The escape itself turns out to be only the beginning of their ordeal, as hunger, cold weather, difficult terrain and the people they meet along the way put their group under constant strain. The story draws on Slavomir Rawicz's memoir about his own claimed escape, a book whose accuracy has been questioned by historians.

Peter Weir directed and co-wrote the film with Keith R. Clarke, and also produced it with Nigel Sinclair and Keith Clark. It was the thirteenth film Weir directed in chronological order, arriving seven years after Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. The cast includes Jim Sturgess, Colin Farrell, Ed Harris, Saoirse Ronan, Mark Strong and Gustaf Skarsgård, with 27 credited cast members and 117 credited crew.

Released in 2010, the film had a budget of 30 million US dollars and took about 20 million US dollars worldwide. On IMDb it holds a rating of 7.3 out of 10 from roughly 127,000 votes, and on TMDB 7 out of 10 from around 1,800 votes. A critics' rating of 6.8 out of 10 from 137 reviews places it close to the audience scores.