6 Below: Miracle On The Mountain

A very convincing Josh Hartnett plays the role of Eric LeMarque, a former hockey player fighting for his life when he got lost on the mountains due to a severe storm. A man alone with a snowboard and his own demons, plus some "fangy friends" here and there: the director, Scott Waugh, didn't need too many ingredients to cook up a suspenseful drama based on the true story of the "Miracle Man". An impeccable Mira Sorvino is Eric's mother.

It’s artistry and spare Christian content leave something to be desired, but faith-based films are about story as well as faith. And the story is a miracle of redemption--in a moment on a snow-trapped mountain. The true story of Eric LeMarque’s ordeal in the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Western United States is based on LeMarque’s book written with Davin Seay. The book is called Crystal Clear. Though LeMarque is portrayed as having a drug problem and has stopped playing ice hockey although he is a good player. Eric’s mother, Susan LeMarque shows her disapproval of his carefree lifestyle (although she truly cares for him it is revealed later). Not caring about what his mother thinks, Eric goes ‘joyriding’ on the mountain ranges in the Sierra Nevada, to be free and do what he likes. When he goes snowboarding on the mountains, he takes the difficult path and gets lost. What follows is a survival story in the snow, but one where he takes stock of his life and where a rekindling of his Christian faith is involved. He may need a personal revival…The story of the man and what happened to him after his mountainous ordeal is one of those stories about events that can change people for the better played for inspirational effect. Sometimes people give up on life and let it go but 6 Below is about how to rise above. Artistically, the story gained momentum after the point something significant happened to LeMarque (Josh Harnett) and the lack of profanity was good because we didn’t get a barrage of swear words. However, Eric’s mother is played by an ill cast Mira Sorvino, who looks young enough to play Eric’s wife, and there is a stock of one-dimensional reactions to the cold, being in danger, and suffering with frostbite. What flattens the story are the heavy-handed climatic scenes. A lighter touch there would have been more effective. While not a cinematic recommend, the spiritual and Christian content is bare, the movie provides only a few moments where prayer, reflection, and divine intervention are present. with little resonance, and though a good story the execution was lacking. However, the story is worthwhile in that it portrays someone overcoming adversity. It is not only about physical survival but also touches on a deeper reconciliation with God and finding redemption in a most perilous situation.