Amundsen (2019) Movie Script
(engine revving)
(engine stopping)
(crash)
(moans)
I can't feel my legs!
Don't think about that.
It will be ok.
We're almost there, you know.
Based on real people and occurrences
(coughs)
Leave what you have stolen
and get lost.
Get out!
- Who are you?
- Who are you?
I'm sorry. I am...
- Roalds brother.
- Is that so?
I am Leon.
Sorry!
No.
I didn't think there was anybody here.
I didn't realize...
Bess Magids.
I arrived yesterday.
Clearly he didn't mention me, then?
No.
I'm...
Sorry for the interruption.
- You can go back to bed again.
- No, that's quite allright.
I can't sleep.
Probably still on Canada-time.
How do you know my brother?
We have known each other
a couple of years now.
You haven't-
heard anything new, by chance?
No.
(Bess) I know I've seen a bottle
of wine around here.
I prefer Whiskey, personally,
but this is better than nothing.
He was going to fly over the North pole
and get back in time to meet me here.
Instead it was Wisting-
who received me.
Wisting is a good man.
He seemed more concerned than we are.
Yes.
It is strange to look at you.
How so?
Sorry.
In the beginning I did not think
you two looked alike, but now...
He didn't mention me?
Well...
He said he had many brothers.
- But he hasn't talked about me.
- No, but...
We don't talk about family and such.
But he talked about the expeditions?
About the Northwest Passage
and the South Pole.
Of course.
But not about me?
No, but...
You weren't in the expeditions.
No.
Roald and I don't speak.
- It's been a few years since last time.
- Really? What happened?
I'm sorry.
You don't have to answer that.
It's ok.
We were four brothers, but it was
mostly just Roald and I.
(Leon) Did Roald mention our father?
(Bess) He owned ships, or something like it.
And was an... adventurer?
(Leon) Not exactly an adventurer.
But he always came home
with the nicest gifts.
I remember when he
brought that globe.
What is that in the middle, there?
That's where the air
is let in to the flame.
No what is there?
In reality, in the world.
Nobody knows.
Nobody have traveled that far north.
Some people believe-
that there is a land there.
Which hasn't been discovered yet.
(Leon) Roald continued to stare
at the holes by the poles.
Everything else had been charted.
Those holes, -
those areas, -
was everything that remained
to discover.
Roald became obsessed by the poles.
Look! Four degrees!
(Leon) He started experimenting
with arctic conditions.
Good night.
And now, you.
- Just a little bit more?
- No, you can read more tomorrow.
Good night, Roald.
(Leon) Father died at sea.
Thousands of miles away from home.
And mother fell ill a few years later.
Leon, you have to watch over your brother.
You're the big brother,
you have to take care of Roald.
(Leon) When Fridtjof Nansen
came home victorious, -
as the first to cross
Greenland by skies, -
nothing could stop us.
After that day Roald and I knew
exactly what we were going to be.
Our first great test was
a trip on the Hardanger plain.
The wind increased to a storm.
I walked in a circle all night.
But in the morning Roald was gone.
Roald!
Instead of going in a circle, he had
dug himself a snow cave.
But the temperature had dropped,
so he woke in a sarcophagus of ice.
Roald!
Roald!
Roald!
Hold on!
(coughs)
(laughs)
His reaction made me realize-
that he had something
that I didn't.
I didn't know what.
Only that I undisputedly did not have it.
You saved his life.
I'm just waiting for him to
walk through that door.
Go on, please.
It does me good to hear you speak.
- Northwest Passage?
- Yes.
Roald was aboard the first ship that
spent the winter in the Antarctic.
After that he had
this insane idea.
To use a small fishing vessel, where the
great British ships had failed.
You didn't go along?
No, no.
I stayed at home to organize
the financial support.
Roald went to face the ice.
And you, the lenders.
The first one to sail through the
last part of the Northwest Passage.
The promising, young Norwegian discoverer-
Roald Amundsen!
Thank you. It is...
Thank you.
It is...
It is a great honor to be here.
Thank you.
I would also like to thank you, Dr. Nansen.
I would not be here today-
without your good advice and support.
Thank you.
During our search for
the Northwest Passage-
we spent two winters in a small,
completely isolated port-
called Uqsuqtuuq.
We called the place Gjahavn (Gjoa Haven)
A little easier to prononounce.
And here we got the opportunity to meet-
and study the netsilik-inuites.
They imparted upon us invaluable knowledge-
on how to survive arctic conditions.
They move efficiently across the ice
using light sleighs-
and polar dogs.
And this method-
was deciding for us-
when we explored the area.
The life of the Netsilikes-
is clearly unique and very specialized.
And they are now among the last natives-
who haven't been in touch with
missionaries from the south.
Just wait!
(quiet laughter)
It is...
I have heard a lot of strange things-
about the inuites
That they are lazy, for instance.
They are not lazy.
They are smart.
They know that stress causes you to sweat.
And if you're sweating in low
temperatures, you may die.
(Leon) Roald had learned survival
techniques from the inuites.
And so our dream was to be fulfilled:
To be the first to reach the North Pole.
But the brits did not take
these survival-ideas seriously.
Even as they were planning
their own expedition.
That was a very well executed
lecture, Amundsen.
The English are sceptical to
the Greenland Dogs.
They prefer setters.
Mr. Scott!
- Old friend. How are you doing?
- Good to see you.
- I assume you two have met?
- No.
Roald Amundsen,
this is Robert Falcon Scott.
A pleasure.
And congratulations.
I am... mightily impressed.
The pleasure is all mine.
The stories of the British explorers-
changed my life.
John Franklin, for instance.
It was the British that paved
the way for us.
But somebody had to take the last step.
In that tiny little fishing boat.
- Who would have thought it?
- She was weary in the end.
And you?
Ambassador Nansen?
I expect you are ready to travel again?
Are you going to one of the poles?
Which one will it be?
North or South?
I'm still caught up in diplomacy.
Of course.
There are more important things
than exploring ice.
Gentlemen...
A true pleasure.
Do you think he's going north or south?
The most important thing to research-
in the arctic realm
is not who comes first, -
but the exploration of the polar basin's
reach, depth and character.
They are planning expeditions, all of them.
We don't have a lot of time.
If we are to manage 3000 km in 100 days
we have to reduce weight and increase speed.
And the english have motor vehicles.
Scott has tested up at Finse.
And I believe in Polar Bears
as a beast of burden.
That does not mean I'm going for it
in this context.
Only one thing is sufficiently tested
and tried for something like this.
That is Greenland Dogs.
Many Greenland Dogs.
(Leon)
Suddenly Nansen's wife fell ill.
And we saw an opportunity to
borrow his ship, Fram.
Go away.
We don't want any visitors.
I understand.
I'm sorry.
My name is Roald Amundsen.
Your father knows me well.
Perhaps if he's told that it is me, -
that will change things?
(coughing)
You can have Fram.
There are two conditions. One:
Hjalmar Johansen-
is constantly coming asking for money.
But it is I who am indebted to him.
He deserves another chance.
I thought perhaps Johansen was
unable to...
- He is still drinking?
- Hjalmar comes.
And the other?
Fram is not to be used to a
breakneck race to the North Pole.
You are traveling in service of Science.
Science. Do you understand me?
Black painted six-person tents,
20 pairs of hickory skis, -
five cooking trays, two sextants, -
one liquid compass, two binoculars,
two photographic cameras and three hypsometers.
One of the challenges
with regard to speed, -
is that when the temperature is lower than
minus 25, the snow can change consistency.
We will solve that by adding a thin
layer of ice under the sleigh runners
The weight will still be crucial.
We have to get under one tonne per sleigh.
Then we've got the dogs.
- What do you mean?
- The weight will gradually be reduced.
So we won't need as
many dogs.
Greenland Dogs are cannibals, so they
will be good provisions for us and them alike.
This is nature. Dog is no worse than pig.
Do you think there's a difference
between dog and pork?
I think most people do.
I don't think it's pleasant eating
loyal traveling companions.
Here the question is whether we want
to come first, or it's no big deal.
Wisting!
(Leon) We started gathering the crew.
Was it 200 meters?
210!
Just you see-
you'll be the first one to
discover new land up there in the ice.
Thank you, but that is a glory I want
you to have, captain.
(quiet conversation)
...all information. All information.
What is it?
Captain.
I came as quickly as I could.
Is anything amiss?
Roald?
What does it say?
"North pole reached."
Frederick Cook?
"Cook left his log books on Greenland."
He's got no proof.
The expedition is dead.
- If he wasn't really there...
- When he doesn't have proof?
Roald is right.
As long as they claim that, -
it's not newsworthy any longer.
Then nobody will want to fund
the expedition.
It is over.
We go on.
We head to the South Pole.
We'll just do it.
Just do it.
All right. Fine.
But how?
We keep it a secret.
And then we give it all we've got.
Nobody will know.
So, completely quiet.
Yes.
That means we will have to lie to all.
Nansen, of course, but...
Also to the King.
But that...
We won't think about that.
Let's think about what will happen-
if this succeeds.
I mean, imagine if it succeeds.
Imagine if it succeeds!
Hi, Hjalmar.
Yes?
You don't intend to bring that
cabin north?
You do know it will be
crushed by the ice?
Twisted into the sea.
You aren't that certain to
find land up there?
You've been rowing
all the way from Kristiania?
Certainly.
- Have to use your energy for something.
- Yes you do.
Yes, I...
I'm a completely different person-
up there in the ice.
Just ask Nansen.
When he twisted his back,
I had to carry him.
Did you know that?
No, I guess that's how it is.
We are all better men up there.
You aren't coming along, then?
A little on the aging side?
- Two years older than you.
- No more than that?
No, I'll have to stay here at home.
We are still not fully funded.
I talked to a radio producer.
I can't bring a radio.
Then Nansen will get in touch
with me, ask me to turn around.
When are we going to tell him?
When it is too late.
There are many
who have raised questions-
regarding this expedition.
Why would we bring a cabin
up on the drift ice in the Arctic?
Why have we brought along
90 Greenland Dogs from Kristiansand, -
instead of picking them up in Alaska
when we are sailing North again.
And the truth is-
that...
We have no plans-
to sail North again-
when we sail around Cape North.
We will continue South.
The brits have major plans to
add Antarctica to their Empire.
Robert Scott is on his way with 65 men, -
motor vehicles and horses.
It seems like the only thing-
he has forgotten to consider, -
is us.
Because it is we-
who will be the first-
to the South Pole.
So now I really only need to know
that I've got your full-
support.
And that-
those who wish to
be a part of this-
raise your hand.
Good.
Then that is how it will be.
- Good luck.
- Thank you.
(Roald) Right this moment King Haakon
is being informed of the change of plans.
I ask you not to judge me too harshly.
I assure you that I one day will
continue with the original plan.
With scientific research of the
oceanic currents around the North Pole.
This is no longer an expedition.
This is a race.
(Roald) This is Antarctica.
The coldest place in the world.
A desert of ice.
The first thing we'll do, is building
our cabin, Framheim, in the Bay of Whales.
This is where we are staying the winter,
after we have deployed supply caches.
As soon as the sun returns, -
we will begin
our 1300 kilometer long journey-
towards the South Pole.
There is no map, -
almost no information
about what awaits us.
Only the certainty that here-
no humans-
have ever been.
It is -56C!
We must turn around!
We are not grouped!
We will go back.
Every person by himself.
Tell the others.
Are you ok?
Yes, we're coming!
(wind howling outside)
So, you...
You took your time?
It was too soon to go out.
You left us.
You left...
I said it clearly.
On the way back everybody were individually
responsible to find the way back home.
You don't leave your crew-
to die!
In a blizzard!
Nansen would never have done that.
This was no expedition.
This was panic.
You went out too soon
to gain an advantage on Scott.
I mean...
Scott.
Scott has been preparing
for this for four years.
He will take Shackleton's old route
across the mountain.
While we are here.
In a terrain where nobody ever
have set foot.
We could just as well be on
a different planet.
And so you think-
that it would be without risk?
Have I been unclear?
Is the situation such-
that there are someone here-
who haven't realized-
what we actually are doing?
- No.
- No.
Because in that case-
perhaps it could be useful-
if you told us all,
since you are so concerned with him, -
what Nansen's motto was-
as he crossed Greenland?
What was it, -
Johansen?
"Death..."
"...or Greenland's West Coast."
Yes.
So what do you think ours is?
Johansen.
I have...
You are not going on.
You will chart the area
around King Edward's Land.
Under the command of Presterud.
(Bess) Why are you telling me this?
(Leon) So you will learn more
about the man you have a relationship with.
Have you experienced arctic conditions?
No.
Driven a dog sleigh in a blizzard?
How so?
I have.
Are you done?
Wisting!
Come on!
(roars)
Mount-
Bjaaland.
Mount Hassel.
Mount Hanssen.
Mount Wisting.
Mount Presterud.
And Mount Johansen.
(dog whimpers)
Yes, let's just-
get this started.
Shall I begin?
I think that looks very good.
No, thank you.
I'm not all that hungry
Have you seen a man with scurvy, Bjaaland?
First you start to act oddly.
Powerless and tired.
Then-
you start to bleed from the mouth.
And your teeth fall out.
Then old wounds and breakages-
start opening again.
(laughing)
And you, Wisting?
You're sitting and...
Sitting and thinking about...?
Just that...
Here we are.
In the world's greatest desolation.
As large as-
All of North America combined.
And that flame-
is the only source of heat
on the entire continent.
Except Scott's, that is.
How much further is it?
I think we are very close.
Very, very close.
That seems right according to mine.
What do you have?
Wait a minute, I'll verify.
From what I can see, that is right.
Yes.
But then...
That's what it is.
Come, let's take it now.
We'll take it.
(roars)
(majestic music)
Look towards the flag.
Which direction is North now?
- That way, isn't it?
- No, it is there.
My money is on that way.
It's strange how it is all connected.
And it's probably nobody, ever-
who's been standing in a spot more diametrically
opposed from what was the original goal.
It's also a little funny.
No, let him go.
I wonder where the englishmen are.
Dear Captain Scott.
As you doubtlessly are the first
who will come here after us, -
I'm asking you to kindly
forward this letter-
to King Haakon 7.
If you should have need of any of what
we've left in the tent, -
you are welcome to have it.
Perhaps you also may have use of the
sleigh that is outside.
With Kind Regards, and
best wishes for a safe return.
Telegram for Amundsen.
Telegram?
- What does it say?
- "Agrbf amgif akr..."
It's a code!
What does it say?
We did it!
(porcelain broken)
Know what, Nicolay?
I've never liked this set.
We can't have worn out porcelain.
Now we can get a new one!
Amundsen on the South Pole!
Amundsen on the South Pole!
Amundsen on the South Pole!
(choir singing Norwegian national hymn
"Ja, vi elsker")
(shot)
("Ja, vi elsker" is playing)
Gentlemen.
We usually don't permit ladies to enter.
But since little Mary has written
such a beautiful poem-
I figured we could make an exception.
Even if but a simple cross
Marks the grave of these heroic men
Their names will live on for ever
O England, home of the brave!
(silence)
Captain Scott and his brave men
reached the South Pole on January 17th, -
only to discover that Mr. Amundsen
had beat them to it.
One can only imagine-
how betrayed-
our brave men must have felt
on the way home.
Thanks to Scott's log book-
we know exactly what happened.
We know that Mr. Amundsen penned a letter
to the King of Norway-
which he requested that captain Scott
deliver on his behalf.
He mistook our officers for mail men!
(laughter)
Our guest had good fortune on his journey.
Good weather.
Good health.
Transportation that didn't break down.
And we congratulate him with this.
Captain Scott, -
a true british hero...
Pulled his own sleigh!
It is possible that he lost-
an unfair battle against
sickness and hunger.
But he refused to resort to barbarism.
He remained a true gentleman-
To the very last.
I thus want to raise a toast.
For the real heroes
on this expedition.
The dogs.
(laughter) To the dogs!
Are you going to the moon,
Mr. Amundsen?
- Charles Bennett.
- Good to see you, my friend.
You must meet my wife.
One of your fellow countrymen.
Kristine Elisabeth.
Mrs Bennett.
- I'm honored.
- Call me Kiss.
And the honor is all mine, Mr. Amundsen.
Excuse me.
I just have to say that how the british
are treating you is shameful.
And after such a triumph!
It was horrific to hear about
Mr. Scott and his men.
Terrible stroke of bad luck.
And so close to a safe harbor.
When you-
prepare everything correctly-
and have everything in order,
it is called luck.
But when you avoid to take
the most mandatory precautions-
and suffer a defeat,
it is called bad luck.
What do you mean?
Scott.
He was a great scientist.
An excellent sportsman.
But Nansen had told him
that he should use skis and dogs.
Despite this he insisted on-
machines and ponies.
The British have a need to conquer.
That they do. But you cannot
conquer nature.
You just can't.
You just have to-
play along.
He's got a weakness for married women.
Are you?
Married?
Yes.
I know about Kiss.
And there have been others.
So what?
We are both adults.
Do you think Roald would forgive us
if we tasted-
one of the bottles from the South Pole?
Do you know who owns this house?
The one that needs it the least.
- Congratulations, Amundsen!
- Look over here, please!
Kiss.
Kiss.
Can you hear me?
Honorable Roald Amundsen.
We Norwegians-
are proud-
that you have planted
the Norwegian Flag on the South Pole.
Ahead of the English!
It is impossible to realize-
what this incredible feat
has cost in sacrifice, -
endurance, and heroic courage.
In this triumph
you shall be forgiven for forgetting-
that the South Pole was not the
real goal. Just a step on the way.
But Amundsen is a man of is word.
Next year it's time for the Bering Strait.
In to ice.
And cold.
And darkness.
To research the polar currents-
and drift in over the North Pole.
For at least five years!
It may seem to be almost supernatural.
But Amundsen-
is man for that as well.
Hooray!
Hooray!
Hooray!
Nansen has a theory that
if I let the boat get frozen in the ice, -
I can drift the entire way to the Pole.
And what happens at the North and South Pole
is crucial for the climate
all over the globe.
This is not what you want to do now.
But this was the condition for me
being allowed to borrow Fram.
I did not think he would
hold me to it.
No.
Five years in the ice...
We don't need to care about that.
It means nothing to us.
When we think about each other-
it's like we are together.
I feel you.
I feel you.
I feel you.
Right?
We have our unwired conversation.
Nobody can take that away from us.
You...
You are mine, you know.
You are mine, mine, mine.
You will always feel
that I am with you.
Always.
(Leon) Roald was forced to
prove Nansen's theory.
That it was possible to drift with the
polar ice all the way to the North Pole.
So he-
ordered a new ship.
Special order for the mission,
called Maud.
That ship-
cost a lot more money than we had.
Only a sensational triumph
could have saved us from bankruptcy.
And it turned out-
that drifting to the North Pole
takes a long time.
Very long time.
(Roald) Five months-
until sunrise.
(ice creaking)
(loud crash)
We have to get out and hack at the
ice so the boat won't be crushed.
- Does it look ok now, captain?
- No, we need more. It's here.
It is here the whole...
Captain!
Captain!
Wisting, come here!
(ice creaking)
Yes...
(wheezing)
(dog barking)
(dog whimpering)
(crash)
(wheezing)
Bjrn!
Bjrn!
Bjrn!
- Perhaps you want some of this?
- No, just wrap it up.
I'd like some.
(moans)
This will be fine.
(coughs)
Captain?
Handsome mustache.
I'm doing it.
Tessem-
wants to leave the expedition.
The headache won't let up.
He still barely can sleep.
How far until the telegraph station
at Dickson Island?
About 70 miles.
That's not doable.
Knudsen has offered to
accompany him.
Tessem?
We need to send a load of
mail to people at home.
I'd like to ask you whether
you could take care of that?
Yes, captain.
You take Knudsen-
and you can have a dog sled
and you'll be there in four weeks.
(Leon) You know...
It does something to a man.
Being trapped in the ice for so long.
What do you mean?
Well, I bid you welcome.
Oh, look!
(plays "Silent Night")
I feel you have been quiet
for a long while now.
I'm walking around here having
small talk with you, you know.
Now you have to answer.
I have transfered the property.
Villa Uranienborg.
To you.
So I will know that you
always will have a home.
No matter what happens.
(a bump)
(footsteps)
- What's going on?
- Sssh!
(footsteps)
Please.
Sverdrup, get the medical kit.
Codliver oil is never wrong.
Was it tasty? (laughter)
This is so delicious.
I think we just have to taste
it at once.
Would you like some of this too?
Then let's do that.
(roars)
No, no!
No, no, no!
Look. (child laughing)
Here are more playmates, ok.
This is a very...
A very special person.
What is it?
Her father wants us to take her to Norway.
To get an education.
Yes, but...
We can't take them all.
Kakonita has no parents.
It will be something completely different.
We can't start doing that.
I mean...
I think we have to break out
the film from the South Pole tonight.
Those are penguins.
They can't fly.
They just walk around.
Let's see if it wants the pipe.
It does not want the pipe.
I'm thinking about when
Kiss gets to meet these.
We'll be like a little family.
That we will.
It's clear that Nansen is right
about the current theory. Absolutely.
It's just that-
five years in the ice-
is far too optimistic.
(Leon)
The expedition took too long.
And Roald lost his focus.
He started to consider other ways
to reach the North Pole.
We have to, you know.
We have to.
If there's a land up there.
With people.
With.. well, a society.
We have to get to the North Pole.
See it with our own eyes.
Girls!
(Leon) And then he just left.
And made Wisting captain.
We had put all our money
in that ship.
Everything.
We know nothing about
this huge white area.
2.5 million square kilometers-
of ice-covered polar ocean.
That's why we shall-
fly there.
We will be the first to look down at
the last place on this earth-
which has resisted every attempt-
at discovery.
There are of course no guarantees-
that we will find a hidden continent
up there.
But if we do, -
it will be one of the most
significant discoveries-
in the entire history of the world.
He got a hold of two Junker-planes.
Named them Kristine and Elisabeth.
You know how that turned out.
They flew 30 meters.
Planes to a price of 80000 US dollars.
Abandoned in the snow.
He...
He lost it.
There's no other way to put it.
You don't know him.
I beg your pardon?
I mean,
you knew him once.
But not now.
I think I know my brother
better than anybody else.
I was there.
That is where we met.
In Alaska.
In Deering.
He didn't strike me as irrational.
Quite the contrary.
You haven't heard the entire story.
(knocking on the door)
Aline?
Hi.
My name is Engelbregt Gravning.
We just wanted to drop by to say-
that we are moving
in to the house next door.
So that was... (laughs)
Wow.
And here are more children.
Hi!
You have grown a lot now.
You'll have to say hello to
two very nice girls.
I'm getting the girls to school,
then you'll see. They are smart.
Wow!
All the way from America.
So let's say goodbye, uncle Leon.
- Goodbye.
- Thank you for today.
(Leon) I was worried about
what he was thinking.
He continued his hopeless relationship with
Kiss, who lived in London with her husband.
And he continued to spend money
we didn't have.
Roald?
Look at this.
Such clever girls.
If we can get them into school,
people will see.
Can we talk?
- Now?
- Yes.
It's so nice with dogs.
They don't read the papers.
You had to beat them, didn't you?
When you were out there?
Do you mean that we should have
done the samewith the journalists?
Greenland Dogs are almost wild animals.
It was brutal and horrific down there,
but that was the way it had to be.
I know you have ordered three new planes.
I was going to tell you.
You can't do that.
You have to cancel the purchase.
Do you really wish to fly once more?
Considering how things turned out last time?
- That was bad luck. The undercarriage...
- Now you're talking about luck?
What were you thinking, with those small planes?
That isn't science any longer.
It is-
sports.
Mortally dangerous.
You didn't mind sports so much
when you were making money off of it.
- With the South Pole we had no choice.
- I don't have one now either.
I'm getting old, Leon.
I don't have the time to do things
Nansen's way now.
Even Nansen don't have the time to
do things Nansen's way.
Somebody will fly to the North Pole.
The only question is who
will get there first.
Those planes were way too small.
We need something much larger,
and we can get that.
Come!
I have...
Always, for as long as I can remember, -
I've been following you
from one room to the next.
I cannot remember even a single time
you came to me.
Can you?
What are you talking about?
I don't mind living in the
shadow of Roald Amundsen.
But not when you keep
things secret from me.
Putting other people's lives at risk.
Not a single life
has been lost under my command.
Depends on how you figure.
You still owe 20000 USD
on the last planes you purchased.
Are you aware?
No.
And now you have purchased new ones?
We don't have that money.
I can't get any more.
I have already loaned you
100000 kroner from my own pocket.
And then you transfer our properties
to Kiss?
Because it is important to me
that she should have a home.
She is one of the richest women
in all of England!
I've got a family to consider.
Strictly speaking so does Kiss
Bennett too, right?
I don't recognize you any longer.
Nobody does.
What kind of captain leaves Maud
and the expedition, -
comes home with two innocent children
and lies to me?
Yes, I lie.
I do do that, Leon.
What did you think?
That I told you everything?
Like before?
What would happen then, Leon?
Hm?
What would I have accomplished-
if I did that?
Nothing.
You just would have said no.
You don't dare any longer.
You have become cowardly.
I...
I am afraid I can't do
your finances any longer.
I will sign away all mandates.
Find somebody else to handle it.
Tell me who, and I'll send you a
bill on the money you owe.
Leon!
(Leon) And-
that was the last time I saw him.
Hi!
Roald didn't listen to me, of course, -
and ordered those planes anyway.
Now he is bankrupt,
and missing.
You sound almost satisfied.
It was a tragedy.
Shameful.
He had nobody.
The bankruptcy almost killed him.
Do you know anybody else
who could have come back from that?
It is just money, Leon.
What do you mean?
It is not just money.
He risks everything-
to do what
nobody have done before him.
And you-
talk about a house?
Perhaps he gave you the impression that he was,
but my brother is not the victim here.
There were several victims.
Yes.
Hjalmar.
Not just Hjalmar.
There were more.
Parts of the crew.
The Maud expedition lasted for seven years.
Seven.
During that period
several people just left.
Or disappeared.
What do you mean they disappeared?
Tessem and Knudsen.
It was 800 kilometers from Maud
to the mainland. They never arrived.
Some campfire remains were found.
And charred bones.
Either Tessem or Knudsen had died.
The other one had cremated the body.
Later on a mummified corpse
was found on the mainland.
Right by Dickson Island.
He died only three kilometers
from the weather station.
He saw the lights from it as he fell.
He died from exhaustion.
Meanwhile Roald was bathing
in luxurious hotels and flew around and...
He was stuck in the ice for three years!
Sverdrup, Olonkin and Wisting-
remained on Maud for seven years.
The entire time, until the ship was
seized due to Roald's bankruptcy.
You know-
Wisting?
He had seven children.
Three got sick and died
while he was stuck in the ice.
And still he remained loyal
to his captain.
He refused to let the lenders
seize the ship.
They were grown men.
They knew what they were doing.
And then there was the two girls.
He loves them.
He sent them away, Bess.
He had to.
There is something
I think you should know of.
Roald told me of a letter.
From Kiss.
He waited for her.
With the girls.
She ended it.
He had no choice.
He had to send them off.
(Leon) Who do you think took care
of the girls while he was away?
It was mostly us.
He didn't care.
They went to school here for two years.
Then he sent them back to Siberia.
Who does that?
You twist the truth.
Do you see that banner behind me?
Everything for Norway?
It should say "Everything for Roald".
He only cares about - one-thing.
The North Pole.
Himself.
He is your brother.
He's out there somewhere.
You should pray for him.
I am sure he's pleased now.
Dying a martyr's death
along with his men, -
like in the foolish adventure books
we used to read.
I don't understand you.
Why are you so angry?
- I have told you.
- You claim that you hate him.
Still you're sitting here.
You were waiting for him to return.
Right?
You're waiting.
That's why you're sticking around.
That's why you're still living nearby.
You're angry with him for
getting by without you.
Nonsense.
You're angry with him
because if not for Roald, -
you would have been importing wine
or something like it.
And he would still have become historic.
With or without you.
I don't need to listen to this.
Dietrichson?
Riiser-Larsen?
Ellsworth and Feucht?
Come here.
Enough now.
It is enough.
We have done what we can.
And you-
have done more
than I could ever have asked of you.
We have tried for weeks now-
to prepare a runway.
And what we have now
isn't anywhere near long enough.
But we have no more food.
So it will have to do.
We didn't reach the North Pole, -
but we are getting home.
I've been in this kind of situation before,
and it has ended well.
It is what it is.
(plane engine starting up)
(phone ringing)
Amundsen.
(people cheering)
They love you even more
now that you have risen from the dead.
Good to see you again.
Impressive!
Congratulations, Mr. Amundsen.
We were expecting the worst.
See you soon.
Captain!
A few grey hairs since last time!
Just keep in mind...
I am a married woman.
I shall be discrete.
You can talk more later.
This was...
This was special.
We'll take...
You look good for a dead man.
Captain.
How...?
It is-
good to have you here.
- My sincere congratulations!
- Thank you.
- Congratulations.
- Thank you, thank you.
Thank you, thank you.
We should go.
Tell me, -
does Kiss still own all this?
You shouldn't listen to my brother.
He doesn't understand people like us.
He lives in a small world.
And if it's a matter of money...
I will get money.
Guaranteed.
I will write a book.
You saw my accolades there.
Do you really think I care about money?
Do you think that is
what this is about?
I...
I want to say something.
It has always been easier for me-
than everybody else.
To be alone out there.
To me-
it is simply beautiful.
But this time-
I was scared.
I feared-
that I would never see you-
again.
You have started something
you have to finish.
I understand.
And when you have...
When you have seen
what lies beyond the North Pole...
I want to marry you.
But if I do...
If I file for a divorce...
Promise me-
that no matter what we do, -
we do it together.
I promise.
I promise.
There is an-
Italian engineer.
He has built-
a dirigible.
It is a lot safer.
Like sitting in an armchair.
But Mussolini wants it to be
an Italian expedition.
With me on board.
Can you imagine?
So you...
Wait.
Quiet.
You aim to reach the North Pole-
in an armchair?
- I am old.
- I have noticed.
Do you think I'll find it?
Up there?
Yes.
You have dreamt about this your entire life.
You have never given up.
Most people abandon their dreams.
Let them die.
But not you.
And you dream larger than everybody else.
You will find
what you are looking for.
I know you will.
And...
And...
Somebody have to-
find out whether Santa Claus
is actually living up there.
Yes.
But I refuse to sail
under an Italian flag.
Captain,
we are only minutes away.
Have you seen anything?
No, only ice.
Captain?
Are we there?
Mhm.
Everybody?
Time is 22 minutes past midnight.
May 12.
And we have reached the North Pole.
Congratulations.
Ellsworth.
Nobile.
Mr. Nobile, do you think you could have
done this without captain Amundsen?
Amundsen is a great explorer.
But this is an Italian dirigible.
With Italian technology
and financing.
Because of this I am planning
a new expedition with the dirigible Italy.
Where I shall be captain.
I was there on board the dirigible, -
with the Italian
and that fucking dog...
And then suddenly...
Suddenly it was-
over.
It was done.
Finished.
There were no
more white spots on the map.
You are much more than that, Roald.
There is much left.
In medicine.
Technology.
In politics.
I hear that you are writing a book.
Who's told you that?
Somebody who cares about you.
Wisting?
He said that you may be angry-
at the English.
At Nobile.
Even at your own brother.
And then I simply thought:
Is there any worse time
to write an autobiography?
Fridtjof Nansen. Always ready to
help anybody.
What shall it be called?
- "My life as a polar researcher"
- Polar researcher?
But consider what I said.
We are still dependant on having
a good relationship with the English.
It is my experience-
that the english
by and large-
are a race of poor losers.
It is precisely this I'm talking about,
Roald.
If I could have one wish,
do you know what it'd be?
That Scott returned alive.
Then he would be number two.
The man that lost.
Instead they martyred him,
and me-
they made the bad guy who beat him.
I won, but I became the bad guy.
I, who have lived my life according
to the strictest code of honor, always.
I planned the South Pole so thoroughly-
that it looked easy, you know.
That is the stupidest I've ever done.
A book-
is for ever.
Leon?
Leon?
Have you finished reading?
Yes.
He's barking at everything and everybody.
The English.
Scott.
Nobile.
The Hardanger plain,
where I saved his life.
"I was practically encased
in a block of ice."
"Desperately I fought to free myself,
but without the faintest result."
"I shouted for my-
companion..."
That is everything that's left of me.
An anonymous companion.
My dear, are you crying?
The first to spend the winter
in Antarctica.
The first
through the Northwest Passage.
The first on the South Pole.
The first to sail across the
entire Arctic Ocean.
The first to sail through both
the Northwest and the Northeast Passage.
And the crowning achievment:
The first one to fly over the Arctic, -
between the North Pole and Alaska.
And in so doing,
the first on both poles.
Simply put:
The greatest polar explorer-
throughout the ages!
Wisting?
Captain?
Nansen.
Where is he?
- And the King and Queen?
- They had to cancel, unfortunately.
Because of that fucking book.
I knew it.
Bess isn't here either.
She will be here before long.
(ringing in a cup)
As you know, the-
Umberto Nobile is out
on a new expedition in the Arctic.
But the dirigible is now missing.
A hurricane has struck-
the west coast of Spitsbergen.
And has probably forced the ship east.
The rescue mission will have
to be done by plane.
No aeroplane has however ever succeeded-
in crossing this stretch.
I shall be the first.
Mr. Amundsen,
everybody here would like to know, -
both international guests
as well as Norwegians...
Are you going to participate
in the search for Nobile?
Yes.
Immediately.
Amundsen?
Amundsen?
Congratulations.
That was...
Bess Magids.
Amundsen.
Captain Amundsen.
So, captain.
Do you play poker?
(car drawing closer)
What happened?
He is gone, Bess.
He...
Nobile was missing,
and Roald took a plane to find him.
Why?
The plane crashed.
Somewhere.
(Bess weeps)
I am so sorry.
I should have been there.
I could have stopped him.
Nobody could have stopped him.
English translation: Ameneon
(engine stopping)
(crash)
(moans)
I can't feel my legs!
Don't think about that.
It will be ok.
We're almost there, you know.
Based on real people and occurrences
(coughs)
Leave what you have stolen
and get lost.
Get out!
- Who are you?
- Who are you?
I'm sorry. I am...
- Roalds brother.
- Is that so?
I am Leon.
Sorry!
No.
I didn't think there was anybody here.
I didn't realize...
Bess Magids.
I arrived yesterday.
Clearly he didn't mention me, then?
No.
I'm...
Sorry for the interruption.
- You can go back to bed again.
- No, that's quite allright.
I can't sleep.
Probably still on Canada-time.
How do you know my brother?
We have known each other
a couple of years now.
You haven't-
heard anything new, by chance?
No.
(Bess) I know I've seen a bottle
of wine around here.
I prefer Whiskey, personally,
but this is better than nothing.
He was going to fly over the North pole
and get back in time to meet me here.
Instead it was Wisting-
who received me.
Wisting is a good man.
He seemed more concerned than we are.
Yes.
It is strange to look at you.
How so?
Sorry.
In the beginning I did not think
you two looked alike, but now...
He didn't mention me?
Well...
He said he had many brothers.
- But he hasn't talked about me.
- No, but...
We don't talk about family and such.
But he talked about the expeditions?
About the Northwest Passage
and the South Pole.
Of course.
But not about me?
No, but...
You weren't in the expeditions.
No.
Roald and I don't speak.
- It's been a few years since last time.
- Really? What happened?
I'm sorry.
You don't have to answer that.
It's ok.
We were four brothers, but it was
mostly just Roald and I.
(Leon) Did Roald mention our father?
(Bess) He owned ships, or something like it.
And was an... adventurer?
(Leon) Not exactly an adventurer.
But he always came home
with the nicest gifts.
I remember when he
brought that globe.
What is that in the middle, there?
That's where the air
is let in to the flame.
No what is there?
In reality, in the world.
Nobody knows.
Nobody have traveled that far north.
Some people believe-
that there is a land there.
Which hasn't been discovered yet.
(Leon) Roald continued to stare
at the holes by the poles.
Everything else had been charted.
Those holes, -
those areas, -
was everything that remained
to discover.
Roald became obsessed by the poles.
Look! Four degrees!
(Leon) He started experimenting
with arctic conditions.
Good night.
And now, you.
- Just a little bit more?
- No, you can read more tomorrow.
Good night, Roald.
(Leon) Father died at sea.
Thousands of miles away from home.
And mother fell ill a few years later.
Leon, you have to watch over your brother.
You're the big brother,
you have to take care of Roald.
(Leon) When Fridtjof Nansen
came home victorious, -
as the first to cross
Greenland by skies, -
nothing could stop us.
After that day Roald and I knew
exactly what we were going to be.
Our first great test was
a trip on the Hardanger plain.
The wind increased to a storm.
I walked in a circle all night.
But in the morning Roald was gone.
Roald!
Instead of going in a circle, he had
dug himself a snow cave.
But the temperature had dropped,
so he woke in a sarcophagus of ice.
Roald!
Roald!
Roald!
Hold on!
(coughs)
(laughs)
His reaction made me realize-
that he had something
that I didn't.
I didn't know what.
Only that I undisputedly did not have it.
You saved his life.
I'm just waiting for him to
walk through that door.
Go on, please.
It does me good to hear you speak.
- Northwest Passage?
- Yes.
Roald was aboard the first ship that
spent the winter in the Antarctic.
After that he had
this insane idea.
To use a small fishing vessel, where the
great British ships had failed.
You didn't go along?
No, no.
I stayed at home to organize
the financial support.
Roald went to face the ice.
And you, the lenders.
The first one to sail through the
last part of the Northwest Passage.
The promising, young Norwegian discoverer-
Roald Amundsen!
Thank you. It is...
Thank you.
It is...
It is a great honor to be here.
Thank you.
I would also like to thank you, Dr. Nansen.
I would not be here today-
without your good advice and support.
Thank you.
During our search for
the Northwest Passage-
we spent two winters in a small,
completely isolated port-
called Uqsuqtuuq.
We called the place Gjahavn (Gjoa Haven)
A little easier to prononounce.
And here we got the opportunity to meet-
and study the netsilik-inuites.
They imparted upon us invaluable knowledge-
on how to survive arctic conditions.
They move efficiently across the ice
using light sleighs-
and polar dogs.
And this method-
was deciding for us-
when we explored the area.
The life of the Netsilikes-
is clearly unique and very specialized.
And they are now among the last natives-
who haven't been in touch with
missionaries from the south.
Just wait!
(quiet laughter)
It is...
I have heard a lot of strange things-
about the inuites
That they are lazy, for instance.
They are not lazy.
They are smart.
They know that stress causes you to sweat.
And if you're sweating in low
temperatures, you may die.
(Leon) Roald had learned survival
techniques from the inuites.
And so our dream was to be fulfilled:
To be the first to reach the North Pole.
But the brits did not take
these survival-ideas seriously.
Even as they were planning
their own expedition.
That was a very well executed
lecture, Amundsen.
The English are sceptical to
the Greenland Dogs.
They prefer setters.
Mr. Scott!
- Old friend. How are you doing?
- Good to see you.
- I assume you two have met?
- No.
Roald Amundsen,
this is Robert Falcon Scott.
A pleasure.
And congratulations.
I am... mightily impressed.
The pleasure is all mine.
The stories of the British explorers-
changed my life.
John Franklin, for instance.
It was the British that paved
the way for us.
But somebody had to take the last step.
In that tiny little fishing boat.
- Who would have thought it?
- She was weary in the end.
And you?
Ambassador Nansen?
I expect you are ready to travel again?
Are you going to one of the poles?
Which one will it be?
North or South?
I'm still caught up in diplomacy.
Of course.
There are more important things
than exploring ice.
Gentlemen...
A true pleasure.
Do you think he's going north or south?
The most important thing to research-
in the arctic realm
is not who comes first, -
but the exploration of the polar basin's
reach, depth and character.
They are planning expeditions, all of them.
We don't have a lot of time.
If we are to manage 3000 km in 100 days
we have to reduce weight and increase speed.
And the english have motor vehicles.
Scott has tested up at Finse.
And I believe in Polar Bears
as a beast of burden.
That does not mean I'm going for it
in this context.
Only one thing is sufficiently tested
and tried for something like this.
That is Greenland Dogs.
Many Greenland Dogs.
(Leon)
Suddenly Nansen's wife fell ill.
And we saw an opportunity to
borrow his ship, Fram.
Go away.
We don't want any visitors.
I understand.
I'm sorry.
My name is Roald Amundsen.
Your father knows me well.
Perhaps if he's told that it is me, -
that will change things?
(coughing)
You can have Fram.
There are two conditions. One:
Hjalmar Johansen-
is constantly coming asking for money.
But it is I who am indebted to him.
He deserves another chance.
I thought perhaps Johansen was
unable to...
- He is still drinking?
- Hjalmar comes.
And the other?
Fram is not to be used to a
breakneck race to the North Pole.
You are traveling in service of Science.
Science. Do you understand me?
Black painted six-person tents,
20 pairs of hickory skis, -
five cooking trays, two sextants, -
one liquid compass, two binoculars,
two photographic cameras and three hypsometers.
One of the challenges
with regard to speed, -
is that when the temperature is lower than
minus 25, the snow can change consistency.
We will solve that by adding a thin
layer of ice under the sleigh runners
The weight will still be crucial.
We have to get under one tonne per sleigh.
Then we've got the dogs.
- What do you mean?
- The weight will gradually be reduced.
So we won't need as
many dogs.
Greenland Dogs are cannibals, so they
will be good provisions for us and them alike.
This is nature. Dog is no worse than pig.
Do you think there's a difference
between dog and pork?
I think most people do.
I don't think it's pleasant eating
loyal traveling companions.
Here the question is whether we want
to come first, or it's no big deal.
Wisting!
(Leon) We started gathering the crew.
Was it 200 meters?
210!
Just you see-
you'll be the first one to
discover new land up there in the ice.
Thank you, but that is a glory I want
you to have, captain.
(quiet conversation)
...all information. All information.
What is it?
Captain.
I came as quickly as I could.
Is anything amiss?
Roald?
What does it say?
"North pole reached."
Frederick Cook?
"Cook left his log books on Greenland."
He's got no proof.
The expedition is dead.
- If he wasn't really there...
- When he doesn't have proof?
Roald is right.
As long as they claim that, -
it's not newsworthy any longer.
Then nobody will want to fund
the expedition.
It is over.
We go on.
We head to the South Pole.
We'll just do it.
Just do it.
All right. Fine.
But how?
We keep it a secret.
And then we give it all we've got.
Nobody will know.
So, completely quiet.
Yes.
That means we will have to lie to all.
Nansen, of course, but...
Also to the King.
But that...
We won't think about that.
Let's think about what will happen-
if this succeeds.
I mean, imagine if it succeeds.
Imagine if it succeeds!
Hi, Hjalmar.
Yes?
You don't intend to bring that
cabin north?
You do know it will be
crushed by the ice?
Twisted into the sea.
You aren't that certain to
find land up there?
You've been rowing
all the way from Kristiania?
Certainly.
- Have to use your energy for something.
- Yes you do.
Yes, I...
I'm a completely different person-
up there in the ice.
Just ask Nansen.
When he twisted his back,
I had to carry him.
Did you know that?
No, I guess that's how it is.
We are all better men up there.
You aren't coming along, then?
A little on the aging side?
- Two years older than you.
- No more than that?
No, I'll have to stay here at home.
We are still not fully funded.
I talked to a radio producer.
I can't bring a radio.
Then Nansen will get in touch
with me, ask me to turn around.
When are we going to tell him?
When it is too late.
There are many
who have raised questions-
regarding this expedition.
Why would we bring a cabin
up on the drift ice in the Arctic?
Why have we brought along
90 Greenland Dogs from Kristiansand, -
instead of picking them up in Alaska
when we are sailing North again.
And the truth is-
that...
We have no plans-
to sail North again-
when we sail around Cape North.
We will continue South.
The brits have major plans to
add Antarctica to their Empire.
Robert Scott is on his way with 65 men, -
motor vehicles and horses.
It seems like the only thing-
he has forgotten to consider, -
is us.
Because it is we-
who will be the first-
to the South Pole.
So now I really only need to know
that I've got your full-
support.
And that-
those who wish to
be a part of this-
raise your hand.
Good.
Then that is how it will be.
- Good luck.
- Thank you.
(Roald) Right this moment King Haakon
is being informed of the change of plans.
I ask you not to judge me too harshly.
I assure you that I one day will
continue with the original plan.
With scientific research of the
oceanic currents around the North Pole.
This is no longer an expedition.
This is a race.
(Roald) This is Antarctica.
The coldest place in the world.
A desert of ice.
The first thing we'll do, is building
our cabin, Framheim, in the Bay of Whales.
This is where we are staying the winter,
after we have deployed supply caches.
As soon as the sun returns, -
we will begin
our 1300 kilometer long journey-
towards the South Pole.
There is no map, -
almost no information
about what awaits us.
Only the certainty that here-
no humans-
have ever been.
It is -56C!
We must turn around!
We are not grouped!
We will go back.
Every person by himself.
Tell the others.
Are you ok?
Yes, we're coming!
(wind howling outside)
So, you...
You took your time?
It was too soon to go out.
You left us.
You left...
I said it clearly.
On the way back everybody were individually
responsible to find the way back home.
You don't leave your crew-
to die!
In a blizzard!
Nansen would never have done that.
This was no expedition.
This was panic.
You went out too soon
to gain an advantage on Scott.
I mean...
Scott.
Scott has been preparing
for this for four years.
He will take Shackleton's old route
across the mountain.
While we are here.
In a terrain where nobody ever
have set foot.
We could just as well be on
a different planet.
And so you think-
that it would be without risk?
Have I been unclear?
Is the situation such-
that there are someone here-
who haven't realized-
what we actually are doing?
- No.
- No.
Because in that case-
perhaps it could be useful-
if you told us all,
since you are so concerned with him, -
what Nansen's motto was-
as he crossed Greenland?
What was it, -
Johansen?
"Death..."
"...or Greenland's West Coast."
Yes.
So what do you think ours is?
Johansen.
I have...
You are not going on.
You will chart the area
around King Edward's Land.
Under the command of Presterud.
(Bess) Why are you telling me this?
(Leon) So you will learn more
about the man you have a relationship with.
Have you experienced arctic conditions?
No.
Driven a dog sleigh in a blizzard?
How so?
I have.
Are you done?
Wisting!
Come on!
(roars)
Mount-
Bjaaland.
Mount Hassel.
Mount Hanssen.
Mount Wisting.
Mount Presterud.
And Mount Johansen.
(dog whimpers)
Yes, let's just-
get this started.
Shall I begin?
I think that looks very good.
No, thank you.
I'm not all that hungry
Have you seen a man with scurvy, Bjaaland?
First you start to act oddly.
Powerless and tired.
Then-
you start to bleed from the mouth.
And your teeth fall out.
Then old wounds and breakages-
start opening again.
(laughing)
And you, Wisting?
You're sitting and...
Sitting and thinking about...?
Just that...
Here we are.
In the world's greatest desolation.
As large as-
All of North America combined.
And that flame-
is the only source of heat
on the entire continent.
Except Scott's, that is.
How much further is it?
I think we are very close.
Very, very close.
That seems right according to mine.
What do you have?
Wait a minute, I'll verify.
From what I can see, that is right.
Yes.
But then...
That's what it is.
Come, let's take it now.
We'll take it.
(roars)
(majestic music)
Look towards the flag.
Which direction is North now?
- That way, isn't it?
- No, it is there.
My money is on that way.
It's strange how it is all connected.
And it's probably nobody, ever-
who's been standing in a spot more diametrically
opposed from what was the original goal.
It's also a little funny.
No, let him go.
I wonder where the englishmen are.
Dear Captain Scott.
As you doubtlessly are the first
who will come here after us, -
I'm asking you to kindly
forward this letter-
to King Haakon 7.
If you should have need of any of what
we've left in the tent, -
you are welcome to have it.
Perhaps you also may have use of the
sleigh that is outside.
With Kind Regards, and
best wishes for a safe return.
Telegram for Amundsen.
Telegram?
- What does it say?
- "Agrbf amgif akr..."
It's a code!
What does it say?
We did it!
(porcelain broken)
Know what, Nicolay?
I've never liked this set.
We can't have worn out porcelain.
Now we can get a new one!
Amundsen on the South Pole!
Amundsen on the South Pole!
Amundsen on the South Pole!
(choir singing Norwegian national hymn
"Ja, vi elsker")
(shot)
("Ja, vi elsker" is playing)
Gentlemen.
We usually don't permit ladies to enter.
But since little Mary has written
such a beautiful poem-
I figured we could make an exception.
Even if but a simple cross
Marks the grave of these heroic men
Their names will live on for ever
O England, home of the brave!
(silence)
Captain Scott and his brave men
reached the South Pole on January 17th, -
only to discover that Mr. Amundsen
had beat them to it.
One can only imagine-
how betrayed-
our brave men must have felt
on the way home.
Thanks to Scott's log book-
we know exactly what happened.
We know that Mr. Amundsen penned a letter
to the King of Norway-
which he requested that captain Scott
deliver on his behalf.
He mistook our officers for mail men!
(laughter)
Our guest had good fortune on his journey.
Good weather.
Good health.
Transportation that didn't break down.
And we congratulate him with this.
Captain Scott, -
a true british hero...
Pulled his own sleigh!
It is possible that he lost-
an unfair battle against
sickness and hunger.
But he refused to resort to barbarism.
He remained a true gentleman-
To the very last.
I thus want to raise a toast.
For the real heroes
on this expedition.
The dogs.
(laughter) To the dogs!
Are you going to the moon,
Mr. Amundsen?
- Charles Bennett.
- Good to see you, my friend.
You must meet my wife.
One of your fellow countrymen.
Kristine Elisabeth.
Mrs Bennett.
- I'm honored.
- Call me Kiss.
And the honor is all mine, Mr. Amundsen.
Excuse me.
I just have to say that how the british
are treating you is shameful.
And after such a triumph!
It was horrific to hear about
Mr. Scott and his men.
Terrible stroke of bad luck.
And so close to a safe harbor.
When you-
prepare everything correctly-
and have everything in order,
it is called luck.
But when you avoid to take
the most mandatory precautions-
and suffer a defeat,
it is called bad luck.
What do you mean?
Scott.
He was a great scientist.
An excellent sportsman.
But Nansen had told him
that he should use skis and dogs.
Despite this he insisted on-
machines and ponies.
The British have a need to conquer.
That they do. But you cannot
conquer nature.
You just can't.
You just have to-
play along.
He's got a weakness for married women.
Are you?
Married?
Yes.
I know about Kiss.
And there have been others.
So what?
We are both adults.
Do you think Roald would forgive us
if we tasted-
one of the bottles from the South Pole?
Do you know who owns this house?
The one that needs it the least.
- Congratulations, Amundsen!
- Look over here, please!
Kiss.
Kiss.
Can you hear me?
Honorable Roald Amundsen.
We Norwegians-
are proud-
that you have planted
the Norwegian Flag on the South Pole.
Ahead of the English!
It is impossible to realize-
what this incredible feat
has cost in sacrifice, -
endurance, and heroic courage.
In this triumph
you shall be forgiven for forgetting-
that the South Pole was not the
real goal. Just a step on the way.
But Amundsen is a man of is word.
Next year it's time for the Bering Strait.
In to ice.
And cold.
And darkness.
To research the polar currents-
and drift in over the North Pole.
For at least five years!
It may seem to be almost supernatural.
But Amundsen-
is man for that as well.
Hooray!
Hooray!
Hooray!
Nansen has a theory that
if I let the boat get frozen in the ice, -
I can drift the entire way to the Pole.
And what happens at the North and South Pole
is crucial for the climate
all over the globe.
This is not what you want to do now.
But this was the condition for me
being allowed to borrow Fram.
I did not think he would
hold me to it.
No.
Five years in the ice...
We don't need to care about that.
It means nothing to us.
When we think about each other-
it's like we are together.
I feel you.
I feel you.
I feel you.
Right?
We have our unwired conversation.
Nobody can take that away from us.
You...
You are mine, you know.
You are mine, mine, mine.
You will always feel
that I am with you.
Always.
(Leon) Roald was forced to
prove Nansen's theory.
That it was possible to drift with the
polar ice all the way to the North Pole.
So he-
ordered a new ship.
Special order for the mission,
called Maud.
That ship-
cost a lot more money than we had.
Only a sensational triumph
could have saved us from bankruptcy.
And it turned out-
that drifting to the North Pole
takes a long time.
Very long time.
(Roald) Five months-
until sunrise.
(ice creaking)
(loud crash)
We have to get out and hack at the
ice so the boat won't be crushed.
- Does it look ok now, captain?
- No, we need more. It's here.
It is here the whole...
Captain!
Captain!
Wisting, come here!
(ice creaking)
Yes...
(wheezing)
(dog barking)
(dog whimpering)
(crash)
(wheezing)
Bjrn!
Bjrn!
Bjrn!
- Perhaps you want some of this?
- No, just wrap it up.
I'd like some.
(moans)
This will be fine.
(coughs)
Captain?
Handsome mustache.
I'm doing it.
Tessem-
wants to leave the expedition.
The headache won't let up.
He still barely can sleep.
How far until the telegraph station
at Dickson Island?
About 70 miles.
That's not doable.
Knudsen has offered to
accompany him.
Tessem?
We need to send a load of
mail to people at home.
I'd like to ask you whether
you could take care of that?
Yes, captain.
You take Knudsen-
and you can have a dog sled
and you'll be there in four weeks.
(Leon) You know...
It does something to a man.
Being trapped in the ice for so long.
What do you mean?
Well, I bid you welcome.
Oh, look!
(plays "Silent Night")
I feel you have been quiet
for a long while now.
I'm walking around here having
small talk with you, you know.
Now you have to answer.
I have transfered the property.
Villa Uranienborg.
To you.
So I will know that you
always will have a home.
No matter what happens.
(a bump)
(footsteps)
- What's going on?
- Sssh!
(footsteps)
Please.
Sverdrup, get the medical kit.
Codliver oil is never wrong.
Was it tasty? (laughter)
This is so delicious.
I think we just have to taste
it at once.
Would you like some of this too?
Then let's do that.
(roars)
No, no!
No, no, no!
Look. (child laughing)
Here are more playmates, ok.
This is a very...
A very special person.
What is it?
Her father wants us to take her to Norway.
To get an education.
Yes, but...
We can't take them all.
Kakonita has no parents.
It will be something completely different.
We can't start doing that.
I mean...
I think we have to break out
the film from the South Pole tonight.
Those are penguins.
They can't fly.
They just walk around.
Let's see if it wants the pipe.
It does not want the pipe.
I'm thinking about when
Kiss gets to meet these.
We'll be like a little family.
That we will.
It's clear that Nansen is right
about the current theory. Absolutely.
It's just that-
five years in the ice-
is far too optimistic.
(Leon)
The expedition took too long.
And Roald lost his focus.
He started to consider other ways
to reach the North Pole.
We have to, you know.
We have to.
If there's a land up there.
With people.
With.. well, a society.
We have to get to the North Pole.
See it with our own eyes.
Girls!
(Leon) And then he just left.
And made Wisting captain.
We had put all our money
in that ship.
Everything.
We know nothing about
this huge white area.
2.5 million square kilometers-
of ice-covered polar ocean.
That's why we shall-
fly there.
We will be the first to look down at
the last place on this earth-
which has resisted every attempt-
at discovery.
There are of course no guarantees-
that we will find a hidden continent
up there.
But if we do, -
it will be one of the most
significant discoveries-
in the entire history of the world.
He got a hold of two Junker-planes.
Named them Kristine and Elisabeth.
You know how that turned out.
They flew 30 meters.
Planes to a price of 80000 US dollars.
Abandoned in the snow.
He...
He lost it.
There's no other way to put it.
You don't know him.
I beg your pardon?
I mean,
you knew him once.
But not now.
I think I know my brother
better than anybody else.
I was there.
That is where we met.
In Alaska.
In Deering.
He didn't strike me as irrational.
Quite the contrary.
You haven't heard the entire story.
(knocking on the door)
Aline?
Hi.
My name is Engelbregt Gravning.
We just wanted to drop by to say-
that we are moving
in to the house next door.
So that was... (laughs)
Wow.
And here are more children.
Hi!
You have grown a lot now.
You'll have to say hello to
two very nice girls.
I'm getting the girls to school,
then you'll see. They are smart.
Wow!
All the way from America.
So let's say goodbye, uncle Leon.
- Goodbye.
- Thank you for today.
(Leon) I was worried about
what he was thinking.
He continued his hopeless relationship with
Kiss, who lived in London with her husband.
And he continued to spend money
we didn't have.
Roald?
Look at this.
Such clever girls.
If we can get them into school,
people will see.
Can we talk?
- Now?
- Yes.
It's so nice with dogs.
They don't read the papers.
You had to beat them, didn't you?
When you were out there?
Do you mean that we should have
done the samewith the journalists?
Greenland Dogs are almost wild animals.
It was brutal and horrific down there,
but that was the way it had to be.
I know you have ordered three new planes.
I was going to tell you.
You can't do that.
You have to cancel the purchase.
Do you really wish to fly once more?
Considering how things turned out last time?
- That was bad luck. The undercarriage...
- Now you're talking about luck?
What were you thinking, with those small planes?
That isn't science any longer.
It is-
sports.
Mortally dangerous.
You didn't mind sports so much
when you were making money off of it.
- With the South Pole we had no choice.
- I don't have one now either.
I'm getting old, Leon.
I don't have the time to do things
Nansen's way now.
Even Nansen don't have the time to
do things Nansen's way.
Somebody will fly to the North Pole.
The only question is who
will get there first.
Those planes were way too small.
We need something much larger,
and we can get that.
Come!
I have...
Always, for as long as I can remember, -
I've been following you
from one room to the next.
I cannot remember even a single time
you came to me.
Can you?
What are you talking about?
I don't mind living in the
shadow of Roald Amundsen.
But not when you keep
things secret from me.
Putting other people's lives at risk.
Not a single life
has been lost under my command.
Depends on how you figure.
You still owe 20000 USD
on the last planes you purchased.
Are you aware?
No.
And now you have purchased new ones?
We don't have that money.
I can't get any more.
I have already loaned you
100000 kroner from my own pocket.
And then you transfer our properties
to Kiss?
Because it is important to me
that she should have a home.
She is one of the richest women
in all of England!
I've got a family to consider.
Strictly speaking so does Kiss
Bennett too, right?
I don't recognize you any longer.
Nobody does.
What kind of captain leaves Maud
and the expedition, -
comes home with two innocent children
and lies to me?
Yes, I lie.
I do do that, Leon.
What did you think?
That I told you everything?
Like before?
What would happen then, Leon?
Hm?
What would I have accomplished-
if I did that?
Nothing.
You just would have said no.
You don't dare any longer.
You have become cowardly.
I...
I am afraid I can't do
your finances any longer.
I will sign away all mandates.
Find somebody else to handle it.
Tell me who, and I'll send you a
bill on the money you owe.
Leon!
(Leon) And-
that was the last time I saw him.
Hi!
Roald didn't listen to me, of course, -
and ordered those planes anyway.
Now he is bankrupt,
and missing.
You sound almost satisfied.
It was a tragedy.
Shameful.
He had nobody.
The bankruptcy almost killed him.
Do you know anybody else
who could have come back from that?
It is just money, Leon.
What do you mean?
It is not just money.
He risks everything-
to do what
nobody have done before him.
And you-
talk about a house?
Perhaps he gave you the impression that he was,
but my brother is not the victim here.
There were several victims.
Yes.
Hjalmar.
Not just Hjalmar.
There were more.
Parts of the crew.
The Maud expedition lasted for seven years.
Seven.
During that period
several people just left.
Or disappeared.
What do you mean they disappeared?
Tessem and Knudsen.
It was 800 kilometers from Maud
to the mainland. They never arrived.
Some campfire remains were found.
And charred bones.
Either Tessem or Knudsen had died.
The other one had cremated the body.
Later on a mummified corpse
was found on the mainland.
Right by Dickson Island.
He died only three kilometers
from the weather station.
He saw the lights from it as he fell.
He died from exhaustion.
Meanwhile Roald was bathing
in luxurious hotels and flew around and...
He was stuck in the ice for three years!
Sverdrup, Olonkin and Wisting-
remained on Maud for seven years.
The entire time, until the ship was
seized due to Roald's bankruptcy.
You know-
Wisting?
He had seven children.
Three got sick and died
while he was stuck in the ice.
And still he remained loyal
to his captain.
He refused to let the lenders
seize the ship.
They were grown men.
They knew what they were doing.
And then there was the two girls.
He loves them.
He sent them away, Bess.
He had to.
There is something
I think you should know of.
Roald told me of a letter.
From Kiss.
He waited for her.
With the girls.
She ended it.
He had no choice.
He had to send them off.
(Leon) Who do you think took care
of the girls while he was away?
It was mostly us.
He didn't care.
They went to school here for two years.
Then he sent them back to Siberia.
Who does that?
You twist the truth.
Do you see that banner behind me?
Everything for Norway?
It should say "Everything for Roald".
He only cares about - one-thing.
The North Pole.
Himself.
He is your brother.
He's out there somewhere.
You should pray for him.
I am sure he's pleased now.
Dying a martyr's death
along with his men, -
like in the foolish adventure books
we used to read.
I don't understand you.
Why are you so angry?
- I have told you.
- You claim that you hate him.
Still you're sitting here.
You were waiting for him to return.
Right?
You're waiting.
That's why you're sticking around.
That's why you're still living nearby.
You're angry with him for
getting by without you.
Nonsense.
You're angry with him
because if not for Roald, -
you would have been importing wine
or something like it.
And he would still have become historic.
With or without you.
I don't need to listen to this.
Dietrichson?
Riiser-Larsen?
Ellsworth and Feucht?
Come here.
Enough now.
It is enough.
We have done what we can.
And you-
have done more
than I could ever have asked of you.
We have tried for weeks now-
to prepare a runway.
And what we have now
isn't anywhere near long enough.
But we have no more food.
So it will have to do.
We didn't reach the North Pole, -
but we are getting home.
I've been in this kind of situation before,
and it has ended well.
It is what it is.
(plane engine starting up)
(phone ringing)
Amundsen.
(people cheering)
They love you even more
now that you have risen from the dead.
Good to see you again.
Impressive!
Congratulations, Mr. Amundsen.
We were expecting the worst.
See you soon.
Captain!
A few grey hairs since last time!
Just keep in mind...
I am a married woman.
I shall be discrete.
You can talk more later.
This was...
This was special.
We'll take...
You look good for a dead man.
Captain.
How...?
It is-
good to have you here.
- My sincere congratulations!
- Thank you.
- Congratulations.
- Thank you, thank you.
Thank you, thank you.
We should go.
Tell me, -
does Kiss still own all this?
You shouldn't listen to my brother.
He doesn't understand people like us.
He lives in a small world.
And if it's a matter of money...
I will get money.
Guaranteed.
I will write a book.
You saw my accolades there.
Do you really think I care about money?
Do you think that is
what this is about?
I...
I want to say something.
It has always been easier for me-
than everybody else.
To be alone out there.
To me-
it is simply beautiful.
But this time-
I was scared.
I feared-
that I would never see you-
again.
You have started something
you have to finish.
I understand.
And when you have...
When you have seen
what lies beyond the North Pole...
I want to marry you.
But if I do...
If I file for a divorce...
Promise me-
that no matter what we do, -
we do it together.
I promise.
I promise.
There is an-
Italian engineer.
He has built-
a dirigible.
It is a lot safer.
Like sitting in an armchair.
But Mussolini wants it to be
an Italian expedition.
With me on board.
Can you imagine?
So you...
Wait.
Quiet.
You aim to reach the North Pole-
in an armchair?
- I am old.
- I have noticed.
Do you think I'll find it?
Up there?
Yes.
You have dreamt about this your entire life.
You have never given up.
Most people abandon their dreams.
Let them die.
But not you.
And you dream larger than everybody else.
You will find
what you are looking for.
I know you will.
And...
And...
Somebody have to-
find out whether Santa Claus
is actually living up there.
Yes.
But I refuse to sail
under an Italian flag.
Captain,
we are only minutes away.
Have you seen anything?
No, only ice.
Captain?
Are we there?
Mhm.
Everybody?
Time is 22 minutes past midnight.
May 12.
And we have reached the North Pole.
Congratulations.
Ellsworth.
Nobile.
Mr. Nobile, do you think you could have
done this without captain Amundsen?
Amundsen is a great explorer.
But this is an Italian dirigible.
With Italian technology
and financing.
Because of this I am planning
a new expedition with the dirigible Italy.
Where I shall be captain.
I was there on board the dirigible, -
with the Italian
and that fucking dog...
And then suddenly...
Suddenly it was-
over.
It was done.
Finished.
There were no
more white spots on the map.
You are much more than that, Roald.
There is much left.
In medicine.
Technology.
In politics.
I hear that you are writing a book.
Who's told you that?
Somebody who cares about you.
Wisting?
He said that you may be angry-
at the English.
At Nobile.
Even at your own brother.
And then I simply thought:
Is there any worse time
to write an autobiography?
Fridtjof Nansen. Always ready to
help anybody.
What shall it be called?
- "My life as a polar researcher"
- Polar researcher?
But consider what I said.
We are still dependant on having
a good relationship with the English.
It is my experience-
that the english
by and large-
are a race of poor losers.
It is precisely this I'm talking about,
Roald.
If I could have one wish,
do you know what it'd be?
That Scott returned alive.
Then he would be number two.
The man that lost.
Instead they martyred him,
and me-
they made the bad guy who beat him.
I won, but I became the bad guy.
I, who have lived my life according
to the strictest code of honor, always.
I planned the South Pole so thoroughly-
that it looked easy, you know.
That is the stupidest I've ever done.
A book-
is for ever.
Leon?
Leon?
Have you finished reading?
Yes.
He's barking at everything and everybody.
The English.
Scott.
Nobile.
The Hardanger plain,
where I saved his life.
"I was practically encased
in a block of ice."
"Desperately I fought to free myself,
but without the faintest result."
"I shouted for my-
companion..."
That is everything that's left of me.
An anonymous companion.
My dear, are you crying?
The first to spend the winter
in Antarctica.
The first
through the Northwest Passage.
The first on the South Pole.
The first to sail across the
entire Arctic Ocean.
The first to sail through both
the Northwest and the Northeast Passage.
And the crowning achievment:
The first one to fly over the Arctic, -
between the North Pole and Alaska.
And in so doing,
the first on both poles.
Simply put:
The greatest polar explorer-
throughout the ages!
Wisting?
Captain?
Nansen.
Where is he?
- And the King and Queen?
- They had to cancel, unfortunately.
Because of that fucking book.
I knew it.
Bess isn't here either.
She will be here before long.
(ringing in a cup)
As you know, the-
Umberto Nobile is out
on a new expedition in the Arctic.
But the dirigible is now missing.
A hurricane has struck-
the west coast of Spitsbergen.
And has probably forced the ship east.
The rescue mission will have
to be done by plane.
No aeroplane has however ever succeeded-
in crossing this stretch.
I shall be the first.
Mr. Amundsen,
everybody here would like to know, -
both international guests
as well as Norwegians...
Are you going to participate
in the search for Nobile?
Yes.
Immediately.
Amundsen?
Amundsen?
Congratulations.
That was...
Bess Magids.
Amundsen.
Captain Amundsen.
So, captain.
Do you play poker?
(car drawing closer)
What happened?
He is gone, Bess.
He...
Nobile was missing,
and Roald took a plane to find him.
Why?
The plane crashed.
Somewhere.
(Bess weeps)
I am so sorry.
I should have been there.
I could have stopped him.
Nobody could have stopped him.
English translation: Ameneon