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"Deeper"

What “Endless Summer” did for surfing, “Deeper” could do for free-ride snowboarding, which shows at the Sonoma International Film Festval. The film follows a group of extreme snowboarders, lead by pro Jeremy Jones, who travel the globe looking for the most remote slopes in tucked away corners of the world where no modern day man has ever set foot. Their goal? To find the gnarliest routes to ride, even when certain death is within arms length.

They snowboard the cliffs in Antarctica, where ninja-like balance is required to avoid plummeting into the freezing water below, between massive boulders where even the slightest lean could mean face planting into the rocks, through fresh powder on steep slopes where avalanches could be imminent. Their journey to these rides is one of the most fascinating aspects of the film. I was totally captivated watching the men traverse up the mountain, using their boards to climb through waist deep snow, reaching the point of sheer exhaustion only to turn around for what must be the most exhilarating slide of their lives. And you can tell this is what they live to do. At one point, the group gets stranded in a storm in Alaska, forced to spend 10 days inside their tents waiting for the weather to pass. Within hours the men are itching to get back on the slopes – it’s obvious cabin fever sets in more quickly for adrenaline junkies. 

But the most stellar thing about this documentary is the visual cornucopia it offers. You get to tag along to some of the most isolated, and most beautiful, places on earth, while also riding alongside as these athletes slice through the snow at speeds so fast the camera has trouble keeping up. If you’re into extreme sports, this is the flick for you. If not, you may grow bored (like my mother) as it is essentially a long snowboarding video that offers very limited insight into the personalities of the riders. But it will definitely make you want to pick up a board.

See the trailer for "Deeper" on the Arts and Entertainment page.

Find tickets, show times and more details at www.sonomafilmfest.org.

When not writing for the Index-Tribune, Emily Charrier-Botts is most often found watching movies. She has been creating her own movies since she was in high school and briefly flirted with the idea of film school before realizing L.A. was not her scene. She settled on a minor in film and a career that involves watching movies.