Bart Schrijver’s The North Earns Its Quiet — and Then Loses It

Chris and Lluis are a decade late for each other. Bart Schrijver’s The North sends them 600 kilometers through the Scottish Highlands to walk back a friendship that broke apart, and the film trusts that distance between the two men will do more work than any speech could manage. It doesn’t always hold that trust. But when it does, the film earns its quiet. Schrijver’s direction is strong throughout, and the Scottish countryside becomes the film’s lead actor, speaking louder than any dialogue ever could — a director who clearly knows how to frame a shot, and who creates many fantastic shots that reveal the beauty of the Scottish countryside. The premise is simple: two men, one trail, a decade of distance between them. It’s the kind of idea that could be a mood piece or a disaster. Schrijver treats it as both.

Bart Harder plays Chris, Carlos Pulido plays Lluis, and the film gives Matthijs van de Sande Bakhuyzen and Olly Bassi smaller roles as Tom and Richard. The cast is a small one, and it works to the film’s advantage. The story doesn’t need a crowd to carry it; it needs two people and a road.

The film’s visual confidence is its clearest strength. Schrijver’s direction is an aspect that adds massive value, and he creates many fantastic shots that reveal the beauty of the Scottish countryside. The scenery is the film’s lead actor, and it gives a performance that speaks louder than any dialogue ever could. The slow pace is the film’s biggest weakness, and it arrives at the point the shots already made clear. That’s where the film pushes patience too far.

The North is a film that breathes. Schrijver’s direction is strong throughout, and the Scottish countryside gets a majestic treatment throughout. The shots are the film’s strongest argument for its own existence. But the pace doesn’t always match the confidence of the direction. The result is a film that feels longer than it has any right to be.

Trailer, via A Tuesday Studio Channel.

Where the Pace Slips

The film’s long runtime is where its patience turns against it. The walk is long, and the film doesn’t always find ways to make the going feel urgent. Schrijver’s direction is strong, but the dialogue takes a long time to arrive at the point the shots already made clear. Some viewers will find the pace frustrating, and that slow burn is the film’s clearest problem.

The film trusts the landscape to carry the weight of the story, and it mostly does. But the pace doesn’t always match the confidence of the direction. The result is a film that feels longer than it has any right to be.

An Earlier Verdict on The North

The North is a well-made hiking film with strong direction and cinematography. Schrijver’s directing adds massive value, and the film is perhaps the ultimate hiking film. But the slow pace and long runtime may frustrate some viewers. The film is sincere, and it’s confident enough to sit with its own quiet. It’s not always successful at matching that confidence with a pace that serves the story.

The film’s weaker stretches are real, and they’re easy to point at. The slow pace and long runtime may frustrate some viewers. The film is worth watching for its visual confidence, but it asks for patience the story doesn’t always earn.

What Works in the Film

• The direction, which creates many fantastic shots that reveal the beauty of the Scottish countryside.
• The premise, which turns a simple walk into something about loss and belonging.
• The performances from Harder and Pulido, who carry the weight of a decade of distance between their characters.

The film’s strongest moments come when it trusts the silence. That patience is rare in a film this long, and it’s why the film’s weaker stretches still leave a lasting impression.

Bart Schrijver · hiking film · Scottish Highlands · The North · trail