Have you ever seen a movie in which now and then you see a man urinating and it has no special function?
This film implies absolute purity. It is maximal naturalism in the middle of nowhere, at a place that seems do dream-like, so little real to most of us. As most stories set in very cold and barren regions, Atanarjuat has that touch of existentialism. And really, the story is quite simple, a classic family revenge plot like they are often peopled by Ancient Greek gods and goddesses.
In the beginning, you have no idea what it is all about and who is in which way related to whom actually all the characters look the same in their thick clothes. But it doesn't really matter because you get enchanted by the beauty of the combination of light and snow, white and yellow, and maybe by the interesting sound of Inuktitut, the Canadian Inuit's language. Or by the sound of their boots as they press the snow again and again. Quite a lot to be impressed with.
Slowly very slowly, the plot unfolds, the characters gain image, and you become completely absorbed into a mysterious and strange legend that happened long-long ago and aat a place very distant from us, both geographically and mentally.
Interesting enough that, after the end of the actual story, the filmmakers attached some `making-of' shots as they are quite commonly known from Jackie Chan movies. Suddenly, we see the people we just got to know wearing modern clothes and making jokes. And this seems weird to us. Before we leave the theatre, we are gently lead back to reality.
