One of the newest films on Netflix is Against the Ice, starring Nikolaj Coster-Waldau from Game of Thrones, Joe Cole from Peaky Blinders, and Charles Dance. Netflix’ Against the Ice is a survival drama by Peter Flinth, inspired by the book Two Against the Ice by Ejnar Mikkelsen. The film has covered all the themes that we craved in a film like drama, adventure, emotion, chaos, and humankind against harsh nature.

The film follows two explorers who are left alone on an expedition in ice-covered Greenland. It is the story of survival. Captain Ejnar Mikkelsen started an expedition to Northern Greenland with his ship and men, including the inexperienced Iver Iverson. Eventually, his other men abandoned the expedition and him along with Iverson, leaving the duo to survive in the harsh Arctic climate.

The film started streaming on Netflix from March 2nd, 2022. Following the release, people are wondering if Against the Ice is a true story or not? Turns out that it is indeed based on a real-life incident. Let’s dig deeper, shall we?

Is Against the Ice based on a true story?

As mentioned earlier, Against the Ice is based on a true story. In 1909, Danish explorer Ejnar Mikkelsen was commissioned to find the papers related to The Denmark Expedition, led by Ludvig Mylius-Erichsen. The original expedition, mentioned throughout the film, involved confirm the findings of an American explorer Robert Peary. After his exploration of the Northwest Greenland, Peary claimed that a channel, named Peary Channel, seperates northernmost Greenland from the mainland. However, Mylius-Erichsen and his men succumb to the harsh conditions of Greenland.

So, in 1909, Mikkelsen sets out on his expedition with his, which included Iver Iverson. Later, the rest of the crew abandon Iverson and Mikkelsen, leaving them with enough supplies to last a winter. The duo remained trapped in The Alabama Cottage for the next 28 months.

Mikkelson is a known explorer and wrote many books until the age of 90. Two Against the Ice is the true story of his life, where he trekked the ice with an inexperienced crew Iverson. Iver Iverson was an experienced engineer, but had no experience with the expedition. Regardless, he went with the Captain, anyway.

This film gives us a broad, accurate experience of the expedition. In an interview with Deadline, Coster Waldau claims, “I didn’t know anything about [the story]. Peter sent me the book: Two Against the Ice by Ejnar Mikkelsen, years ago… I was blown away by the book. We’ve seen survival stories before, but there was something about the way he wrote, Mikkelsen, and the love he had for Iverson really came through in the book.”

What do you think of the harrowing tale of Iverson and Mikkelsen? Have you streamed the film on Netflix yet? Let us know in the comments.