The short film, Alaska Long Hunters is a gripping short film that is, in part, about survival in the wilderness. But it’s also not what you might expect. It’s based on the book, Last of the Long Hunters, by Mark D. Rose. Rose also directed and produced the film.
It begins as an overview of the dangers and lifestyle of those who’ve chosen to life, work and play in the wilderness of Alaska. Not surprisingly, we are treated to an abundance of stunning views of this vast and beautiful territory. There is probably nowhere in the lower 48 states where you can see such huge vistas that show not a single trace of human beings. We hear from Mark and his friend Mick Leach. As young men they enjoyed hunting, and Mark, at one point, became interested in becoming a bush pilot.
The pair’s sense of adventure kept growing. Rose began stashing fuel at various points in order to extend the range of his expeditions. And then, perhaps inevitably, the friends run into trouble. Up to this point we’ve heard several stories of brushes with death, and about those who did in fact die. But now, it’s Mark’s turn. With Mick on the ground with very few supplies and a customer in the back of the plane, Rose finds that he cannot land his plane. Evening is coming and an enormous herd of caribou prevents him from landing. The fuel is low. And he has no choice but to try to fly back. And when he turns around, he’s face to face with a winter storm. Oh, and his battery’s dead. It’s a hair raising tale.
And, in keeping with the theme of wandering in the wilderness, it is at this point that we discover what this film is really about. The story of hunting in Alaska is really just a preamble to a remarkable conversion story. Rose has an epiphany in the midst of his ordeal and becomes, from that day forward, a committed Christian. Needless to say, Rose survives. But the story of how he does so, and the stories of what he later comes to understand were also interventions by the deity, are truly amazing.
The big caveat here, from the point of view of a non-Christian, is that Rose was engaged in a voluntary activity that he knew from the outset was inherently very dangerous. Being a bush pilot in Alaska is obviously not the safest job, and no one is forced into it. There’s an old saying about there not being atheists in fox holes. But many of those in fox holes were drafted and had no choice about being there. Many of us have probably heard remarkable stories of those who’ve survived in war. My own family were in London England during the Blitz or served in the navy, and I heard many such stories growing up. And at one point I realized that these people were all very lucky and that we just never got a chance to hear the stories of those who didn’t make it. All the survivors were very lucky.
From the atheist or agnostic point of view, this is decisive. Those who believe that God intervened on their behalf are simply not aware of the power of chance.
But to leave it at that would be too simple. From the point of view of believers, they’ve had an experience that non-believers simply haven’t. And therefore, the arguments from non-believers simply fall on deaf ears. It’s a bit like having a child. Everyone can more or less see what it’s like to have a child. But the actual experience is much more powerful.
To feel God’s presence, and to hear His words in a life-threatening, in one of the most beautiful places on earth must be an experience that one could not easily ignore. I think it would be very difficult not to think that I’d been chosen for some higher purpose and that I had a special relationship with some power beyond what I could see.
Whether this story will convert non-believers to Christianity or whether it was meant more to strengthen the faith of those who already believe, I’m not sure. What I did find difficult to accept was the intimation that Mark Rose, because of this experience, ceased to believe in evolution. The connection between these two things seems difficult to grasp.
One of the most interesting things Rose says about the experience is that he had previously been afraid of commitment of any kind. But afterwards, he had no fear of committing to Jesus and to marrying. The fear of commitment is a plague among many young people today and it’s fascinating to hear about this sudden change of heart.
© 2021. UniversalCinema Mag.