Fest Track On Sirk TV Film Review: ALASKAN NETS [Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2021 - Virtual]
The texture of success can be a product of environment. People many times need to find their way in time of strife. Both family and community can guide this but also put undo pressure, especially on the youth. "Alaskan Nets" [Documentary Competition] follows a remote village where the town's success is rooted in their love of basketball and their daily life is based on fishing. It is a hard life but one where the priorities are an interesting approach. Sometimes instead of going to school, the kids need to work on the boat because without that intention there won't be enough money for the winter for their family. On the other side is the high school basketball team which is the area's emissary to the outside world. They won a state championship in 1984 but haven't done so since. The area has claimed many young men either because of the danger of the fishing jobs they do or because of sheer pressure (and at times depression). It is a hard existence to fathom. In the months where fishing is not possible, this is an area where people need to go diving for sea cucumbers and mollusks (which are a premium for China) to supplement their income. To accomplish this, the people simply must use an air hose that connects to them on the bottom. It sounds harrowing but this is just their way of life.
The first part of the film examines this and its integration of how the community and the kids growing up see their ambitions. This is very dynamic. The second half of the film rests on the basketball team and their path which is interesting but the texture of the base of fishing is somewhat lost in the transition. As a result the doc is uneven and yet still dynamically affecting. Losses happen and tensions run high across the board. Like "Hoosiers" there is so much emotionally invested especially with people being lost and dreams dashed. The fact that one goal can make or break a life at times in the off season is powerful. The film does run a little long at nearly 2 hours but it tells a story removed from our normal lives which is still both human and yet inherently American. B
By Tim Wassberg
