The basic premise - a coming-of-age story about a group of friends who skate across Lake Ontario - was cool. I really enjoyed the main portion where they skated across the frozen skate, confronting the elements and other dangers. The scenery in those scenes was also gorgeous.
Unfortunately, the movie fails in character development. For example: why exactly do the friends embark on this stunt, skating across Lake Ontario to reach NY? You would hope that there might be some compelling reason, but there isn't. Moreover, I found myself asking about what the characters learned from their stunt: how did their change, grow, or develop. And I'm not too sure. The entire subplot involving one of the boys and his parents was poorly done and uninteresting, as well.
Overall, this movie is solid, but not excellent.
Unfortunately, the movie fails in character development. For example: why exactly do the friends embark on this stunt, skating across Lake Ontario to reach NY? You would hope that there might be some compelling reason, but there isn't. Moreover, I found myself asking about what the characters learned from their stunt: how did their change, grow, or develop. And I'm not too sure. The entire subplot involving one of the boys and his parents was poorly done and uninteresting, as well.
Overall, this movie is solid, but not excellent.