Plot

• Wanda Woodsworth (Pelletier), a field worker for the Department of Culture, is on her way home to the city after a winter assignment in the northern part of Alberta
  Northern Alberta
  Northern Alberta is a region located in the Canadian province of Alberta.Its primary industry is oil and gas, with large heavy oil reserves being exploited at the Athabasca Oil Sands and Wabasca Area in the east of the region...
  
  . Her car breaks down on the deserted highway and as the weather worsens she finds herself stranded in the middle of a blizzard
  Blizzard
  A blizzard is a severe snowstorm characterized by strong winds. By definition, the difference between blizzard and a snowstorm is the strength of the wind. To be a blizzard, a snow storm must have winds in excess of with blowing or drifting snow which reduces visibility to 400 meters or ¼ mile or...
  
  . Her initial calm gives way to anxiety and eventually to panic as she desperately tries to stay awake and alive. At the height of the blizzard, Wanda is rescued by a local potato farmer
  Farmer
  A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, who raises living organisms for food or raw materials, generally including livestock husbandry and growing crops, such as produce and grain...
  
  , Joseph Przysiezny (Schellenberg), who carries her to a dilapidated shack nearby. For two days and two nights, while waiting for the blizzard to pass, two people stalk each other restlessly, inexorably, with humour and passion, in a painfully revealing series of confrontations that runs the gamut from mistrust and terror to physical intimacy and almost religious ecstasy.

Recognition

• 1983
  • Genie Award for Best Achievement in Art Direction - Richard Hudolin
  • Genie Award for Best Achievement in Costume Design
    Genie Award for Best Achievement in Costume Design
    The Genie Award for Best Achievement in Costume Design is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian costume designer.-16th Genie Awards:* Nicolette Massone, Margaret's Museum* Michele Hamel, Eldorado...
    
     - Wendy Partridge
  • Genie Award for Best Motion Picture
    Genie Award for Best Motion Picture
    The Genie Award for Best Motion Picture is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian motion picture.-1st Genie Awards:*The Changeling *Cordélia...
    
     - August Schellenberg
    August Schellenberg
    August Schellenberg is a Canadian actor. His ethnicity is Mohawk and Swiss-German. He was trained at the National Theatre School of Canada.His first film was Rip-Off in 1971. In 1981, he did voices for the animated film Heavy Metal...
    
    
  • Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
    Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
    The Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian actor.-1st Genie Awards:* Christopher Plummer, Murder by Decree...
    
     - August Schellenberg
  • Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
    Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
    The Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian actress.-1st Genie Awards:* Kate Lynch, Meatballs* Louise Portal, Cordélia...
    
     - Andrée Pelletier
  • Genie Award for Best Original Screenplay - John Juliani
    John Juliani
    John Juliani was a Canadian actor, writer, producer, director and educator. His career spanned four decades in a number of different media, including radio and film. In addition to his artistic contributions, Juliani was a strong advocate of Canadian theatre and the arts...
    
    
    Sharon Riis

External links

• National Film Board of Canada profile