Few Words

The life and career of championship freestyle skier Candide Thovex take center stage in Few Words, a fascinating personality profile that features snow-capped visual landscapes of indescribable beauty.

"Candide was like an extra-terrestrial," says one early supporter of Thovex. Indeed, his daredevil proclivities emerged at a young age. Friends and family members testify to his constants feats of physical daring, his formidable athletic prowess and an affinity for the sport of skiing which first gripped him at the age of 2.

Wanting to test and expand the limits of traditional skiing, he found himself in the company of freestyle snowboarders, forged a brotherhood with them, and eventually integrated their sporting techniques into his own. His unique style set him apart as he travelled the competition circuit as a reigning champion. He quickly earned the respect of his peers and elders as they looked upon his displays of nearly superhuman skill with great awe.

The aspect of the film that stands out most is its visual palette. The film is littered with astonishing imagery as Thovex scales and descends perilously steep slopes, hangs mid-air in a state of floating grace, and lands with great precision amongst billowing clouds of white powder. Home movies and professional television footage further illustrate the seminal accomplishments throughout his career, including his competitive efforts at the Winter X Games and the 2010 Red Bull Linecatcher event in Vars, France.

Viewers also witness one of the defining heartbreaks of Thovex's life. In 2007, during an invitational event he hosted with his fellow sportsmen, he stumbled his landing off a huge peak known as Big Bertha. The accident left him with a badly fractured spine, though he narrowly evaded serious neurological damage. Colleagues worried over the severity of his injuries, and doubted he could return to the sport he loved. Ultimately, however, this brush with defeat only strengthened his resolve. Following a period of grueling physical therapy and rehabilitation, he soon returned to the slopes and pushed himself to greater acclaim than ever before.

Few Words is a tribute to the unquenchable spirit of the athlete, and the overwhelmingly beautiful terrain in which they compete.