Mila Del La Rue comes by her free-riding chops honestly. Described as a skiing prodigy, the 18-year-old’s father (Xavier) and uncle (Victor) are also big names in the free-ride snowboarding world.
Of a Lifetime is a 45-minute North Face film that chronicles the three as they venture to Antarctica in the company of a boat crew and mountain guide. The mission? Free-ride that continent’s steep shorelines.
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But first, they’ll have to get there, a journey that requires five weeks on a small boat, with a notable journey through the Drake Passage. The famously treacherous stretch of water connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans between the southern tip of Chile and the South Shetland Islands. The Antarctic Circumpolar Current blasts through the passage unchecked, and seas can top 12m. The resulting seasickness is not a great way to prepare for a ski excursion.
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Mila spends most of the passage in a bunk, trying to hold down the last thing she drank, much to the amusement of her father. But in a theme that runs through the film, Mila is determined not to disappoint her accomplished family.
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Bonding in Antarctica
“I’d like to go as far as them because I love skiing,” she narrates.
For his part, Xavier sees the trip as a moment to grow closer to his family.
“Because of the age gap, Victor and I were always so far apart. Like living parallel lives. It’s been forever since our last trip together, so now is the moment to finally reunite,” he says.
In the first few days of the expedition, Xavier and Victor head off to tackle uber-steep lines with overhanging cornices while Mila gets the hang of ice axes and crampons under guide David’s tutelage. But they don’t call her a prodigy for nothing. Soon enough, Mila is ascending capably. But it’s when she straps on skis and points herself downhill that the magic happens. She handles herself just like you’d expect — at first.
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As the expedition continues, the lines get more intense for the Del La Rue family. Here Mila’s youth comes into play again. Without the life experience of the older athletes, she freezes halfway down a steep run and breaks down into tears.
Blocked by fear
“I feel blocked by fear between crevasses, seracs, the rocks, and the ocean below. I keep imagining falling at any moment. I want to go back on the boat and feel secure. I doubt myself and my capabilities,” she admits over tense action-cam footage of her shaky descent.
“I keep asking myself these questions,” she continues. “Am I gonna feel this fear constantly? And I do have the [skill] level?”
For Xavier, the moment is a test of fatherhood. He’s never seen his daughter freeze up like that. She’s always been a fearless tagalong on his adventures.
“I wish I knew how to help her,” he says as Mila grows increasingly short-tempered and withdrawn.
A little father-daughter heart-to-heart conducted Del La Rue style — which is to say at the top of a couloir after an exhausting ascent — does the trick. Xavier admonishes Mila for her fear-driven lack of communication, while Mila accuses her father of being too risky. Both agree to change their ways moving forward. The pair descend, whooping with joy.
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Of a Lifetime is a classic ski film in many ways. Scenes of prep, scouting, and good times are punctuated by long, adrenaline-fueled skiing and riding sequences. The filmmaking team captures it all beautifully, making the best of the Antarctic backdrop and the Del La Rue family’s easy charm.
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A different family film
But at its heart, Of a Lifetime is a film about family, with all the connection, disagreement, and reconnection that concept contains.
“I’ve had plenty of time to think,” Mila narrates in the film’s closing moments. “And now I know what I really want. I want to learn to do things my own way. And I want to be strong. Because I didn’t have this mindset before. So I want to say thank you, Dad. For bringing me on the trip of a lifetime. It sounds cliche, but I’ll never forget it.”
