For those of us suffering from the post-ski-season let down—or for those who simply can’t get enough ski-related content—an effective way to help address these issues will be to take 46 minutes to view “Kikkan,” a nicely produced short documentary about the life of Kikkan Randall. Presented (sponsored) by L.L. Bean and Providence Health Alaska, the film includes details of Randall’s childhood, ski career, cancer struggle, and personal life.
The movie is a candid chronological biopic of an athlete who has faced daunting challenges, and unlike many cinematic athletic biographies it does not quickly regress into a warm sepia toned homage to the subject. Instead, the film is a frank look at a life full of ecstatic highs, searing lows, and Randall’s continuing ability to deal with her life’s challenges.
Randall delves into chapters of her life which most viewers will be familiar with, but there is a lot more detail than the average viewer already knows; the details are quite interesting. Among those more interesting details are interviews with Sadie Bjornsen regarding Randall’s late-hour inclusion in—and Bjornsen’s subsequent exclusion from—the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympic Team Sprint. Bjornsen provides some context to a story that many are familiar with, but probably don’t know the details that she reveals. It’s another very candid portion of the film that helps viewers connect emotionally.
The movie is also packed full of familiar names and faces with Erike Flora, Sophie Hamilton, Holly Brooks, Liz Stephen, and Jessie Diggins also making appearances. Randall’s parents are also interviewed.
Randall discusses her early Olympic disappointments and her final Olympic highpoint of winning a gold medal with Jessie Diggins. She also addresses the challenges of having a family while being a professional athlete.
There is much time spent on Randall’s breast cancer diagnosis and treatment. It’s in this part of the movie where Randall really lets the viewers in, and where the emotional connection happens, mostly because Randall is more open and emotional about raw details of her life than she has ever publicly been. It’s a chapter of her life which for many people might have been the beginning of a slide into a long downward spiral, but like most things in her life, Randall rose up to meet things on her own terms. She also talks briefly about her 2021 divorce from Jeff Ellis, occurring shortly after her cancer treatment had ended and subsequently forcing her to go through the pandemic as a single mother.
There are also enough training and ski scenes to keep viewers entertained.
The short film is generally well produced with nice, but sometimes duplicated, footage of Randall skiing in Alaska. These shots are aided by sweeping overhead drone footage (the inclusion of high-quality aerial footage available through drones has been as much of a game-changer for lower-budget productions as the first fiberglass skis were for cross-country.) There is one distracting audio section that would never make it into a major theatrical film, but it’s over quickly and might add a homespun feel—or not. There are also some mildly annoying border framing effects and added scratching/graininess effects whenever old photos are shown. This kind of easy special effects unfortunately now happens regularly in modest budget films since such effects are so readily available to include and some think add a sense of higher production values. Regardless of these production choices, the movie is enjoyable to watch and informative.
“Kikkan” is well worth the 46 minutes to watch. It will make you feel a connection to one of North America’s cross-country skiing legends that you might not have had previously. It will also help you to transition from the ski trail to whatever else it is you do in the spring and summer. “Kikkan” is now available to view for free on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GiNCCHXzdRU
