I remember zapping through the tv channels some 8 years ago and stumbling on a mountain climber documentary. Something about this story caught my interest. As i sat there watching, my casual interest grew into disbelief. Could this story be real?
The happenings on that mountain in 1985, as told by these two crazy british climbers, are unreal. Particularly the one who breaks his leg on the way down, goes through a journey that is beyond human. It is nothing short of a miraculous survival. At times, in the second half of the movie i remember thinking "that cannot be possible", nobody could go through that AND reach base camp, many miles below, alive. But yet, there he sits, explaining what happened !
The tale is told by cutting between the real climbers telling their individual intimate versions of the story and then stand in actors acting the scenes out on the actual mountain. They do a great job of recreating the scenes in realistic locations that makes you feel hanging on the side of a mountain. The climbers are interviewed alone, not side by side. They are very different types which i found curious, but i guess i am not a mountaineer, so who am i to judge characters in that regard. It is clear that the incident has marked both men down to the core.
This is a story about the astounding survival instinct of humans. It makes you wonder what the hell we are doing here on earth, our passions and our crazy ambitions. The movie is off course very plot driven, but you also get a good chance to understand what the hell goes on in the head of men who goes through things, that most have never come close to. It also shows us that the picture perfect portrait of nature, as a beautiful nurturing mother, is not complete. She can be a complete sociopath. The two climbers, especially Joe does a good job of making the story engaging. It makes you wonder what it is that makes people want to climb a mountain. A great semi-documentary feature film.
Rating: 8/10
