A solidly enjoyable documentary about a mountain climbing expedition that goes horribly wrong. The story is told in two contrasting styles - interviews with the people who lived the experience, and recreations of key events with actors/mountain climbers. This makes for plenty of thrilling shots where you wonder “how on earth did they film this” as well as very human moments in the interviews.
However, it’s clear that the movie had to cast climbers first and actors second. The sequences that rely more on the actor’s emotions instead of mountainous derring-do lose my interest. Since a good portion of the final third takes place more or less on land without climbing, it becomes a real chore to get through.
While one climber’s experience is definitely more harrowing than the other, I would have loved our time to be spent a little more evenly. We even get a postscript at the movie’s end to explain how one soon got back to mountain climbing; the PTSD and abandonment of the sport by the other goes unmentioned. I think the story loses a little richness as a result.
Still, it’s a great, unique documentary and the first half is an amazing, tense ride.
I struggled with the review a bit. This movie made a major impression on me when I first watched in 2003. Twenty years later, it’s not as good as I remember it being but that could simply be my memory playing tricks on me.
