Genres

Visitors Review

2012-05-23 23:17:42

Harrowing Survival Story

Two twenty-something friends go to a formidable mountain in the Andes for mountain climbing in 1985. Facing a mountain face to climb like never before, they have the fortune of meeting a stranger who agrees to stay at their base camp. Once they start the climb, they bring the basics: a woefully short gas supply for a mini stove and a little food. They plan to "pack sack," or take the mountain "in a single push". Sort of the bare-bones rendition of backpacking and mountain climbing, they run in peril unforeseen in their young, virile lives. Testing their strength, courage, and spirit, each have crucial decisions to make collectively and individually.As a documentary and a reinactment, the project is particularly vivid. Being able to recall and honestly share their innermost thoughts is a real draw. Partly based on Joe Simpson's book and containing the interviews of both participants; the actors for Simpson, [Brendan Mackey] and Simon Yatey (Nicholas Aaron) reconstruct their ordeal well. 'Touching the Void' is a thoroughly absorbing journey recalling a harrowing struggle to survive.

2012-05-23 11:40:39

One of the GREAT mountain climbing stories

This story of daring and technical expertise evolves into one of THE greatest mountain climbing stories ever. Put yourself into the shoes of a climber, who must decide whether to stick by his injured partner and sacrifice both his and his partners life, or . . . cut the rope and save his own life. A decision that would haunt you the rest of your life. But, wait, the injured partner, through sheer will to survive, drags himself from the depths of a glacier and back into camp . . . and then goes on in life never blaming his partner for making that decision. If this doesn't make you happy to be alive, then you seriously need a shot of adrenaline!

venus_in_white 2012-05-23 09:03:40

One man's incredible ordeal after being left for dead

One thing that reminds me this incredible story is real, is the veryBritish calm in the narration, even when telling of the kind ofexperiences Hollywood would have wrung every emotionally chargedteardrop from. I can see another version of this being highlysuccessful at the box office...there are so many potentially darknuances and micro plots that could have been played with. Jo to thisday defends Simon's action in cutting the rope which held him danglingover a crevasse. That is the traditionally noble thing to do. I wonderwhat his genuine feelings are about the whole thing. The ones no-onebut he will probably ever know about. Personally I'm glad to have heardthe true account and to have seen the individuals who actually wentthrough this ordeal. And to think about how I might have behaved intheir situations.

2012-05-22 20:18:18

Climbing Siula Grande...

Siula Grande is so beautiful that I can stare at the picture for hours. To take on the challenge of climbing such a scary mountain in Pure in middle of nowhere, with language and transportation difficulty to start with, a route that no one is familiar less alone has never attempted before..., what Joe Simpson and Simon Yates embarked on was nothing other than two athletes in a stage of mind that only they can comprehend since regardless of how good of athlete anyone may be, any challenge like this is nothing short of facing your fears and death, with the idea that you may come out of it hopefully alive with minimum bodily injury. Mentally is another issue. The production people deserve recognition for producing this documentary. After this watch THE BECKONING SILENCE The Beckoning Silence [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - United Kingdom ] since; 1)You will be exposed to remarkable hikers who died some 70 years ago 2)Expand your climbing knowledge 3)Understand Joe Simpson 4)Probably not criticize Simon Yates 5)May realize that no one can be in charge of their destiny all the time. Unbelievable, entertaining and more importantly HUMBLING. Bravo, Bravo, Bravo.

trnovice 2012-05-21 12:38:14

Genuinely scared and moved

I've been a hill-walker and scrambler for a few years and recently gotintoindoor rock-climbing. After seeing this, I think I may stick to climbingindoors. I've never done any true mountaineering, but I suppose thatknowingabout the kit and techniques the protagonists were using added to my(already considerable) involvement in the film (for instance I spent a lotof time trying to figure out how on earth I would tie knots with my barehands in minus 80 degree wind-chill conditions). Also, though I have nevercome within a fraction of the danger that the two men in this filmexperienced, the (very, very minor compared to this) sticky-situations Ihave faced up mountains in bad weather helped me to connect a little morethan I maybe would have otherwise.** POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT **I guess it's not a spoiler to say that the end of the film is alwaysknown.It's based on the best-selling book by one of the climbers and we startthefilm with him talking, so it's pretty evident that he is going to survive.Iknew the story in advance as well, though I haven't read the book (must dothat now). Anyway, knowing that both men survive in advance in no waydampens the suspense of the film. I found myself truly scared at pointsandstaggered at what the two were attempting, even before things started togowrong.I doubt that I'll ever stand on the top of an Andean peak, but I got somesense of both the grinding effort involved and the immensity of theachievement of being the first people to climb a mountain. Both men wereheroes before anything went wrong - what happened next propelled them intothe super-hero category. However one of the more touching things is thatneither man seems to see himself that way.I won't go too much into the twists and turns of the plot, rather I'll saythat it was beautifully filmed, giving a real sense of the forces ofnatureand the immensity of the mountain compared to the two climbers. The levelofrealism in the re-enactments was impressive - I would think thatnon-climbers (and I'm only really a pseudo-climber) would be able toappreciate the mental and physical toughness involved. The way thatinterviews were inter-cut with the action was extremely well done, nothingfelt forced or contrived about this, it just flowed. The level of emotionwas incredible, as much as anything because the climbers were socontrolledand even calm in their recollections. This meant that Joe Simpson's eyeswatering on a couple of occasions hit you like a hammer blow - it was gutwrenching to see that 18 years later he still has a part of himself out onthe slopes of Siula Grande.It would have been very easy for the filmmaker to teeter over into eithersensationalism or over sentimentality (and knowing that Tom Cruise has therights to make a [non-documentary] film of this fills me with some dread),but the film never did this. The restraint of the director left room fortheemotions and achievements of the people involved to fill both the screenandthe hearts and minds of the audience.I suppose I have talked a lot about emotions and it is a very emotionalfilm. However, I should repeat that it is also very scary. I was literallyon the edge of my seat for much of it (stressing once again that I knewthestory in advance). I can't ever recall so many gasps in a film. There weresome hard-core climbers sitting behind me and at times they seemed to becarried away by what they were watching, being reduced to whisperingheartfelt expletives at various points, no doubt extrapolating from theirown experiences.I suppose much of what I have said above suggests that this is a film justfor outdoor enthusiasts. While I think that having some experience of theareas involved will add greatly to the experience (and from what I saw,halfof the audience were wearing North Face fleeces!), much of the film wouldmove anyone who has never left the safety of their own armchair. A lot ofitdeals with the vastness, beauty, power and cruelty of nature and how, evenin the face of this, certain special individuals can exhibit theindomitablequalities that are needed to overcome the longest of odds. It's a veryhumbling film.Go see this if you are a climber, but also if you are interested in thehuman condition. You won't be disappointed in either case.A fabulous film - 10 / 10 for me.

bluesdoctor 2012-05-21 07:44:58

OR SISYPHUS REDUX?

This is not a documentary, but a dramatic re-enactment, a stagedpseudodocumentary, which should have been stated atthe onset, because the film is otherwise quite misleading. To confusematters worse, the two talking-heads who narratethe film, are not the actual mountaineers Joe Simpson and Simon Yatesthemselves, but actors, who are themselvesreplaced by doubles in the climbing scenes, some of which were filmed not inPeru, as originally done, but in theEuropean Alps, all of which results in layer upon layer of misrepresentationwhich ultimately strips the film ofverisimilitude and the impact of factual truth.Fact: Joe Simpson and Simon Yates climbed a 21,000-foot Peruvian Alp namedSiula Grande in 3 days in 1985. Theyanticlimactically reach the top in the first 15 minutes of the film. Therest of the film concerns itself with an accidentencountered on descent, as a result of which Mr. Simpson had to singlystruggle for his life. That Mr Simpson is thereto tell the tale make the results of that struggle a foregone conclusion androbs the movie of any dramatic suspense.Neither the writing nor the acting make up for this. The man is not deep.His brush with death does not yield much in theway of profound rumination on the meaning of life or the will to live. MrSimpson is a simple man, too simple tosustain a film of this length.Neither is there much meat on the central moral dilemma of the film, acertain cutting of the rope. The Void, the almighty Abyss is barely glanced.It struck me, too, that the trek was poorly planned, mostly an amateur lark.Catastrophe, for example, could have simplybeen avoided had the two men carried some form of walkie-talkies. Neitherdid they seem to even bring enoughcooking gas. It took a long time for Simpson to jettison the superfluousitems in his backpack and take the most obvioussimple precautionary measures for his injury. Myth of Sisyphus? Up the hill, down the hill. Two men, lots of talk, andice, snow, and rocks, ice, snow, and rocks. Pretty barren.PS. If you're looking for a whopping good explorer's tale, by the way, Iheartily recommend Joe Kane's book, "Running the Amazon,"which is about an expedition which followed the Amazon River from itsorigins in the Peruvian Andes, through the jungles ofBrazil, all the way to the ocean. Rife with cliff-hanging peril,interpersonal conflict, dramatic natural settings, andethnic peoples, this book would have made ten times the movie of "Touchingthe Void."

2012-05-18 17:30:40

Psychic scars frozen in place

"Touching the Void" is the recreation film based on the book about amountain climbing expedition by two men (who were involved in themaking of this film, and agree it was as accurate as something likethis could be). It is AMAZING. It is amazing not only for thephotography, recreations, and acting – that's minor compared to theREALITY of what these men went through trying to go up and come down avery foreboding mountain in Peru. I was left gasping, shaking my head,and feeling SO sheltered as I watched this. It is an emotionallycomplex story, which will leave you drained. Almost empty. It takes sodeep into the emotional side of survival, you're not sure what to "do"about it. I suggest also watching the extras "What Happened Next",followed by "Return to Siula Grande". It is no less fascinating –because you continue to delve into the physical, emotional, and psychicscars of these men 17 years after the events that seem to have changedtheir lives. Or did they? Just who ARE these guys? See this film.

2012-05-18 07:12:18

Touching the Void

This review is from: Touching the Void (DVD) A must have for the mountain climbing enthusiast or anyone who appreciates an excellent documentary about human survival in the ultimate!!

2012-05-16 23:34:58

Amazon is the way to go

This review is from: Touching the Void (DVD) I've received too many books and DVDs to write a review on all of them - any book or DVD or CD that I want, I order from Amazon. I know it will be here almost as quick as if I hopped in my car and went shopping. Since I don't like shopping this is the way to go and my orders, and there have been quite a few, are always received in good condition and received quickly.

2012-05-16 11:26:19

Breathtaking

This review is from: Touching the Void (DVD) Touching the Void is a movie that will keep you at the edge of your seat. The most amazing true life adventure.

Ralph Michael Stein 2012-05-11 22:41:34

An Unusually Affecting, Hybrid Film of Mountaineering Peril

A recent article on "Touching the Void" focused on the reactions ofmountaineers to films about their often deadly avocation. Many commentedthat virtually no movie dealing with mountain climbing felt real to them. Isuspect that Kevin MacDonald's gripping part re-enactment, part-documentarymay be the rare exception that will capture the interest of amateur andprofessional mountaineers. (I haven't climbed since 1966 when I and twofellow Army officers set the record for summiting Seoul, Korea's Namsan fromits almost inaccessible east face.)Simon, a very experienced climber, and Joe, a younger devotee, sought to bethe first to reach the top of Peru's Siula Grande through a forbidding andunconquered approach. Before heading to a remote location to establish abase camp they picked up Richard, a traveler with no experience or interestin climbing but a hale-fellow-well-met willing to babysit the camp while thetwo adventurers climbed.Getting to the top of the summit via an often near-sheer face was dauntingenough and the duo made it. The trip back was the disaster. As onecommented, eighty percent of injuries and deaths occur on the way down. Joetook a fall sustaining a very serious leg injury causing limited mobility,intractable pain and major damage. Simon figured out a way for the two tocontinue their descent but Joe later went crashing over the side and hunghelplessly swinging in the air, his dead weight immobilizing Simon. Arguably both would have perished if this condition continued.In what remains a roiling full-fledged controversy amongst themountaineering fraternity, Simon believed he could only save his life bycutting the rope from which Joe, with whom he could not communicate,dangled. The rope cut, Simon made his way back to base camp sure that hiscompanion was dead. Simon's descent was perilous but compared to the stillliving Joe's evolving ordeal it was a walk in the park.Over almost a week, Joe survived on no food, virtually no water and sheerguts and determination to live. His trip down the mountain to within rangeof the tent where his weak voice was heard by the about to decamp climberand assistant is a truly unique and compelling survivor story, one of themost dramatic ever brought to film.Both the real climbers and Richard are narrators whose story unfolds betweenre-enactments by non-speaking but truly athletic actors. The make-up crewdid wonders here to capture the brutal battering each sustained, especiallyJoe, during the climb and descent. The photography ismagnificent.Joe has always maintained that he too would have cut the rope had hisposition and Simon's been reversed but his open and repeated acceptance ofSimon's desperate act has been rejected by many mountaineers. I wasparticularly fascinated by this issue since as a law professor I begin myCriminal Law course, as do very many colleagues, with the very issue ofnecessity as a justification for one person to save his life by sacrificingthe lives of others (no mountains but two celebrated cases involving thesea, one English, the other American, provide very similar moral and legaldilemmas to Simon and Joe's excruciating situation). While no legal actionensued from the Peru near tragedy, the same issues are there and remain forviewers to think about and discuss.Both Joe and Simon continue to climb, Joe after six operations to hisshattered leg. Their accomplishment in scaling Siula Grande has not to datebeen duplicated. That must give each extraordinary satisfaction.This film is almost in a class of its own and I suspect it will become atalking point for climbers. For today's audience, attention was rapt andsighs and gasps escaped involuntarily as the climbers, and Joe especially,encountered one near fatal obstacle after the other.9/10.

2012-05-11 12:45:51

Une expérience unique

Après IMAX L'Everest, je croyais avoir tout vu sur le sentier du sommet. Touching the void vas dans l'inimaginable descente aux enfers de deux alpinistes s'attaquant au sommet le plus dangeureux des Andes. Traitement honnête et grandiose de ce qui fait la différence entre vivre et mourir. À voir et revoir. Source d'inspiration pour quiconque veut transcender ses limites et toucher ce qu'il y a de plus noble en chaque humain.

2012-05-07 18:34:40

A Real Mountaineering Film

I saw a special screener of this film from the producer for the MountainRescue Association and this movie was well done. Having read the booknumerous times and reading the follow up book "This Game of Ghosts" I cantell you Joe Simpson is a great story teller. True mountaineers willappreciate the story and how well it was told (as compared to the last twobig Hollywood mountaineering movies). From the detail of the amount ofgearthey carried to the frightening loneliness of a crevasse this movie wasmeticulous in it's representation of one of the most inspiringmountaineering stories and epic ordeals of survival. A must see movie forthe climber.

2012-05-07 14:57:41

Seamless storytelling

I read the book while on vacation on Cape Hatteras over the summer and loved it despite its tendency to be a bit on the technical side. There's really not much of that to hamper the movie version. Not a lot of jargon, just good storytelling.The reenacted footage moves seamlessly in and out of the dialogue by Joe Simpson and Simon Yates which, really, is every bit as fascinating as the actors' portrayals.The only reason I'm not giving "Touching the Void" 5 Stars, and I must admit this is very elusive, is because something didn't quite make me cringe when Joe broke his leg, or feel his desperation when Simon cut his rope, or as he dragged himself down off Siula Grande and across the glacier.Maybe it's simply that it's hard to feel all that much sympathy for him, since he knew the risks. More likely it's that Simpson's descriptions in the book were so riveting and I was spoiled. Otherwise, a great movie for armchair climbers or even those that are not all that fascinated with climbing. Now, if I can just get my wife to give it a go, I know she'd like it too (though she would never admit it).

2012-05-06 23:25:24

Awesome

This review is from: Touching the Void (DVD) This DVD was awesome in that it put the book in great perspective. It's amazing they were able to film some of the things they did. It made me greatly appreciate the book and the story more.

2012-05-06 13:05:34

Touching My Heart

Not being able to see it in the movie theatre, I rented it for my DVD player. The amazing surroundings already make it spectacular, let alone an amazing plot unfolding. You watch Brendan Mackey (Joe Simpson) breaking his leg, then falling into an ice crevasse, and with excruciating pain, get out of it. If you haven't already seen it DO!

2012-05-06 14:10:48

Gripping

This movie is a docutainment (documentary and entertainment combined). It is based upon the true tale of two mountaineers who did the unthinkable in 1985 and changed their lives dramatically. Even better, they live to tell the tale. This movie is close to two hours in length and something which I think should be appreciated on the big screen. So as to depict the event and to give credibility to the story, the Director invited the two mountaineers and one of their mate (who was looking after the base camp) back to Peru where it all began. Interviews were granted (some of them did open a can of worms and bringing those unpleasant memory back especially Joel, the person who was at the receiving end when his partner, Simon cut the rope where he couldn't communicate with Joel and that he was in a dire strait situation himself. Simon lived through the ordeal with his chin up despite copping a lot of flakes from other mountaineers for cutting the rope. Anyway, Joel was defending him staunchly over the years. From the extra features in DVD, you could sense that all of them did what they needed to do to stay alive and there's no bad blood between them. Moreoever, it brought to the fore that despite they are never the best of friends, in mountaineering, mountaineers need to depend on one another for survival. Certain moments were indeed scary amid the hauntingly beautiful backdrop. However, the best has yet to come because the DVD shows us a glimpse of what about AFTER the ordeal, of what faced them when they were trying to get to the main city for medical help. Quite outstanding and something that shouldn't be missed. A movie that truly justifies triumph of the human spirit

2012-05-05 18:54:51

Two stupid guys risk their lives for no reason

This might have made a good thirty minute documentary and not a two hour movie. Think of this as a more expensive edition of "Jackass," the MTV show where idiotic guys do dangerous activities for laughs and thrills. It is difficult for me to be at all sympathetic about two men who engage in a mindlessly, very dangerous and irrational activity such as mountain climbing. When one of the characters breaks his leg and fears that he will die, my only response was, "what did you expect?" Two idiots playing russian roulette with a loaded gun would have been just as uninvolving as this movie was. I nominate these two jerks for the annual Darwin awards - the awards given out to people whose stupid activities and choices eliminate their DNA from the gene pool.

2012-05-03 21:30:22

Incredible !!!!

When I saw this movie was at one of the Local Theatres I jumped at the chance to watch it on a Big Screen (it was actually the same one I saw "Downfall"at but that came later).I had not read the Book but had heard rumours of the Story ,I was utterly spellbound when the camera started rolling ,the attitude on both climbers was incredible. Seemingly oblivious to the actual near impossible feat they were about to encounter ,there pioneering whatever it takes philosophy was wonderful and motivational .I will not go into the outcome because the reader would not believe it!...you have to watch the movie (get the DVD well worth it),the one troubling part I had was "Joe" while he was in one of his MANY DIRE situations stated that even though he had been raised a Catholic he never Prayed or asked for help or thought about God when he needed him most ?,that just seems so strange ?because in my experience even the most ardent NON believers when they are overwhelmed with fear and up against unimaginable odds they automatically think of a higher power its the code of survival in Mans Reptilian core(Watch the "Endurance" Shackletons legendary Antarctic Expedition). When I finally read the Book (Highly recommended)in the preface written by Chris Bonnington which was a Tribute to BOTH Joe and Simon ,he put into professional context just how remarkable this expedition was . if I could give it 10 STARS I WOULD .

2012-05-03 10:27:42

Astonishing testimony to man's endurance.

This unique docu-drama recreates an ill-fated expedition to scale the treacherous unclimbed West face of Silua Grande in the Andes.The achingly beautiful landscapes and the 5.1 surround sound combine effectively to draw the viewer in and, I swear, you will feel that wind-chill!Impeccably acted and spliced with frequent interviews with the real climbers, it weaves quite a surreal spell on the viewer, especially when one climber, having suffered a serious injury, undergoes exhaustion-induced hallucinations. I've got that damn Boney M song stuck in MY head now!Interesting extras - the making of and what happened next, complement this astonishing DVD, that will surely appeal to devotees of many different genres.An essential purchase.