Kat's Film Reviews: Everest

Tuesday, January 18, 2005

Everest

When this premiered in the IMAX theaters I was too lazy to go see it. After everyone praised it to the skies, I realized what a dolt I had been and waited 6 years for it to come back to our neighboring IMAX theater. (And if you haven't seen it and live in the Detroit area, it'll be at the Henry Ford IMAX through March 10.) I'd heard about the panoramic vistas, the death-defying ladder walk across an ice chasm while pointing the camera straight down (!), and of course the story. This was the summer that over a dozen hikers were killed on the mountain during a violent snowstorm. It's been written up in Jon Krakauer's book "Into Thin Air" which is a horrifying, but well-written, account of that summer. The movie goes the book one better by making what the hikers faced a visceral experience. In some places, there are only photographic stills and it's clear that the camera operators put down their equipment to assist in helping save the lives of the snowbound hikers. Strangely, I found that the film left up in the air the question of whether or not people should climb tall mountains. It's clearly a passion for these folks, one that's integral to their lives (one hiker was there on his honeymoon!), so it would be impossible to deny them this. At the same time, the tragedies on the mountain make crystal clear the reasons why we shouldn't attempt this type of climbing. I suggest keeping tabs on your nearest IMAX theater and forming your own opinion.

year: 1998
length: 44 min.
rating: 3.5
IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120661/combined

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