Images courtesy Universal Pictures/Working Title Films

Everest is a Thrill Ride, Literally

| published October 19, 2015 |

By Maggie Nichols, Thursday Review writer

 

Hang on to your seat, or hang on to the person you go with to the theater. And if it is available in your area, see this movie in either the I-Max version or at least on as large a screen as possible in your community or town.

Everest tells the true story of a party of climbers who attempt to tackle Mount Everest, which, as everyone knows, is the tallest peak on Earth. The recent history of storms and earthquakes has shown us that Mount Everest is not for the faint-of-heart, nor is its treacherous terrain forgiving.

Written by William Nicholson and Simon Beaufoy, the subject of Everest is a pair of May 1996 expeditions, one led by experienced climber Rob Hall, and the other by equally seasoned climber Scott Fischer. Hall is portrayed by Jason Clarke (Zero Dark Thirty; Public Enemies), and Fischer is played by Jake Gyllenhaal (Zodiac; Jarhead). The film also boasts Josh Brolin, (No Country for Old Men; Men in Black III), one of my favorite actors, as Beck Weathers, as well as Robin Wright and Keira Knightly.

Aside from the typical risks and dangers involved in climbing to the world’s highest peak, the adventurers find themselves at high altitude when a massive snowstorm—not predicted before that made the final stages of their ascent—quickly approaches. This is now ordinary storm of wind and heavy snow—it is a once-every-50-year super blizzard, and it quickly overpowers ever the most experienced of the climbers.

Director Baltasar Kormakur doesn’t bother to invest much in developing an elaborate backstory or creating a deep emotional thread, nor in plunging into the heads of our main characters. Instead, he places most of his emphasis on the power and majesty of the mountains, and in the special effects and vertigo-inducing scenery. I read a short review on the British news website The Telegraph which summed it up neatly: this movie “doesn’t delve deep.”


Images courtesy Universal Pictures/Working Title Films

On the other hand, in an age when the big screen if seemingly overrun with super hero and fictional tales of men of steel, men who can kick ass simply by wearing a funny cape, and people with extra-human powers—such as the ability to melt stone with the wave of a hand or the ability to smash earthmovers with a fist, it is refreshing to watch a thrill ride movie based on actual history. In that vein, Everest shares some recent DNA with The Walk, which tells the true story of Philippe Petit’s amazing 1974 tightrope walk between the two towers of the World Trade Center.

Part of what makes Everest work despite its obvious superficial attempt at telling us more about the real life people involved is that it succeeds at making us feel every physical aspect of the journey and the life-threatening ordeal—the sub-freezing temperatures, the air and the altitude, the dizzying heights, and the intense power of a storm which few experts saw coming, and fewer still expected to bring such devastation. This is a great story of survival.

For those who like authenticity: much of the principal shooting was done in Nepal—in various mountain locations within the country. Everest also stars Michael Kelly, Charlotte Boving, Martin Henderson, and Sam Worthington.

Related Thursday Review articles:

The Martian; R. Alan Clanton; Thursday Review; October 6, 2015.

Bridge of Spies; R. Alan Clanton; Thursday Review; October 14, 2015.