Katy

24 May 2012

Absolutely incredible...beautiful - Spoilers

Oh. My. God. This film is breathtaking. The documentary format didn'tappealto me at first, but after my parents raved about it I decided to give it ago. It was screened in a ridiculously tiny cinema (about four rows ofseats,reflecting it's limited appeal) which I left absolutely stunned. Everyperson in that infinitesimal cinema was riveted, completely riveted by JoeSimpson's tale, told in the most straightforward, honest, beautiful wayI'veever seen a story told. The fact that you know the ending is immaterial -it's the whys and wherefores that keep you hooked, wondering how the hellthis bloodyminded maniac is going to get out of this particular dilemma,andthe next, and the next. The actions and reactions of Joe and hiscolleaguesare so inherently human that every five minutes I felt the urge to nodwithrecognition - they admit to what others would be ashamed to - Simon'sadmission that he kept trying to think of a cover story to make him "lookbetter" after cutting the rope on Joe is a perfect example, as is Joe'sdisclosure that at the point of death he had Boney M's ridiculously cheesyBrown Girl In The Ring playing endlessly in his head. Some moments areamazingly poignant - Joe lying on his back watching the stars and feelingthat he had been lying there for centuries - his description of therealisation that his friends had gone. But I'll say no more. Just please,please go and see this film. The problem with it is that it doesn't soundappealing to a mainstream audience - however, if bums can be gotten onseatsI truly believe that word of mouth should give this stunning film thestatusit deserves.

Jet

24 May 2012

A true story that seems so hard to believe. An excellent must see movie.

A movie about two mountain climbing friends (Simon and Joe) who decidethey want a challenge and decide to climb a mountain in Peru. They gothrough a perilous journey. And have to make life changing decisions.It shows there strong friendship and how its made even stronger. It waswonderfully done. One of the best documentaries of all time. It is atwonderful story of survival and learning that its never to late. Thismovie is so good that i just saw it for my second time this very nightand i will probably buy it. I recommend getting the DVD version andalso watching what happened after ward it is ten minutes and it justtells a little bit about what happened after the journey.

absolutesavage

24 May 2012

Disturbing.

(saw the movie last night) I was literally disturbed by this movie. Itbothered me so much, I wanted to turn it off. My fiancé wants to getback into climbing rocks and I am horrified about it. Not to mentionthat I will never do it myself after watching this movie. I felt like Iwas watching the real life action in front of me (have projection TV).My heart was racing and I couldn't stop watching every second of it -You get sucked in immediately as this fascinating/horrifying storyunfolds. I cannot believe that Joe survived this - absolutely amazing. I am notaware whether this won any awards, as I am just starting my researchabout it, but it absolutely should have. What a great movie, wow.

Howard Schumann

23 May 2012

Remarkable courage and determination

Based on the best-selling book of the same name, Kevin Macdonald'sdocu-drama Touching the Void recreates the 1985 experience of Joe Simpsonand Simon Yates, two British mountaineers attempting to climb the SiulaGrande Mountains of Peru, a mountain range no one had ever succeeded inscaling before. The film tells the story of how Simpson, alone at 21,000feet -- with a broken leg, dehydrated, and a step away from death, pushedhis broken body beyond the limits of what he knew to be possible in order tosurvive. Oscar-winning director of One Day in September, Macdonald usesactors Brendan Mackay (Simpson) and Nicholas Aaron (Yates) to recreate theadventure while the real climbers provide a running commentary.After ascending the west face of the mountain in 3 1/2 days using the"purest" style of climbing (sleeping in ice caves rather than setting upbase camps along the way), the descent is treacherous as Simpson misses astep and his lower leg is driven into his kneecap. Tied together by a rope,Yates begins lowering his partner downward in the darkness, 300 feet at atime while Simpson is in excruciating pain. Progress is halted when Simpsonis lowered into a crevasse and left dangling in mid-air, unable to signalhis companion. Yates believes him to be dead and makes a crucial andcontroversial decision to cut the rope, leaving his partner alone andwithout support. Simpson has never blamed Yates for his decision and hasgone to great lengths in his book and in interviews to defend Simon whosecharacter has been continually under attack since that fateful day.The film was shot in authentic locations in the Andes and the Alps, and theresult is a sense of being there, experiencing the pitiless forces ofnature. Though the outcome is preordained, how the two friends managed tosurvive their ordeal provides more than enough heart-pounding suspense. Thefilm shows Simpson trying to knot a rope with frozen fingers and guzzlingthe first muddy water he finds to counter the effects of severe dehydration.One of the most intriguing sequences shows the climber in a semi-deliriousstate listening in his mind to the sound of Boney M's Brown Girl in theRing. While there is little in the way of spiritual epiphany (Simpson candidlydiscusses his atheism), there is an unmistakable feeling that both men havebeen strengthened by their shared ordeal. Simpson touches the void withinhim, an emptiness that compels him to keep going only because he "wanted tobe with someone when I died". Reaching base camp in the middle of the night,he calls out but no one answers, `When no one answered the call", he says,"I lost something. I lost me.' Then, when Simon and Richard rescue him, thething he remembers most is the feeling of being held. Though he did notexperience a higher power guiding him, he does sense a freedom from theworld's clutter that makes him feel more alive. Touching the Void is a taleof remarkable courage and determination that touches the place withinourselves that tells us that miracles can occur in our life if we are ableto go beyond what we thought was possible and act as if our life depends onthe result.

Foxterrier

23 May 2012

brilliant and alive

Some of us have found ourselves in, shall we say, rather bad situations,where we can't believe what has happened to us, and we don't know if we'reever going to get out of them. But no mess I've ever been in, or ever wantto be in, can come close to this. This film's brilliance is that Joe's, Simon's and Richard's story is toldwith such spare clarity. This ain't no stinkin' Hollywood action flick -this is the real deal. The way they tell it is like talking to someone who'smet cancer, or a shark, or a rapist, yet survived to see, to their surprisereally, the sunshine of a new day.It's an amazing story of survival. But it's also a story about coming togrips with life itself, and lastly, about friendship. Wow. As soon as this film comes out on video, I'm buying it.Bless you Joe. Bless you Simon.

George Parker

22 May 2012

One of the best mountaineering films

"Touching the Void" tells the harrowing ordeal of a pair of BritishAlpine mountaineers who climbed the 21,000 ft Peruvian Andean peak ofSiula Grande in 1985. The question of survival in this grippingdocudrama is a forgone conclusion as the film is narrated by the twoclimbers. However, that fact does not assuage this gripping tale as thetwo men supplement an excellent reenactment with compelling insightsand honest appraisals of their moment to moment struggle with survivalin the face of almost certain death. With excellent marks from thecritics and public alike, "Touching the Void" should make for aninteresting if not nail biting watch for anyone into adventure films.(B+)

19 May 2012

My all-time favorite documentary

This is my all-time favorite documentary that plays out just like a very gripping film. It does an excellent job of raising conflicting emotions in the viewer as Joe and Simon confront their mountain-top ordeal.Bottom line, and what is so truly harrowing, is this documentary is like watching someone come back from the dead. The connection between that dark crevasse of snow and ice and seemingly no way out that Joe falls into and a tomb is immediately apparent. Guts, desire, ingenuity, maybe even a bit of anger and rage manage to get him to the "light."Surreal music adds to this drama. A definite one to see, especially for those who enjoy a great adventure!

19 May 2012

Siula Grande Clearly the Star of this Staggering Story

TOUCHING THE VOID succeeds on many levels: it is a film about the power of Nature, the indomitable human spirit faced with survival, and the complexity of youthful delusions of grandeur that can result in tragic conflicts. As written by mountaineer Joe Simpson and Directed by Kevin Macdonald the film is a docudrama, splicing on camera interviews of the three men (Joe Simpson, Simon Yates, and Richard Hawking) involved in the controversial 1985 mountain climbing incident on the Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes with "enacted" episodes by actors Brendan Mackey, Nicholas Aaron, and Ollie Ryall. The incident is well known - an climbing expedition on the virginal West face of the Siula Grande results in a rather routine ascent but on the descent trauma occurs: Joe breaks his leg in a fall and slides into a demonic crevasse while Simon, thinking Joe is dead, cuts the supporting cord and descends to safety alone. The majority of the film deals with Joe's thoughts of his impending death, his struggle to keep attempting to return to safety despite his broken leg and lack of food and water, and his ultimate encounter with the 'void' of the universe which consumes us all at the point of death. The ending is history - Joe does live to tell (and write) this tale. Though docudramas can often be interesting but uninvolving, TOUCHING THE VOID rivets the viewer to the tale by the unrelenting awe of how man is able to struggle against the odds of Nature and survive. There are moments when the utter majesty of Siula Grande is presented as a lady of nature that refuses to be conquered and as such the photography and momentum of the director make this mountain the most important character in the story. Both the real men relating their true adventure on camera and the actors making visual the terrifying reality of the event are superb. Even for folks who shy away from the 'National Geographic-type' films will find this a compelling tale with many overlays about our place as man on the planet and in the universe.

19 May 2012

Touching the Heart not the Void

I really liked this movie although it is probably not for everyone. It is the ultimate survival movie of all time. I just find it incredible that it is true! It is well made and you just can't stop watching it, just like a good novel. It touched my heart and reminded me that Winston Churchill once got up to give a speech and all he said was "never, never give up" or something close to that. That is this movie in a nut shell.

18 May 2012

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.

Libretio

18 May 2012

Exciting True Life docudrama

TOUCHING THE VOID Aspect ratio: 1.85:1Sound format: Dolby DigitalThe true story of British mountain climbers Joe Simpson and SimonYates, who in 1985 survived a catalog of disasters during their descentfrom Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes.Director Kevin Macdonald followed his acclaimed documentary feature"One Day in September" (1999) with this compelling docudrama, combiningon-screen interviews with the film's major participants and vividreconstructions of their dramatic ordeal. There's little or noback-story, and the 'characters' emerge solely from their experienceson the mountain, which they describe in graphic detail. After breakinghis leg and being abandoned for dead by his friend, Simpson (played byBrendan Mackey in the reconstructions) endured a hellish journey backto base camp, suffering the worst effects of dehydration andexhaustion. And while his fate is obvious from the outset (he providesmost of the film's running commentary), the narrative remains grippingthroughout, as Simpson describes a series of potentially insurmountableobstacles which threatened to overwhelm him at every turn.Technically, the movie is a no-frills affair which recounts eventswithout exaggeration or embellishment, and refuses to indulge anemotional or sentimental view of the material (Simpson comes across asan unlikeable character, stubborn to the point of arrogance, which maylimit sympathy for his traumatic adventure, though it's these veryqualities which kept him alive on Siula Grande against near-impossibleodds). Non-climbers may wonder why Yates was subsequently criticized bythe climbing community for abandoning his friend, even under extremeduress, but the movie asks profound questions of its audience: Whatwould YOU have done in his place? Ultimately, TOUCHING THE VOID servesas a testament to human endurance, enacted against the backdrop ofNature's vast, godforsaken splendor. Try to see it in a theater.

John

17 May 2012

DocuDrama Masterpiece

The story of two British mountaineers who were the first to climb theWestface of Siula Grande in the Andes. The cinematography is amazing and themountains are truly breathtaking. But it is the tale itself that reallycaptivates - it will make you flinch in sympathetic pain, laugh andmarvelat the strength of the human spirit. The film is extremely deftly madeandnever overwhelms what is an inspirational true story.

ozman

17 May 2012

Best mountaineering film ever!

Two nights before seeing "Touching the Void", I watched a rented copy of"Vertical Limit". Talk about a difference! Huge amounts of money andacting "talent" wasted on a totally unbelievable piece of schlock (carryingbottles of unstable nitroglycerin up K2 to blow open a crevasse!!) in thecase of "Vertical Limit". A limited budget and unknown actors along withthe actual principals in a harrowing tale of courage and stubbornperseverance in the case of "Touching the Void." For the scenery alone,"Touching the Void" is worth the price of seeing it on a big screen, but thestory will really have you unable to look away. Highlyrecommended.

16 May 2012

The DVD Extras perfectly compliment this outstanding documentary

This is an outstanding DVD documenting the events and the aftermath of an assault 2 climbers made upon the unscaled face of Sula Grande in the Peruvian Andes. I'm going to concentrate my comments upon the extras included in the DVD because I emphatically believe they make this an outstanding film set. Your given a running commentary of both climbers during the film but the DVD really shines when you see the "Making of" segment included as an extra. What the viewer may not know is that all the filming of "Touching" was done on site and all 3 main characters were present during the filming. They added context, preserved the story's integrity and helped the production crew understand the amount of respect that the mountain deserved.As many people who have gone through traumatic experiences of this grade know, you have little desire to relive them but sometime later one is led back to the scene... to recapture a piece of themselves that has been stolen. The DVD extras examine Joe and Simon's separate but joint quest. The intra\interpersonal emotional conflicts are evidenced in their dialogue and the interaction with the film crew. The strain, stress and consequences of uncontrollable events as well as their actions are laid bare before you to see. It helps the viewer understand the context upon which these choices were made, the weight that was shouldered then and the impact it has upon them on a daily basis. It's amazing that both have survived, not just the events on Sula but the aftermath and all the armchair criticism that has been uttered since. This DVD set in its' entirety is a tribute to the capacity of man to survive and overcome incredible odds. Both Simon and Joe are to be commended at their miraculous survival against nature.Any veteran, survivor, adventurer or would be outdoor enthusiast will be hard-pressed to find a better film depicting one,s survival against the overwhelming forces of nature, uncontrollable events and one's self.Buy it and OWN IT

the_rock456

14 May 2012

I cant be bothered to find a summary title. The film is pretty good though.

I have an awfully peculiar habit when it comes to selecting films. Isee a DVD enthusiastically sitting up in the video shop display hopingfor an erring punter to pick it up, and I also see, printed on itscover, enthusing quotes by some impossibly obscure, and equallyunimaginative critic, and I know, having previously read a bunch ofreviews, that the film in question is, indeed and by all accounts, amodern masterpiece, a wondrous cinematic effort of which the Lumièresbrothers would be so exceptionally proud that they are still singing acappella in their graves.After this plethora of positive hints that would induce any borderlinerational halfwit to rent the film, what do I do? I solemnly approachthe counter with either some awful monstrosity of the likes of TheStepford Wives, which my girlfriend, in a rather dictatorial manner,forces me to watch or, with a Memento or Fight Club or Requiem for aDream that I have already seen a quadrizillion times but still preferto a new film that might turn out to be an excruciating disappointment.As the wily foxes amongst you might have guessed, this was the casewith Touching the Void. I "almost rented" it innumerable times, until Ifinally worked up the courage to remove the almost from themetaphorical sentence and actually did rent it – to the applause of theaudience in the store. And, well, the unimaginative critic wasunoriginally spot on. The film does deserve two-thumbs up, mostlybecause it manages to render potentially lacklustre material - with adegree of grip and excitement worthy of a Discovery Channel documentary– very gripping and, er, exciting indeed. To be frank, I'm not too surehow this astonishing feat was accomplished. In fact, the hybridtechnique of fusing re-enactments with interviews is very commonamongst those thriller-ride cable documentaries. Yet, the result inTouching the Void is infinitely more riveting and cinematic. Thissuccess should be partly attributed, and I may appear somewhat cuckoohere, to Simpson's voice. I genuinely believe that the tone of hisvoice manages to suit the mood of the story, and thus the film, like atailor-made, er, suit. It goes without saying (or does it?) that creditis to be attributed to MacDonald for blending narration andre-enactments with such formidable dexterity so as to render arepetition of virtually identical shots infinitely more interestingthan what it actually is: a repetition of virtually identical shots.There are two other things I would like to ramble on about. Onecontributes to the technical value of the film and, in all probability,constitutes yet another sign of my mental infirmity: the sound of thesnow. Well, to be somewhat more precise (and hopefully appear lessinsane) the sound that boots make as they plunge into snow or, the thudof the pickaxe being hammered into the ice walls. They all seemed toreinforce my enjoyment of the film. The other, and final object of myblathering has, praise the Lord, nothing to do with such inane andnonsensical matters and, surprisingly enough, does have timidly moreprofound connotations. How, I wonder, does someone find the will tokeep ploughing on the way that Simpson chap did? If it were me – thoughit could never possibly be me since I can barely cough up the courageto take the car and go to the country for a pleasant rural stroll – Iwould have stared down the crevice, cried for about 25 days and pickedmy frosty nose for another 25, until I would have ultimately come tothe conclusion that repeatedly banging my head against the ice wallwould be, by far, the most convenient solution.

Edward Gardner

14 May 2012

A true story about two young British men who climb a remote Peruvian mountain. A gripping tail of survival and human nature.

This outstanding film manages to be more than a tail of survival; ittouches your very sole. The feeling of isolation and helplessness isbeautifully portrayed through the daring camera work, the hauntingmusic and the tense narration by Joe Simpson, Simon Yates and RichardWhat's-his-face. The mountains seem to have a godly presence verging onevil. As Simpson describes his first night alone in the mountain yourealise that his struggle is not just for his life but also his sanity.He and Simon Yates make very honest and thought provoking commentsabout what happened to them up there. A simple look into each otherseyes is described with dread and horror as they begin to accept theirsituation. Their predicament forces you into questioning yourself.Simpsons epic efforts to get off the mountain and to be with someone isawe inspiring and to hear it told from the horses mouth is fascinating.I enjoyed the film so much that I have since read 4 of Joe Simpsonsbooks. I have no intention of climbing any mountain but Touching theVoid puts you right on the west face of Siula Grande. I.M.D.B haverecommended watching K2, if you like this one. Well Simpson walked outof the cinema shortly into it. It's not that kind of movie.

Roland E. Zwick

14 May 2012

amazing docudrama

You'll be lucky if you have any cuticles left by the time you've finishedwatching `Touching the Void,' a nail-biting documentary that chronicles atrue-life tale of miraculous survival. In 1985, two experienced mountainclimbers, Simon Yates and Joe Simpson, set out to scale a peak in thePeruvian Andes. Although they successfully reached the summit, disasterstruck as they were making their way back down. In the midst of a blindingblizzard, Joe slipped and broke his leg. The film, based on the book by JoeSimpson himself, recounts the grueling ordeal both men underwent in theirefforts to make it back to their base camp alive.To fully dramatize the experience, director Kevin MacDonald filmedone-on-one interviews with the two survivors (as well as a third companionwho didn't go up the mountain with them) commenting and reflecting on theevent, then employed actors to reenact the event as it originally happened. MacDonald has done an astonishing job capturing the edge-of-the-seatsuspense inherent in the material, this despite the fact that we alreadyknow how it will all turn out. By plunging us directly into the heart of theaction, we feel we are enduring every death-defying, heartbreaking momentright along with Joe and Simon. `Touching the Void' is, if nothing else, atour-de-force of breathtaking cinematography and stunt work, one that makesus identify with the characters every step of the way.Yet, for all its technical expertise, `Touching the Void' is, first andforemost, a human document, a testament to the endurance and survivabilityof both the human body and the human spirit. The amazing determination andperseverance demonstrated by the two men - especially by the then25-year-old Joe as he struggles manfully, despite unendurable pain, to reacha place of safety - is inspiring even to those of us who do most of ouradventuring from the comfort and safety of our living room armchair, a coldbeer in hand. The film also reveals, through their actions and their wordstwenty some years later, the character of the two men. Simon has to livewith the fact that, at a crucial moment in the crisis, he cut Joe loose fromhis line, consigning his partner to probable death so that he himself couldsurvive – an action for which many fellow mountaineers later criticizedSimon. Yet, never once – either then or now – does Joe join in thatcriticism. On the psychological level, we learn of the cavalcade ofemotions and feelings Joe underwent in those moments of greatest desperationwhen he looked impending death square in the face. This film is as much anadventure of the mind as it is of the body. Paradoxically, at the same timeas the film is showing us the indomitableness of the human spirit, it isreminding us how much we humans – even the most daring among us – are,ultimately, at the mercy of a far greater, impersonal and indifferent forceknown as Nature.Thanks to the compelling, stranger-than-fiction quality of the tale and thetechnical brilliance used to re-create it, `Touching the Void' will have youchewing your fingernails down to a nub.

13 May 2012

Fantastic, just a bit long

I thought this movie was great. It's a fantastic story, well told. It just should have been a half an hour shorter.

bob the moo

13 May 2012

Gripping, moving and totally amazing. An amazing story that never fails to grip and is only made stronger by the dramatic recreations fuelled by Simon Joes recollections.

In the mid-80's two young climbers attempted to reach the summit ofSiula Grande in Peru - a feat that had previously been attempted butnever achieved. With an extra man looking after base camp, Simon andJoe set off to scale the mount in one long push over several days. Thepeak is reached, however on the descent Joe falls and breaks his leg.Despite what it means, the two continue with Simon letting Joe out on arope for 300 feet, then descending to join him and so on. However whenJoe goes out over an overhang with no way of climbing back up, Simonmakes the decision to cut the rope. Joe falls into a crevice and Simon,assuming him dead, continues back down. Joe however survives the falland was lucky to hit a ledge in the crevice. This is the story of howhe got back down.Yet another reason to lament the closing of Film Four's doors, thisfilm is the cinematic equivalent of sitting listening to someone tellyou an amazing story in their own words. The film is acted out indramatised scenes but it is Joe's and Simon's words over the top thatreally will keep you hanging on. The dramatised scenes though, arestill wonderful, it is very easy to forget that this was not somehowfilmed at the time, not only do they look very, very real but they alsolook spectacular; when Joe talks about the imposing crevice he was in,the pictures on screen did much better at translating that into visualsthan my non-mountaineering imagination could have done.The two actors in the roles of Joe and Simon do a great job; like Isaid, it is very easy to forget they are actors or that this is areplay for the camera. However the real people are more interesting andit is they that drive the film. To hear Joe talk about what he did andfelt puts so much more bone on the story that any Hollywood versioncould have managed. He is a great guy and I can only imagine what hewent through. Simon on the other hand is more guarded. He never reallygoes below the facts, whereas I know he has issues underneath as heapparently was not as calm as he is on camera during the making of thefilm. The film ends with some captions - one of which being that Simoncame under great criticism for cutting the rope from other climbers.However the talking heads bit never even touches the surface of whatSimon had to go through after they all got home - in a way that wouldhave been just as interesting a part of the film as what Joe wentthrough.As the story unfolds it is impossible not to sit shaking your head inamazement. At the start I was like everyone else 'why would you do thisstuff for fun' etc, and I still think that, but the story is sogripping that it is impossible to think of anything else. The runningtime is generous and allows Simon to tell his story properly, it isamazing and the sense of impossible odds and the sheer pain involved isbrought to the audience very well - even with a handful of people inthe audience gasps and 'ah's' were very audible. Overall this film ismore dramatic than any Hollywood drama I have seen in a long time. Itis not without flaw but it is difficult to sit and just watch it - Iwas enthralled by it, a true dramatic human story that never let me getbored or distracted. By the end, Simon has put forward his manyemotions so well that I was very moved. The only think that would havemade this film better would have been a bit more of searching insidehimself by Joe in the final 15 minutes, in my heart I doubt if I couldever forgive myself and I wonder how he did or if he did.

12 May 2012

amazing

one of those movies that leaves you speechless. just see it.