Everest (2015) [Blu-ray]
Adventure | Biography | Drama | History | Thriller

Inspired by the incredible events surrounding an attempt to reach the summit of the world's highest mountain, Everest documents the awe-inspiring journey of two different expeditions challenged beyond their limits by one of the fiercest snowstorms ever encountered by mankind. Their mettle tested by the harshest elements found on the planet, the climbers will face nearly impossible obstacles as a lifelong obsession becomes a breathtaking struggle for survival. Critics call Everest "...exciting, thrilling, moving and completely engaging." - Scott Mendleson, Forbes

Storyline: On the morning of May 10, 1996, climbers from two commercial expeditions start their final ascent toward the summit of Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth. With little warning, a violent storm strikes the mountain, engulfing the adventurers in one of the fiercest blizzards ever encountered by man. Challenged by the harshest conditions imaginable, the teams must endure blistering winds and freezing temperatures in an epic battle to survive against nearly impossible odds.

Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Martin Liebman, January 12, 2016 -- Human beings simply aren't built to function at the cruising altitude of a 747.

Everest may have all the earmarks of a Disaster film and a special effects film, but while those are certainly in play the greater narrative pushes them aside in favor of a much more organic, heartfelt, and straightforward story of man versus nature, the human spirit, and the fragility of life. Everest recounts the true story of a successful expedition to the top of Mount Everest that cost the lives of several climbers who became trapped in a terrible storm after reaching the summit. Director Baltasar Kormákur (2 Guns, Contraband) tells their story with an honest grace and directness. The film captures the hardships of the journey, the triumph of success, and the awful details of their deaths. It's an exceedingly well done film from a technical perspective, too, boasting gorgeous photography and an all-star cast in what is one of 2015's top films, both aesthetically and dramatically alike.

By 1996, scaling Mount Everest had become easier and a commercial endeavor. Several outfits, including Adventure Consultants, began guiding amateur climbers to the mountain's summit, and with terrific results. The death toll plummeted to nothing and, suddenly, a feat of superhuman accomplishment was accessible to anyone with the time and money to devote to the climb. One particular climb, however, would change everything. Adventure Consultant's Rob Hall (Jason Clarke) would lead a group to a successful ascension that included, amongst others, a Texas doctor named Beck Weathers (Josh Brolin), a Japanese woman named Yasuko Namba (Naoko Mori) who had previous scaled six of the world's highest peaks, a postal worker named Doug Hansen (John Hawkes) on his second try in as many years, and an outdoors journalist named Jon Krakauer (Michael Kelly). Along with other guide leaders and their clients from competing firms -- Scott Fischer (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Guy Cotter (Sam Worthington) -- the trek to the top is hazardously dense, but the expedition proves successful. Unfortunately, a massive storm rolls in just as the climbers begin their descent, a storm that's strong enough to kill even the most prepared amongst them.

Everest can essentially be whittled down to two unique elements that work in rugged but beautiful harmony: the humanity behind the story and the technical prowess that makes the movie happen. At the center of the movie is the human drive and man's determination to conquer, in this case to conquer not one another but nature. But why? Is "because it's there" worth a life and the very real risks associated with such an endeavor? One of the few areas where the film slightly stutters comes from its lack of deeper psychological insights into the climbers' psyches. That endless determination to beat the mountain is there -- Doug is the single best example -- but that determination never quite feels grounded in a relatable dramatic mechanism. Nevertheless, the film demonstrates the human will at its most determined and its most vulnerable, simultaneously, which is what makes the movie, and this particular true-to-life story, so fascinating. It's sort of like the metaphorical unstoppable force, in this case the human condition, meeting the immovable object, in this case Everest, with mother nature ultimately deciding the outcome. The film is, at its most superficial core, about the struggles up and down the mountain -- the energy and will necessary to ascend and the much more dangerous descent -- but beyond the cold, the lack of oxygen, the frostbite, the body's inability to cope is the question of why, of the human spirit, of man's thirst to prove his worth. The film examines that, often more in the guise of a pure Adventure film, on both extremes in the struggle to the top, the fleeting moment of triumph, and the descent into near certain death.

The film's impeccable technical merits only accentuate its spirited representation of the battle of man versus nature and the drive of the human condition. Director Baltasar Kormákur plays the film in a largely straightforward manner, capturing the scale and majesty of the mountain and, often, in contrast against man himself. Once the ascent begins, and particularly following the climb to the summit and the dangers that emerge with the descent, Kormákur does a wonderful job of juxtaposing the courage, fear, determination, and impossible physical conditions on the mountain with the uncertainties at base camp, producing some of the most raw and honest emotions as the climbers are essentially cut off by the conditions and a physical distance that only crackly radios can penetrate. The actors are extraordinary in every moment, whether in their wide-eyed and, for some of them, rather cocky attitudes before the climb and the effortless emotions they portray after. As they climb, reach the peak, and come back down, so too do the emotions travel along the same curve, and the entire cast proves remarkable in the task of conveying those intimate emotions -- the highs and lows alike -- with enough of a genuine push that the movie's bleakest moments may not leave a dry eye in the theater.

Everest intermixes the intimacy of man's essence with the scope of the world's highest peak to near perfection. The film is dazzling in construction but more a fascinating, though not quite 100% complete, look at man's will and determination both to succeed and survive. Far more than a simple "Disaster" or "Survival" film, Everest proves more emotionally complex, partly for its realism and conveyance of a true story and partly for the filmmakers' and actors' abilities to so easily entwine humanity with disaster and survival. It's a great film from every angle and Universal's Blu-ray is also top-tier. Perfect video and audio are supported by several featurettes and an audio commentary. Very highly recommended.

[CSW] -2.4- I somehow thought that this might be awesome. I really wanted to like it. There was not a lot of character development and it dragged in places. The scenery was outstanding. When the main character decides to forget his knowledge and training and give in to an emotion that he understand but knows that he should resist, it lead to a movie that is entertaining but heartbreaking. Knowing some of the outcome in advance didn't detract as much as I thought it would. Overall it was not a disappointment, I was just hoping for more.
[V5.0-A5.0] MPEG-4 AVC - No D-Box motion codes were available at the time of this rental although they are available now.


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