Free Solo
2.5/4
Rated PG-13 for Brief Strong Language
In 2015, mountain climber/filmmaker Jimmy Chin and his wife Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi released "Meru," which is easily the most beautiful, fascinating and harrowing documentary about climbing that I've ever seen. I strongly suggest that you check it out. I thought it was of a such excellence that I fudged my parameters by about four months so I could include it on my Top 10 list of 2016 (had I not been such a procrastinator, I would have been able to include it on my Top 10 list of 2015, but I digress). So when I found out, quite by accident, that Chin and Chai Vasarhelyi were coming out with a new documentary about climbing, I was excited.
Why did I not like this movie as much? I'm not quite sure. The film is professionally made. The suspense remains high (at times reaching such levels that I had to turn away) and it's never boring. Maybe it's because the lead individual isn't especially endearing. He's your typical disaffected hipster that everyone assumes millennials are, although for Alex Honnold, it's a little different (an MRI showed that his amygdala has a lessened response to negative stimuli) and he was raised to pursue excellence rather than emotional fulfillment.
I think that the main reason I found this movie unpleasantly scary is because of the very real possibility that I would be witnessing a snuff film. Alex's obsession with climbing El Capitan Wall, 3000 feet of solid granite, without any support or safety gear is demented. I did not find myself willing to "celebrate" his daring, his skill, or more sickening, the "fulfillment of a dream." And for what? Bragging rights? Vanity? The need to be the first? I understood that he was obsessed and feared lifelong resentment (at one point or another, everyone feels this). But his willingness to risk his life so callously is insane, and his friends' willingness to encourage it is reprehensible. Sure, his friends are well aware that this could very well end up in his death, and Alex is too. But did no one tell him that he was literally insane? Was no one aware that his mind is not working right? They all know of his odd duck personality and his desire to live his life on his own terms, and what not. But seriously. There's risk, there's living on the edge, and then there's this, which is just madness. I'm sorry, but there's a line and this movie crosses it. Alex's brain is clearly not running on all cylinders, and someone should have put a stop to this.
Funnily enough, "Meru" asked the same questions about mortality, obsession and risk. But the climbers in that movie were not foolhardy. They had equipment, they had support, and they did everything they could to ensure their safety. They knew the risks and did everything they could to minimize them. Alex is unable to process these feelings in the same way. And yet he is venerated for his guts and his drive. Call me a helicopter parent if you want, but I think that's pretty sick.
Sure, this movie delivers the goods on a visceral level. It has some gorgeous scenic views and there are moments of pure terror that only a movie like this can offer. But it's this film's demand that I share Alex's callous view for human life that I found offensive. Trust me. Rent "Meru" instead.
Rated PG-13 for Brief Strong Language
In 2015, mountain climber/filmmaker Jimmy Chin and his wife Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi released "Meru," which is easily the most beautiful, fascinating and harrowing documentary about climbing that I've ever seen. I strongly suggest that you check it out. I thought it was of a such excellence that I fudged my parameters by about four months so I could include it on my Top 10 list of 2016 (had I not been such a procrastinator, I would have been able to include it on my Top 10 list of 2015, but I digress). So when I found out, quite by accident, that Chin and Chai Vasarhelyi were coming out with a new documentary about climbing, I was excited.
Why did I not like this movie as much? I'm not quite sure. The film is professionally made. The suspense remains high (at times reaching such levels that I had to turn away) and it's never boring. Maybe it's because the lead individual isn't especially endearing. He's your typical disaffected hipster that everyone assumes millennials are, although for Alex Honnold, it's a little different (an MRI showed that his amygdala has a lessened response to negative stimuli) and he was raised to pursue excellence rather than emotional fulfillment.
I think that the main reason I found this movie unpleasantly scary is because of the very real possibility that I would be witnessing a snuff film. Alex's obsession with climbing El Capitan Wall, 3000 feet of solid granite, without any support or safety gear is demented. I did not find myself willing to "celebrate" his daring, his skill, or more sickening, the "fulfillment of a dream." And for what? Bragging rights? Vanity? The need to be the first? I understood that he was obsessed and feared lifelong resentment (at one point or another, everyone feels this). But his willingness to risk his life so callously is insane, and his friends' willingness to encourage it is reprehensible. Sure, his friends are well aware that this could very well end up in his death, and Alex is too. But did no one tell him that he was literally insane? Was no one aware that his mind is not working right? They all know of his odd duck personality and his desire to live his life on his own terms, and what not. But seriously. There's risk, there's living on the edge, and then there's this, which is just madness. I'm sorry, but there's a line and this movie crosses it. Alex's brain is clearly not running on all cylinders, and someone should have put a stop to this.
Funnily enough, "Meru" asked the same questions about mortality, obsession and risk. But the climbers in that movie were not foolhardy. They had equipment, they had support, and they did everything they could to ensure their safety. They knew the risks and did everything they could to minimize them. Alex is unable to process these feelings in the same way. And yet he is venerated for his guts and his drive. Call me a helicopter parent if you want, but I think that's pretty sick.
Sure, this movie delivers the goods on a visceral level. It has some gorgeous scenic views and there are moments of pure terror that only a movie like this can offer. But it's this film's demand that I share Alex's callous view for human life that I found offensive. Trust me. Rent "Meru" instead.
What have you accomplished with your life? We must have seen different movies because he sure as hell looked emotional to me when he reached the top. Claiming he is insane because he is taking a risk? That's a silly stance. Do you think Neil Armstrong was insane for landing on the the moon then?
ReplyDeleteAlso, saying he is "callous" and a "disaffected hipster" seems like a really poor interpretation of the individual. I feel like we saw a different movie.
You're right. But we bring our pasts and biases to every film we watch. And that is what made me squirmy.
DeleteI objected more to his willingness to risk his life and his cavalier attitude for something that would end up being little more than bragging rights.
My impression of him is that he didn't really seem to understand the risks. Or if he did, he didn't care. Call it arrogance or obsession, his attitude didn't seem to appreciate the very real risks of what he was trying to attempt.
Maybe you're right. Maybe we did see two different movies. It was suspenseful and scary and thrilling. I will give it that much. But I just saw a guy with an attitude that made me squirmy. So I gave it the rating that I felt it deserved.
Pasts and biases? You do not seem like a mountain climber at all. I don't think mountain climbers really do it for bragging rights...more for themselves.
DeleteI'm sure he understood the risks just fine...I saw it as an inspiring person who cast aside fear to accomplish something nobody else had done before. I'm not sure why he should be looked down upon for that.
But anyway, a review is a review. Armond White still is making reviews so you do you.
I was talking about myself. We may have seen the same movie, but our experiences were clearly different. That's what I meant.
DeleteI liked the Armond White line though. That was cute.