Mainstream mountain climbing films are typically big-budget action fiascos that contain as much real-life authenticity as a James Bond movie. \Cliffhanger,"" the 1993 Sylvester Stallone offering, offers a multitude of high-tech action thrills and excitement but very little realistic depiction of its subject. The 2000 extravaganza ""Vertical Limit"" is even more laughable, what with its far-fetched plot and ludicrous action sequences-especially one cliff leap that exhibits Chris O'Donnell's superhuman strength. However, Kevin McDonald's independent docudrama ""Touching the Void"" manages to maintain an unremitting atmosphere of suspense while staying admirably accurate in its climbing sequences. As a result, this is the best film ever made about the subject.
""Touching the Void"" is an ambitious hybrid of talking-heads documentary footage and skillful recreation of the events; it is somewhat like the dramatic equivalent of ""American Splendor."" Of course, this movie is deadly serious about its subject and does not feature many humorous scenes. It recounts the doomed 1985 climbing expedition of British mountaineers Joe Simpson and Simon Yates, cutting back and forth between narration by Simpson and Yates and reenactment featuring actors Brendan McKay and Nicholas Aaron.
They conquered the 21,000-foot Alp peak Siula Grande climbing ""alpine style"" without backup-just their equipment and their 300-foot rope. After successfully reaching the top, the pair ran into trouble when Simpson broke his leg severely. He was lowered by Yates via rope every 300 feet, but when he was lowered to a spot where he would have endangered both of their lives, Yates cut the rope.
Yates continued his mountain descent believing that Simpson was dead, when in fact Simpson had fallen into a crevasse and survived. The rest of the film shows Simpson's amazing, yet agonizing journey to the bottom of the mountain.
Although every one is clear of the outcome of the film, ""Touching the Void"" garners an impressive amount of suspense in recreating the two climbers' ordeal. The climbing footage was filmed in the Alps and seems exceptionally realistic, with McDonald making plentiful use of close-ups and panoramic mountain pan-and-scans.
He also takes artistic risks with the most compelling section of the film, attempting to portray the intense dementia and agony that plagued Simpson's every move across the rocky section of the mountain. The real Simpson informs us that every step he took caused him extreme pain here, and McDonald uses the ""head-cam"" (which is regularly used on ""Fear Factor"") to display his frequent agonizing falls. In one scene, Simpson says that the only thing that could distract him from his suffering was a bad British pop song, which McDonald then plays over the soundtrack. This creates a quirky yet unsettling effect that at once demonstrates the state of mind that Simpson was in.
McDonald's film, with its unconventional approach and impressive performances (especially by McKay), is a genre masterpiece. It is a harrowing film about the strength of the human spirit, the power of friendship, and the endurance of the will to survive without resorting to cheap Oprah emotions. With its convincing mountain climbing scenes and genuine power, ""Touching the Void"" is an independent film with so much quality that it makes you wish big-budget Hollywood would start following its example.
