Everest (1998)

how not to photograph climbing mt. everest

this is a MUST NOT buy. the commentary sounds as if it were written by a teenager. the story -too short- spends too little time on the climb and too much on extraneous matters. climbing mt. everest is a horrendously difficult task but this movie makes it appear not too hard. there are a few scenes of climbing and though i accept the photos taken at the summit are real, all the others could have been taken anywhere there was snow and ice. if this is the best these movie makers could do, they should look for another day job.
unfortunately my copy, new, was bothered by a sound track with bad hum and noise, so loud that at times the commentary, thankfully, could not be heard.
this is not recommended for adding to anyone's collection. April 17, 2008

Shortened by the 1996 Disaster

The reason for three stars instead of five is because this DVD is only about 45 minutes in length. I wanted more. There is the possibility that it was cut short in order to assist in saving lives on Mt. Everest during the 1996 Disaster. If I knew that to be the case I would change my rating to 5 stars with no regrets. I would liked to have seen more filming at the different camps along the way to the summit. Excellent filming but way too short in length and information. January 7, 2008

Great adjunct to Krakauer's "Into Thin Air"

Would have loved to have seen this when it came out in I-Max. Great profile of David Breashears. October 28, 2007

Overall, a decent documentary

"Everest" has some beautiful shots and is generally of high quality, but it really simplifies the climbers' perspectives in most of the interviews. What is amazing, however, is the interview with one of the climbers who was in one of the groups affected by the storm. He explains what it is like to believe that you are dead, and how he dealt with the amputation of both of his hands (due to frostbite).

It's suitable for a wide range of audiences and the shots are incredible, but not on par with Blue Planet or Winged Migration. If you are looking for a quality documentary and do not have specific subject matter in mind, I would recommend them instead. October 17, 2007

Just read "Into Thin Air" or rent/buy "Everest: the Death Zone."

A few reasons why this didn't do much for me:

After reading "Into Thin Air," this seemed kind of superfluous. Krakauer did such a great job of describing everything in his book that I could visualize everything already. This film ended up being just like a slideshow.

The narration (by Neeson and by the climbers) is so trite and insipid that it reminds me of the kind of films they used to show me in grade school science class. Oh--there is an insipid musical score to match the narration.

I guess this would have been MUCH better as shown in an actual IMAX theater. On DVD it just looks like a slideshow or powerpoint presentation. There was only one or two scenes in the whole film that made me say "wow" out loud.

The way they glossed over the famous disaster (the one that occurred while they filming, mere hundreds of feet away from them) seemed ridiculously inconsequential. It is almost as if they were going for a strict "G" rating.

The special features on the DVD are about 5 times more entertaining than the film itself.

Sorry folks, I was really disappointed with this film.

Now, as far as a film that does a great job of capturing the experience (good and bad) I would highly recommend "Everest: The Death Zone." It is everything that this film should have been.


October 4, 2007

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