Everest

 EVEREST

Director : Baltasar Kormákur

Year : 2015

Genre : Thriller

Rating : ****

 

Jason Clarke and Jake Gyllenhaal head an all star cast of Academy Award, Golden Globe and SAG winners and nominees in Baltasar Kormákur's palpably bitter biographical drama 'Everest' - an incredibly compelling and beautifully shot thriller based on the catastrophic 1996 failed ascent and descent of the worlds highest mountain. Chronicling the events of one of the worst disasters in mountaineering history, 'Everest' retreads the doomed paths of numerous groups of adventurers who planned to conquer the planets most dangerous destination at the same time but soon found themselves in mortal danger as the horrific combination of a lack of oxygen tanks and bad weather eventually spelled tragedy.

From the moment that the characters reach their hallowed destination, 'Everest' shines with absolutely extraordinary (and potentially Oscar nominated) cinematography from Salvatore Totino who lends the daunting colossus with an almost supernatural sense of fear and dread - fear and dread that is wonderfully accentuated by Dario Marianelli's thunderous but suitable underscoring. When the icy winds and blinding blizzards inevitably pulverise their way into the story, it is impossible not to feel as cold as the characters on screen and this air of sensory realism adds an extra layer of dimension to the already layered narrative. However, while the film looks spectacular and Kormákur's directorial vision makes for many moments of heart-pounding tension, the cast, while all proficient in their craft, are not all given their chance to truly shine. Central players such as Josh Brolin, John Hawkes, Emily Watson and the aforementioned Jason Clarke are all completely believable and enthralling in their respective roles while secondary stars such as Keira Knightley and Robin Wright who play the distressed wives of two of the climbers are barely given a look in to the proceedings. Despite this small setback nevertheless, 'Everest' manages to pack an emotional gut punch that so many of it's contemporaries sadly lack and while it may not completely turn its back on all of the typical genre conventions, William Nicholson's and Simon Beaufoy's deftly written screenplay successfully manages to side-step a large majority of the tropes synonymous with the disaster movie.