Customer Reviews

Mt Everest: The Fatal Climb [VHS]

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

If you were hoping for the visual rehash of THE CLIMB or INTO THIN AIR keep looking. This video's another poorly shot saga of a middled aged dude with summit fever and the guide who lost his toes deciding between nobility and a life wracked with guilt. There's not much to engage the viewer on a personal, emotional level in spite of the dramatic circumstances. But if watching a talking head shot of a moody guy in a tent is your idea of good video....

The Fatal Climb takes you as high as you can go on Everest - the summit! The story is inspiring and tragic all at the same time, with live footage from the very spot (just above the 2nd Step on the North Ridge) where disaster strikes. It is a story of one man's obsession with reaching Everest's summit (at all costs) and another man's battle with feelings of incredible guilt. I thoroughly recommend this video to anyone who has ever wanted to see what it's really like at extreme altitude and how dangerous it really is. This video will make you laugh and cry - it's incredible!

An excellent documentary of one man's obsession to climb Everest which ultimately cost him his life. The struggle, the endurance, the pain and then the thrill of getting to the summit was incredible. Mark Whetu recalls the events extremely well, but for me the ultimate point of the film is when upon reflection of the loss of his friend he says `It's not that life is too short it's that your dead a long time.'

This movie is about a Mt. Everest climbing season and it's a visually stunning, beautiful film which has held up marvelously since its release. I originally saw it on the big screen, but the DVD transfer is stunning. Very little quality has been lost, either visually or in the audio segments. This is a high quality production from beginning to end, and you will not want this film to end!

Though short in length, you can watch it repeatedly and always take something new from the experience. What I most enjoy about this movie is that you get to know the climbers that are profiled. You get to see them training for the gruelling Everest experience months in advance in their home countries. They are interviewed and you're allowed a little window into their soul, so when they struggle on the mountain, you have empathy and understanding of their plight. The characterizations of the climbers are like getting to know people in novels, it's unusual in a documentary, but very compelling.

The movie is magical in its visual beauty. The vistas are crisp, clear and sharp. The narration is understated, elegant and never intrusive. If you're interested in people's obsessions, this is a great film.

The Fatal Climb story was told in 1997 - The Fatal Game - [...] even the log line is the same - "One mans dream became another mans nightmare". How do I know? I produced The Fatal Game. It sold into every territory in the world and won 28 awards. Its a fantastic story and deserves to be told in as many iterations as possible. I guess plagery is the best kind of flattery.