'VOID' A RIVETING ACCOUNT OF SHEER TERROR.Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Critic NEARLY 20 YEARS ago, two British mountain climbers - Joe Simpson Joe Simpson may be:
adj. 1. Determined to have one's own way; stubbornly and often recklessly willful. See Synonyms at obstinate, unruly. 2. Resulting from willfulness and obstinacy. blokes - there would be no one, and no way, to rescue them. Something did happen, something, very, very bad, and that catastrophe is the subject of Kevin Macdonald's riveting riv·et·ing adj. Wholly absorbing or engrossing one's attention; fascinating: The last chapter was so riveting that I was reading past midnight. mountain movie, ``Touching the Void.'' Macdonald expertly examines the fateful climb, combining present-day interviews with the climbers with dramatized footage that re-creates the Andes expedition. Usually, dramatic re-creations have all the punch of a Kenny G saxophone saxophone, musical instrument invented in the 1840s by Adolphe Sax. Although it uses the single reed of the clarinet family, it has a conical tube and is made of metal. solo, but Macdonald - using actors, stunt doubles and, occasionally, Simpson and Yates themselves - puts his audience right there on the face of the mountain, wondering how in the world they're going to make it home. Naturally, Simpson and Yates did survive, otherwise we wouldn't be listening to them recall the events with a mixture of British stiff-upper- lip resignation and probing psychological depth. (Simpson wrote about the events in a gripping memoir, also titled ``Touching the Void.'') But knowing the outcome doesn't lessen the movie's tension. The circumstances these men found themselves in were so extreme that it isn't so much the results, but the process that is fascinating to watch. ``Touching the Void'' isn't simply an adventure tale about survival in extreme conditions. The story hinges on a crucial decision that Yates faces early in the film, a classic what-would-you-do moment that is still hotly debated among serious climbers to this day. The two men eloquently express the challenges and fears they faced in the film's powerful interviews, and Macdonald uses only the choice comments, never letting the film become anything other than what it is - a powerful testimony to the horrors we'll endure just to survive. You'll be on the edge of your seat. Glenn Whipp, (818) 713-3672 glenn.whipp(at)dailynews.com TOUCHING THE VOID - Three and one half stars (Not rated: language, frightening scenes of peril) Starring: Joe Simpson, Simon Yates. Director: Kevin Macdonald. Running time: 1 hr. 46 min. Playing: Laemmle's Sunset 5 in West Hollywood West Hollywood A community of southern California northeast of Beverly Hills. It is mainly residential. Population: 36,600. ; Landmark's NuWilshire in Santa Monica Santa Monica (săn`tə mŏn`ĭkə), city (1990 pop. 86,905), Los Angeles co., S Calif., on Santa Monica Bay; inc. 1886. Tourism and retailing are important, and the city has motion-picture, biotechnology, and software industries. . (Expands wider Feb. 13.) In a nutshell: Amazing a·maze v. a·mazed, a·maz·ing, a·maz·es v.tr. 1. To affect with great wonder; astonish. See Synonyms at surprise. 2. Obsolete To bewilder; perplex. v.intr. story of survival, expertly told. |
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