Touching the Void (2003)

The true story of two climbers and their perilous journey up the west face of Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.

Director:

Kevin Macdonald

Writer:

Joe Simpson (book)

Stars:

Brendan Mackey, Nicholas Aaron, Joe Simpson

6 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview:
Brendan Mackey	...	Joe Simpson
Nicholas Aaron	...	Simon Yates
Richard Hawking	...	Himself
Joe Simpson	...	Himself
Simon Yates	...	Himself
Ollie Ryall	...	Richard Hawking

Storyline

In the mid-80's two young climbers attempted to reach the summit of Siula Grande in Peru; a feat that had previously been attempted but never achieved. With an extra man looking after base camp, Simon and Joe set off to scale the mount in one long push over several days. The peak is reached, however on the descent Joe falls and breaks his leg. Despite what it means, the two continue with Simon letting Joe out on a rope for 300 meters, then descending to join him and so on. However when Joe goes out over an overhang with no way of climbing back up, Simon makes the decision to cut the rope. Joe falls into a crevasse and Simon, assuming him dead, continues back down. Joe however survives the fall and was lucky to hit a ledge in the crevasse. This is the story of how he got back down.

---

Plot Keywords:

rope | bone | crevasse | peru | climbing | 

---

Taglines:

The closer you are to death. The more you realize you are alive.

---

Genres:

Documentary | Adventure | Drama | Sport

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language

Details

Official Sites:

IFC Films [us]

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 December 2003 (UK)

Also Known As:

Sturz ins Leere

Filming Locations:

Chamonix, Haute-Savoie, France

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$203,091 (Australia) (25 June 2004)

Gross:

$1,542,274 (Australia) (30 July 2004)

Company Credits

Production Co:

FilmFour, UK Film Council, Darlow Smithson Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Some of the long distance shots of Simon and Joe climbing the mountain are played not by the lead actors, but by body doubles, who were Simon Yates and Joe Simpson themselves.

---

Goofs

When Joe and Simon are walking across the ridge to the summit, there are already footprints in the snow ahead of them.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Joe Simpson: We climb cause it's fun.

---

Crazy Credits

During the first part of the closing credits (before the crawl), the credits are accompanied by black-and-white pictures showing the three men's journey back into civilization; the final picture is of Joe in the hospital.

---

Connections

Featured in The Making of 'Touching the Void' (2003)

---

Soundtracks

"Brown Girl in the Ring"
Written by Frank Farian
Performed by Boney M

User Reviews

eye-opening

Even for those who cannot understand why anyone would attempt to risk their life to climb a peak that most will never even know about, this film is a true eye-opener. It will show you the part of climbing that many amateurs such as I will only read about..and now, through dramatic reenactments as described by the survivors, see in this film. The beauty of the mountain is juxtaposed in tense dramatic fashion by the two climbers struggle to survive. In pitting human against nature, it will force the viewer to confront themselves with the fundamental principle of American culture--the morality of self-interested, rational behavior. As the law prof reviewer suggested, you may come away from this film with a different outlook on "acceptable" behavior in an ethical sense.