If you want a nice story to tell at a cocktail party, you could climb Mount Everest. If you want to prove your prowess as a climber and wrestle with your own mortality, then it has to be K2.
While Everest will always hold the title of tallest, K2, located on the boarder of Pakistan and China, is the deadliest climb on Earth. For every four people who have reached its summit, one has died trying. On Aug. 1, 2008, 11 climbers lost their lives attempting to summit K2. It was the single deadliest 24 hours in mountaineering history, and “The Summit” brilliantly tells the story.
There are still many unanswered questions about what exactly happened on that day, but the events and stories that are known were recreated with actors. The audience needs no previous knowledge of mountaineering in order to perfectly understand and feel the intensity of the day’s tragedies. These recreated scenes combined with testimonials from the climbers and families, news reports, real photos and video taken by the climbers, the history of climbing K2 and breathtaking views of the mountain itself makes for an educational and emotional 95 minutes.
The documentary gives the audience a vivid look into the subculture of mountain climbing. You don’t need to be a cinema studies major to quickly identify K2 as the film’s protagonist. The mountaineers have such a deep respect for K2, and the adrenaline pushing them to the summit is almost addictive. They spent around three months on expeditions for the chance to have ten minutes standing at the top.
Some of the sweeping camera angles are nauseating, and some of the soundtrack seemed more fitting as the sound effects for a Disneyland rollercoaster. Otherwise, this movie is pretty awesome. “The Summit” is a must–see for anyone who loves documentary films, the great outdoors or a good adrenaline rush.
Grade: A-
Rating & Runtime: R, 95 min.
See if you liked: “K2: Siren of the Himalayas”
