Free Solo

Starring: Alex Honnold, Tommy Caldwell, Jimmy Chin, Cheyne Lempe, Mikey Schaefer, Sanni McCandless
Directed by: Jimmy Chin, Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Documentary
2018

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Alex Honnold risks his life in his attempt to be the first person to free solo climb El Capitan in California.

Review:
Tim: I don't know why I don't watch more documentaries. They can be incredible. Exhibit A is the Academy Award winner for Best Documentary- Free Solo. It's an exceptionally well crafted movie that follows a fascinating human being as he attempts to do something so audacious and so dangerous that no one has ever accomplished it. This is a movie about a man climbing a vertical rock formation, but it's so much more than that.

What stands out most in my mind are the stunning visuals depicted in this film. Whether that's the drone footage or footage of Alex climbing filmed by other climbers- this movie is absolutely gorgeous. The size and scale of El Capitan are brought to life, but the movie really puts you in these different locations so you get a sense and a feel for what it was like for Alex. The movie's visuals are absolutely incredible. The cinematography is jaw dropping and I watched most of the movie with my eyes wide open.

The other thing that stands tall is the footage of Alex free solo climbing. Even though it's a movie, it was hard not to get caught up in watching this young man risk his very life to climb these vertical rock formations with no ropes or safety equipment of any kind. A single mistake, a single lapse of concentration and his life is over. The stakes were so high and to see him scaling these monumentally large rock formations- it's intense and thrilling and it absolutely gets your heart rate up. I continually shook my head in disbelief at what I saw in this documentary.

Now, while those are the most vivid aspects of the film, the real heart of it all is that we get to know Alex Honnold. Alex isn't your typical person. His single-mindedness is unique enough, but he routinely puts himself in dangerous situations that he could easily avoid. At one point in the film, he undergoes a brain scan to see what comes up as a potential explanation for why he lives a life so different than most people. He is a fascinating human being and his attempts at becoming more open, more sharing of his feelings are equally as entertaining as his adventurous feats. I love that this movie spent as much time helping us to understand Alex as anything else. This matters because when he finally decides to make the attempt at El Capitan, we feel at least a fraction of what those around him felt- this excitement that he might make his dream come true, but this impossible dread of how easy it could all go wrong. Throughout the course of the film, we've come to care about Alex and those around him. We want him to succeed- we need to him live. It all makes for a remarkable viewing experience.

I really did love Free Solo. I learned so much about this fringe sport (the statistics on how few climbers ever attempt to free solo speaks volumes). It's unbelievable at one point when the film discusses that almost all the best free soloists have died doing what they love. This is a stunningly gorgeous movie that touches on courage and determination, on trying to do something no human has ever done and risking your life in the attempt. This is a movie I could watch again and again. It's an incredible film and well-deserving of its Academy Award win.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 8



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Everest, Vertical Limit