Film ReviewsMeru
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Meru Peak flourishes from the headwaters of the sacred Ganges River in the Gharwal Himalayas, part of the Uttarakhand region of north India. Meru is not the tallest peak in the world, it's about 7,000 feet lower than Everest, but climbing Meru Peak is the Holy Grail for climbers. The mountain has three peaks, the "Shark's Fin" route up the central peak of the mountain (20,700 ft.) has a reputation as one of the hardest climbs in the world. The conditions for climbing Meru Peak up the Fin, unlike Everest, are singular-that is, there are no low-paid sherpas making the way, preparing foods, fixing ropes, or taking risks so that foreigners can take credit for climbing the world's tallest peak-Meru climbers are all on their own. The climb has been attempted and failed a number of times, and the anti-Everest experience is not for the faint of heart. The climb requires a synthesis of ice climbing, mixed climbing, and wall climbing-one alone won't do.
The feature length documentary Meru is WOW jaw-dropping heartbreaking and compelling because it is as truthful as it is beautiful. The documentary tells the story of Conrad Anker, Jimmy Chin and Renan Ozturk's first attempt to climb the Fin in 2008, their return to Meru in 2011, and their lives in between those three years. Meru was directed by Jimmy Chin and Chai Vasarhelyi.
Meru has a different feel than many climbing movies and documentaries that are a dime a dozen, like the upcoming film Everest with a star-studded cast including eye-candy Jake Gyllenhaal. Meru, the documentary is essentially the anti-Everest (the movie) because Meru is not a reinterpreted, docudrama thriller with big crews and contrived emotional stress. Meru was filmed by the mountaineers as they were climbing, making many of the documentary shots beautifully intimate as they show the grit and hard work needed to undertake such a complex climb. The video texture, poor lighting at times, and camera angles make it feel like the viewer is right there, snuggled in the portaledge, dangling 20,000 feet with the elements beating up against it. The interviews and additional cinematography round off the look and feel of Meru, making it breathtaking and a treat on the big screen.
The story that unfolds in Meru is told and shown by Anker, Chin, and Ozturk and their friends and family members. The three years between the first climbing attempt and the second were so trying that they transformed the climbers and their families and helped cement the team, and likely made all the difference for the ascent up the Shark's Fin in 2011. Each man has his own personal story about climbing and about the road to becoming part of the team. From their collective experiences, viewers walk away with a sense that the Meru climb is much bigger than the team, and draws on the whole of their experiences and past mentors. In this way, not only are skills passed on from one generation of climbers to the next, so are dreams. The dreams that are not achieved by one generation are taken up by the next. They are a generous and vulnerable bunch. Plutarch's essay "On Contentment of the Mind" tells readers that Alexander the Great cried when he heard Anaxarchus talk about the infinite number of worlds in the universe. One of Alexander's friends asked him what was the matter, and he replied "There are so many worlds, and I have not yet conquered even one." Perhaps if Alexander had lived now, he would have been a mountain climber and joined the Meru team, albeit perhaps for very different reasons than those Anker gives at the beginning of Meru-the view, the view.
Meru shows at Beartooth on Monday, Sept. 7, at 8 p.m. and Sept. 9 and 10 at 5:30 pm
The feature length documentary Meru is WOW jaw-dropping heartbreaking and compelling because it is as truthful as it is beautiful. The documentary tells the story of Conrad Anker, Jimmy Chin and Renan Ozturk's first attempt to climb the Fin in 2008, their return to Meru in 2011, and their lives in between those three years. Meru was directed by Jimmy Chin and Chai Vasarhelyi.
Meru has a different feel than many climbing movies and documentaries that are a dime a dozen, like the upcoming film Everest with a star-studded cast including eye-candy Jake Gyllenhaal. Meru, the documentary is essentially the anti-Everest (the movie) because Meru is not a reinterpreted, docudrama thriller with big crews and contrived emotional stress. Meru was filmed by the mountaineers as they were climbing, making many of the documentary shots beautifully intimate as they show the grit and hard work needed to undertake such a complex climb. The video texture, poor lighting at times, and camera angles make it feel like the viewer is right there, snuggled in the portaledge, dangling 20,000 feet with the elements beating up against it. The interviews and additional cinematography round off the look and feel of Meru, making it breathtaking and a treat on the big screen.
The story that unfolds in Meru is told and shown by Anker, Chin, and Ozturk and their friends and family members. The three years between the first climbing attempt and the second were so trying that they transformed the climbers and their families and helped cement the team, and likely made all the difference for the ascent up the Shark's Fin in 2011. Each man has his own personal story about climbing and about the road to becoming part of the team. From their collective experiences, viewers walk away with a sense that the Meru climb is much bigger than the team, and draws on the whole of their experiences and past mentors. In this way, not only are skills passed on from one generation of climbers to the next, so are dreams. The dreams that are not achieved by one generation are taken up by the next. They are a generous and vulnerable bunch. Plutarch's essay "On Contentment of the Mind" tells readers that Alexander the Great cried when he heard Anaxarchus talk about the infinite number of worlds in the universe. One of Alexander's friends asked him what was the matter, and he replied "There are so many worlds, and I have not yet conquered even one." Perhaps if Alexander had lived now, he would have been a mountain climber and joined the Meru team, albeit perhaps for very different reasons than those Anker gives at the beginning of Meru-the view, the view.
Meru shows at Beartooth on Monday, Sept. 7, at 8 p.m. and Sept. 9 and 10 at 5:30 pm