Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Listening Point - General Discussion :: OT Free Solo movie on tonight
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mc2mens |
TomT: "4keys: "My husband had trouble just watching this, and will not watch it again. " I had that reaction to Alex the first time I saw the film, which was at an IMAX theater. I appreciated what he was able to do, but I didn't find him a likable character. I saw Free Solo after seeing The Dawn Wall and found Tommy and his story more interesting. I couldn't imagine Alex waiting like Tommy did for his climbing partner. Tommy's achievements were equally impressive. I saw Free Solo again last weekend and liked it more the second time. And I agree with what someone else suggested - that his girlfriend humanizes him. I suspect missmolly is correct in her statements about Alex and his unique abilities. |
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TomT |
4keys: "My husband had trouble just watching this, and will not watch it again. I wonder why? Seriously, it it just the dangerous aspect? I've read that some people get real angry with Alex's nonchalant attitude towards his life and his girlfriend. They dislike him and think he's just a selfish jerk. Is that part of it? |
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4keys |
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TomT |
I've seen it 3 times now and for me the first time was all sweaty, hard to watch experience. The 2nd time I really caught some of the comments and I suggest watching this at least twice to catch all the little nuances. Also last night I caught him doing an overdub. There's a spot where he says something to the effect of "That's F$^#@ed up" at the end of a sentence but overdubbed "That's messed up". Just a cool little factoid. I'm kind of a movie geek. |
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TomT |
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bfurlow |
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flynn |
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thegildedgopher |
missmolly: "I've worked with autistic folks for decades, so a few minutes into the documentary, I thought, "Alex is autistic." My wife and I were having the exact same conversation early on in the doc. Our 3rd grade daughter recently went through days of testing at the U of MN and was diagnosed with ASD. We've always known she was cut from a different cloth, but it's been an eye-opening process for us. She's very high functioning in so many ways, like Alex and struggles in other areas. It was really cool to see a film about an adult on the spectrum, living his best life, chasing his dreams, and holding meaningful relationships in his own unique way. As for the movie... man oh man. I just kept saying to myself, aloud, "This is crazy. This is f'n crazy. Oh my god." |
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Jackfish |
airmorse: "There is no way i would be able to do what he did. As he kept climbing, my hands were getting more and more sweaty. What an amazing feat... and he climbed El Cap in four hours! Great documentary. Really enjoyed it. |
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missmolly |
boonie: "Yeah, that was good. Alex is definitely different in a lot of ways from everybody else, even other guys who free solo. How long until someone duplicates that feat? Surpasses it . . . ? " I don't think that's likely to happen soon. I've worked with autistic folks for decades, so a few minutes into the documentary, I thought, "Alex is autistic." Alex agrees that he's "somewhere on the autism spectrum." The autism allows for Alex's considerable detachment from the pain of those who love him. His hard-to-provoke amygdala has him seeking high levels of stimulation. Then there's his mother, who told him, "Good isn't enough," and his detached, possibly autistic father, who also prodded Alex. Finally, there's his frame. He's Michael Phelpsian. Phelps has huge, wide feet and hands, and a 6' 7" wingspan. Alex has the perfect climber's body, with long, wide fingers and a lanky, ripped torso. Add all these elements and you might just have the ONE person equipped and motivated to free solo El Cap. |
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missmolly |
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missmolly |
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TomT |
This movie won best picture for documentary at this years Oscars. I've seen it twice in theaters and the last time was at an Imax. It's really a great film on several levels. Free Solo trailer |
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Wally13 |
Thanks for posting. A MUST SEE ! |
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Jackfish |
TomT: "I hope he quits soloing and gets married with kids. He scratched a very big itch with this climb. He could retire a legend. I'm curious if he'll have copycats." Throughout the entire film, I was thinking the same thing. There will probably be copycats, but only until one falls to his or her death. Then the park will put a stop to it. The first one is the one who earns "legend" status. One is enough. |
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4keys |
TomT: "4keys: "My husband had trouble just watching this, and will not watch it again. " He has a height phobia, and even on our moderately sized TV, the views of the drop-offs, etc. made him very nervous. He spent a good part of the show looking at his phone to avoid seeing some of the more dramatic scenes. Even walking on our roof is hard for him. |
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muddyfeet |
Not to diminish the feat at all, but I felt like the whole point of the movie was how the outside pressures of (filmmaking) (friends&family) ( and girlfriend) were competing with his internal focus and passion to free solo routes. They made it clear that he wasn't comfortable with the cameras on him (previous ascents were unannounced and just on his own), but it was hard to sympathize because he invited the 15-person film crew in. Some pretty good photography, though: it is a wonder how they managed to keep everyone but Alex out of the shots. I have climbed some walls in my life, but mostly now just in the gym with the kids or at local crags. While mistakes and accidents certainly happen, I've always thought climbing was fairly safe as you are always (should be always) tied in and double checked with redundant systems. Mitigating your own risk is a very personal decision, but I almost feel like the whole film capitalized on the incredibly risky nature of the climb. I don't want to call it a sellout, but if he did fall while filming, everyone would have a much different perspective on the whole attempt. Indeed, it appeared as if the filmmakers struggled with the danger element much more than Alex himself. At the end of the film I am conflicted on my feelings about Alex: on the one hand I hope he continues to be true to himself and live his passions, but on the other hand I hope he can find passion in something else: free solo climbers don't tend to live very long. The shots of him climbing with the waterfall in the background were my favorites. Pretty stunning. |
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TomT |
muddyfeet: " He said in an interview that having the film crew around for 2 years got his sponsors to lay off of him and he was able to concentrate on doing the route. He also mentioned the film crew was a huge help in carrying ropes to the top every day that he needed while preparing. With no film crew and it was just him and his friend Tommy it would have been a much slower process of preparing. I think he was doing it for the right reasons and knew the benefits of having the film crew. I hope he quits soloing and gets married with kids. He scratched a very big itch with this climb. He could retire a legend. I'm curious if he'll have copycats. |
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TomT |
mc2mens: "I saw Free Solo after seeing The Dawn Wall and found Tommy and his story more interesting. I couldn't imagine Alex waiting like Tommy did for his climbing partner. Tommy's achievements were equally impressive." Yes, that was quite the story, especially what happened overseas. And Tommy overcame a lot more after cutting off a very important finger with a band saw. He's a very nice down to earth guy. The Dawn Wall is worth seeing. |
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TomT |
missmolly: " Another cool video. " That is a very cool video. If I was in my 20s, I would think about getting into climbing. It would be awesome to do something like that without crapping my pants. Another real good movie about the history of climbing in Yosemite is on Netflix. It's called "Valley Uprising". I've also seen The Dawn Wall which is good too. The Dawn Wall is pretty much the Tommy Caldwell story. He was the guy who trained with Alex Honnold in Free Solo. A great movie to see by the same directors that did Free Solo is "Meru". I think it's on Netflix. That's another OMG type of movie. It's really good and has won a bunch of awards. Meru Trailer |
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TomT |
boonie: "Yes, his physical attributes were one thing I was thinking about, along with his preparation. He seems to have great recall of the smallest detail and is possibly able to visualize things in a different way. I was wondering how they got his breathing on film. He must have been wearing a mic on his shirt somewhere. I read that he had stashed water for himself on the route. And the part where birds fly out of the cracks near his face is really freaky to think about. He's talked about seeing spiders in those cracks. I've watched quite a few stuff on you tube about the climb and here is one that's really good. It's an interview with director Jimmy Chin. London Real Interview with Jimmy Chin |
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TomT |
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boonie |
He also is able to shut out distractions and has tremendous focus and concentration. It did kind of surprise me when he looked at the camera after one pitch, smiled, and said "Oh, yeah!" |
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airmorse |
My hands are sweating just watching. |
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wrestlencanoe |
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JimmyJustice |
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walllee |
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boonie |
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Jackfish |
missmolly: "Yikes! BeaV just called me and said he's going to free solo El Cap in the winter with a canoe on his back. " LOLOLOLOLOLOL!! Right in my office, I burst out laughing at that one!! |
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missmolly |
Jackfish: "missmolly: "Yikes! BeaV just called me and said he's going to free solo El Cap in the winter with a canoe on his back. " He'll climb with the canoe because he's only human. His words: "I figure I'll be a mite tuckered by the time I reach the top, so I'm gonna paddle down Yosemite Falls." ;-) |