March 13th, 2010 by admin

Awhile back I posted a story about a promising looking climbing film called The North Face, and that it was about to get a release in the U.S. It turns out it was a fairly limited release, and while I waited and watched for it to come to my local theater, it never arrived. Now, I live in Austin, TX, which has quite a reputation as a “movie town”. Heck, SXSW is starting this week, and literally dozens of films will be debuting there, so you can imagine my disappointment when the movie wasn’t scheduled to play here.

Enter, REI. Yes, the gear store. Thankfully, they picked up the film and have been showing it off in some of their stores. When I saw it show up on my event calendar for March, I immediately made reservations, and planned to catch it. Last night, that finally happened, and I can tell you it was worth the wait.

The movie tells the tale of two German climbers, Toni Kurz and Andi Hinterstoisser (Played by Benno Furmann and Florian Lukas), who set out to challenge the Eiger back in 1936. At that time, climbing was quite the obsession in Europe, with newspaper stories written about mountaineers and their daring deeds. It was also a matter of national pride for climbers from a specific country to make a first ascent, something that would spur Kurz and Hinterstoisser on, as they made their attempt on the “Europe’s last great problem” in the name of the Fuhrer.

The film is beautifully shot, with both the landscapes and the action coming across very realistically. This is a movie that captures the essence of climbing, and the men who love it so. It is also historically accurate, and there were a number of times that I was struck by how primitive Kurz and Hinterstoisser’s gear was while I watched them climb. Everything form the clothes they wore, the packs they used, and even the pitons they pounded into the rock were painstakingly recreated, and it gives the film a level of realism that isn’t always found in these kinds of movies.

Those who know the tales of the Eiger know doubt know this tale too. I won’t spoil it for those that don’t, but it plays out on the screen very well, It is gripping to watch, and even while sitting in an REI store, I was riveted to the screen, watching the events play out. The characters are extremely well developed, the acting is superb, and, everything comes together on multiple levels. This isn’t Cliffhanger. This is a different kind of climbing film, and fans of the sport will enjoy it greatly. Historians of the sport will likely fall in love with it.

In case you couldn’t tell, I loved the film, and recommend it very highly. If you get the chance, you must see it. I’m not sure when it comes out on DVD, but I’ll definitely be looking to add it to my collection. And I can’t give a film a higher rating than that. Really great stuff.

May 31st, 2009 by admin

Note: This Is A Press Release by NISSAN Outdoor Games

A sports film competition attracting world-class sportsmen, athletes turned film-makers and actors in a race against the clock – they have one week. This is the original concept of the NISSAN OUTDOOR GAMES at Interlaken.

This “Extreme Games” is the only event of its kind and brings together the best kayakers, climbers, mountain bikers, paragliders and BASE jumpers in the world for a show that can be watched by the public on the big screen in the centre of town on Saturday 30^th May.

The NISSAN OUTDOOR GAMES event will be held at the foot of the mythic mountains of the Eiger, the Mönch and the Jungfrau in the Bernese Oberland, an area full of natural treasures. It’s no coincidence that the amazing destination of Interlaken will welcome the best outdoor sports athletes in the world for the 5^th consecutive year!

Five teams competiting against each other, have one week to direct, edit and deliver a killer five-minute movie.

They are free to come up with their own script; the only constraint being that they need to include the the following five sports: Kayaking, mountain biking, climbing, paragliding, hang-gliding and BASE jumping with or without wingsuit.

The action is condensed and each day is filled with achievemnets. Besides making a short film within the time allowed, the sportsmen and women undertake unusual feats   They are there to demonstrate their talents in front of the camera, far from the stopwatches and competition vests, judges and other pressures that they are faced with in the traditional sense of their sport. At the Nissan Outdoor Games they will be judged against: beauty, creativity, commitment and team spirit.

The athletes and the film crew get together at the end of each day in the impressive building of the Mattenhof Resort to share the accomplishments of each day which might include sporting ‘firsts’ of death defying jumps or turns that have never been filmed before.

The atmosphere in Interlaken is electric with the athletes challenging themselves each day to exceed even their own expectations. The athletes are happy doing what they do best and the timer is still ticking. The show will be open to the public on Saturday evening. The day will begin with BASE Jumpers and acrobatic paragliders giving aerial demonstrations over the town. Then the music kicks off with a live concert “The Blue Van” group followed by official projections of the team’s films in the competition from 10:15pm.

To end the evening, the lucky winners of the “Best Film 2009”, the “Special Judge’s Prize”, the “Best sequence” and the “Best Photograph” will be announced at the prize-giving ceremony. The prize money is 70,000 Swiss Francs and will be shared amongst the winning team making this event the biggest of its kind in Europe.

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Introduction of the official jury for the film and photo competition:

The organisers of the event have selected a jury of professionals to judge and make an official selection of the short films. After viewing the films they give their verdict on Saturday 30^th May after the public projection.

The jury 2009 comprises of:

- Glen Plake (USA) – President of the jury, professional skier and actor

- Serge-Alain Simasotchi (SUI) – Film-maker and TV producer, former high-level athlete

- Eric Themel (AUT) – Professional snowboarder

- Dino Raffault (FRA) – Journalist and extreme sports event organiser

- Simon Hirter (SUI) – Professional kayaker

- Cyril Neri (SUI) – Professional snowboarder, worked on the mountain film festival in les Diablerets

- Tero repo (FIN) –Professional photographer, outdoor sports specialist

- Christophe Margot (FIN) – Professional photographer, outdoor sports specialist