127 Hours (***½)
Directed by: Danny Boyle
Starring: James Franco, Kate Mara, Amber Tamblyn, Treat Williams, John
Lawrence, Kate Burton, Clémence Poésy
Seen: February 27th
2011
***½ Out of ****
127 Hours, that’s the time Aron Ralston (Franco) was trapped by a
boulder in Utah in 2003 before he managed to free himself. That’s 5 days and 7
hours, an impossibly long time to be alone and certain of impending death. But
how he eventually freed himself is a testament to the immense drive for
survival that lingers in most of us.
On a sunny day like any other in this area of the US, Ralston packed his
things and drove off into the desert for a day or two of canyoneering in the
Canyonlands National Park in Utah. After parking in the wild and spending the
first night in the back of his pick-up truck, he sets off on his bike towards
Blue John Canyon, aiming to cut 45 minutes off the 4 ½ hour bike ride. His excitement
at getting out is palpable, and the even a rather heavy looking fall from his
bike can’t dull his enthusiasm, he simply takes out his camera, takes a picture
of himself on the ground, gets up, and continues. He runs into two girls, Kristi
(Mara) and Megan (Tamblyn), and acts as a tour guide for a bit, showing them
the sights and giving them a good time introducing them to a beautiful hidden
rock pool. As they part a few hours later, their words sum Aron up: “I don’t
think we figured in his day at all…”. Aron continues on his merry way; running,
jumping, climbing, and taking the occasional picture.
When he grabs a rock to climb out of a crevasse, the rock slips, he
falls back, and the rock smashes his hand against the canyon wall, trapping him
with no way of getting out. He stays spirited however, and starts making plans
to try and get loose. He manages to get a pulley system of sorts in place, but
to no avail, as the boulder is there to stay. He gets his multi-tool out and
starts chipping away at the rock, but this too seems futile, and only serves to
dull the edge of the knife he has. As desperation and dehydration sets in, he
starts having various hallucinations, some of old memories, some of being free,
and he slowly heads towards the point where he was able to free himself. As I’ve
encountered some people who’ve seen the movie without knowledge of how he
actually managed to free himself, I’ll not divulge that in this review. Suffice
it to say that it is gruesome, and it certainly makes you admire Aron for his
survival instinct.
127 Hours is based on Aron Ralston’s autobiography, Between a Rock and
a Hard Place, and though the movie gets pretty intense nearing the end, the
sense of elation and admiration for Ralston’s brave act is a soaring testament
to the human instinct for survival. James Franco expertly carries the movie,
and even though Colin Firth has now won 2011’s Oscar for best actor, James
Franco might just as well have received the award. Danny Boyle knows how to
make a movie, and with the musical stylings of A.R. Rahman (who also scored Boyle’s
Slumdog Millionaire) the two produce a rollicking effort with amazing effect
being added to intense scenes with searing instrumental accompaniment.
127 Hours might not be for the faint of heart, but it is an excellent
movie, one that will form part of my DVD collection in the very near future.
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