Real-life survival tale offers inspiration
Published on Wed, Mar 9, 2011 by Bob ConnallyRead More Arts & Entertainment
127 Hours
(R, Now avail.)
On Friday, April 25, 2003, 27-year-old Aron Ralston headed out for a hiking trip into Utah's Blue John Canyon, territory he knew very well. The next afternoon, as he tried to get into a narrow canyon to take some pictures, a large boulder got loose. He and the boulder both fell and Ralston's right arm was pinned between the rock and the canyon wall.
Having told no one where he was going and without a cell phone, Ralston knew he was in serious trouble. "127 Hours" tells the amazing true story of his sacrifice for survival.
Ralston's story has been well known to the public for several years, making the exuberance of the early part of this film all the more impressive. Even knowing what is to come, you can't help but enjoy watching Ralston (James Franco) bound across the rocky landscape and befriend two lost young women (Kate Mara and Amber Tamblyn). Franco displays a devil-may-care charisma that immediately pulls us in. It doesn't hurt that the movie is directed and co-written by Danny Boyle, who has long had a knack for making wildly entertaining movies with often dour subject matter ("Trainspotting," "Slumdog Millionaire").
It is only when Ralston says a carefree goodbye to his new friends that a sense of dread begins to creep in. Not for Ralston, but most certainly for the audience. From this point forth, "127 Hours" is an intense experience that is sometimes very difficult to watch, but ultimately uplifting and one of the few "inspirational" movies you'll ever see that actually earns that tag.
As he was trapped, the real Ralston took short breaks from trying to free himself by documenting the experience with his video camera, mainly to say goodbye to his parents, knowing he would probably not get out alive. His tape has not been released to the general public, but it was shown to Franco and Boyle. It's unclear how much of what we see is verbatim from the real tape and how much is the invention of Boyle and co-writer Simon Beaufoy ("Slumdog Millionaire"), but none of it feels false. Even Aron's mock TV morning show interview with himself --an attempt to keep himself sane--comes off right.
Carrying virtually every moment of "127 Hours" squarely on his shoulders, Franco delivers a performance that will long be remembered, and with good reason. He lets us in on Ralston's thought process and emotional state through the entire ordeal, striking every note perfectly.
The title tells us how long it took Ralston to get out of the canyon and most who see the film will already know the extreme measure he had to take to get himself free. Franco's performance and Boyle's direction make the experience entirely engrossing. A great deal of credit goes to the sound department as well. Even if you can't bring yourself to look at the screen in certain moments, you completely feel the intensity of Ralston's ultimate solution.
Although Aron Ralston had no one to physically help him for more than five days, "127 Hours" is really the story of a lone wolf realizing he needed to get back to the people who loved him. He pulled himself out but it was a group of family and friends who saved him.
"127 Hours" is easily one of the best films of 2010 and Danny Boyle's best work since "Trainspotting." Many movies are described as powerful but this one truly is. Not many films get me to well up, but "127 Hours" did. I can't recommend this highly enough. 10/10.
(R, Now avail.)
On Friday, April 25, 2003, 27-year-old Aron Ralston headed out for a hiking trip into Utah's Blue John Canyon, territory he knew very well. The next afternoon, as he tried to get into a narrow canyon to take some pictures, a large boulder got loose. He and the boulder both fell and Ralston's right arm was pinned between the rock and the canyon wall.
Having told no one where he was going and without a cell phone, Ralston knew he was in serious trouble. "127 Hours" tells the amazing true story of his sacrifice for survival.
Ralston's story has been well known to the public for several years, making the exuberance of the early part of this film all the more impressive. Even knowing what is to come, you can't help but enjoy watching Ralston (James Franco) bound across the rocky landscape and befriend two lost young women (Kate Mara and Amber Tamblyn). Franco displays a devil-may-care charisma that immediately pulls us in. It doesn't hurt that the movie is directed and co-written by Danny Boyle, who has long had a knack for making wildly entertaining movies with often dour subject matter ("Trainspotting," "Slumdog Millionaire").
It is only when Ralston says a carefree goodbye to his new friends that a sense of dread begins to creep in. Not for Ralston, but most certainly for the audience. From this point forth, "127 Hours" is an intense experience that is sometimes very difficult to watch, but ultimately uplifting and one of the few "inspirational" movies you'll ever see that actually earns that tag.
As he was trapped, the real Ralston took short breaks from trying to free himself by documenting the experience with his video camera, mainly to say goodbye to his parents, knowing he would probably not get out alive. His tape has not been released to the general public, but it was shown to Franco and Boyle. It's unclear how much of what we see is verbatim from the real tape and how much is the invention of Boyle and co-writer Simon Beaufoy ("Slumdog Millionaire"), but none of it feels false. Even Aron's mock TV morning show interview with himself --an attempt to keep himself sane--comes off right.
Carrying virtually every moment of "127 Hours" squarely on his shoulders, Franco delivers a performance that will long be remembered, and with good reason. He lets us in on Ralston's thought process and emotional state through the entire ordeal, striking every note perfectly.
The title tells us how long it took Ralston to get out of the canyon and most who see the film will already know the extreme measure he had to take to get himself free. Franco's performance and Boyle's direction make the experience entirely engrossing. A great deal of credit goes to the sound department as well. Even if you can't bring yourself to look at the screen in certain moments, you completely feel the intensity of Ralston's ultimate solution.
Although Aron Ralston had no one to physically help him for more than five days, "127 Hours" is really the story of a lone wolf realizing he needed to get back to the people who loved him. He pulled himself out but it was a group of family and friends who saved him.
"127 Hours" is easily one of the best films of 2010 and Danny Boyle's best work since "Trainspotting." Many movies are described as powerful but this one truly is. Not many films get me to well up, but "127 Hours" did. I can't recommend this highly enough. 10/10.