Genre: Documentary, Drama, True Story, Sports, Society, Tragedy
Tagline: The closer you are to death. The more you realize you are alive.
Plot: In 1985, Joe Simpson and Simon Yates set out to climb the 21,000 feet Siula Grande mountain in the Peruvian Andes—the only mountain in the Peruvian range that hadn't yet been conquered. They were young, fit, skilled climbers and were confident that they would succeed where others would fail. Their story has become part of mountaineering legend.Simpson and Yates' method of climbing was Alpine Style—moving quickly up a mountain with the barest of supplies and no series of base camps. This approach left absolutely no room for error. Any problem they might encounter along the way would have extremely grave consequences. Following a successful three and a half day ascent, disaster struck. Simpson fell and broke several bones in his right leg. His lower leg pushed through his knee joint, crippling him. At that altitude and in those remote conditions, this was effectively a death sentence. With no food or water, severe dehydration and the ugly spectre of hypothermia before them, the climbers knew they had to get off the mountain—and fast. Yates was determined to find a way to get his friend home. They each had 150 feet of rope, which tied together so that Yates could lower Simpson down the mountain 300 feet at a time. The only complication was that Yates had to stop after each 150
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 Discussion forum for this movie
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 This film is an unforgettable experience, directed by Kevin Macdonald with a kind of brutal directness and simplicity that never tries to add suspense or drama but simply tells the story, as we look on in disbelief.  --Roger Ebert (Chicago Sun-Times)
“Touching the Void” is a good pseudo-documentary, but the nagging questions could’ve easily replaced the wasteful screen time given to hammering home the obvious situation: that these climbers found themselves in quite a bind, with only instinct keeping them alive and moving. B---Brian Orndorf (FilmJerk.com)
Touching The Void is a gripping tale of ordinary men coping with extraordinary circumstances.  --Jamie Russell (BBC Films)
If there are still moviegoers that believe non-fiction pictures are dull, watching this is bound to convince them otherwise. “Touching the Void” can be as riveting and intense as any big-ass Hollywood action flick. --Kevin N. Laforest (Montreal Film Journal)
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| Directed by |
Kevin Macdonald
One Day in September, Being Mick, The Last King of Scotland |
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| Music By |
Alex Heffes
Dear Frankie, One Day in September, The Parole Officer | |
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"Touching the Void" is much more than a mountaineering film, it's a profoundly inspiring essay about the extraordinary power of the human will, the boundaries of friendship, and the price of survival.  --Jonathan Foreman (New York Post)
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