The true story of two climbers and their perilous journey up the west face of Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.The true story of two climbers and their perilous journey up the west face of Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.The true story of two climbers and their perilous journey up the west face of Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.
- Won 1 BAFTA Award
- 8 wins & 10 nominations total
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAt the end of the movie, there's a written line claiming that Simon faced "strong criticism" from the climbing community after his return to England. This claim has been repeated in several press statements and reviews, but it's not correct. What really happened is that, one month after his return in Europe, Simon went climbing in the Alps, unaware that the Daily Mail newspaper had published a wildly incorrect version of the Siula story, implying that Simon had tried to kill Joe. This was of course absurd, and the British climbing community dismissed it immediately as nonsense. However, back home Simon discovered that a small group of senior members of the Mount Everest Foundation (the body that manages founding for climbing expeditions in the Greater Ranges) had misjudged the story and now wanted Simon excluded in the future from the MEF funds - a move that could basically kill Simon's climbing career. At this point however, Joe Simpson had a correct version of the Siula story published in a respected climbing magazine, and the whole issue was cleared. However, in the DVD commentary, Joe Simpson himself clearly says that Simon came under much criticism after returning home, and that he wrote Touching the Void to defend Simon.
- GoofsWhen Joe reaches the bottom of the crevasse (00:59:57) and starts crawling on his stomach towards the sunlight, you can clearly see the blue helmet of another person.
- Quotes
Joe Simpson: You gotta make decisions. You gotta keep making decisions, even if they're wrong decisions, you know. If you don't make decisions, you're stuffed.
- Crazy creditsDuring the first part of the closing credits (before the crawl), the credits are accompanied by black-and-white pictures showing the three men's journey back into civilization; the final picture is of Joe in the hospital.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Making of 'Touching the Void' (2003)
Featured review
Awe-inspiring work by director Kevin Macdonald takes us with a minimum of fuss to a corner of the Andes in Peru for this epic tale of endurance against the elements. After what appears to be a relatively rapid, routine conquering of a 22,000 foot peak, we are left contemplating what might be in store to fill out the rest of the film. Suffice to say we are told that eighty per cent of climbing accidents occur on the descent. Harrowing times in the extreme soon present themselves, with amazing camera work accompanied by stark human emotions as life-affecting decisions have to be made in the harshest of conditions. There are only three actors in this reconstruction of an actual climb made in the 1980s. The original climbers themselves personally add to the screenplay at appropriate moments, to what I believe is just the right extent for maximum effect. We are made to wonder what drives a couple of fit 25-year-olds to climb to such heights, in such conditions, with an insufficient gas supply, no oxygen, and no backup team. But that is sometimes the reckless nature of young people that age.
The viewer is left in no uncertain mind about the might of nature versus the insignificance of human effort. This is reinforced in most spectacular fashion by the use of zoom photography, underlining the sheer size of the Andes mountains. What does make the difference, though, is the strength of the human will, particularly when it comes to a matter of very survival. In this case we are given to believe this is largely driven by the fear of dying alone, but I found myself trying to identify what other motives might have been present in such dire circumstances. Considering the semi-documentary nature of the film, and the conditions under which it was made, I cannot rate Touching the Void less than 9 out of 10. It had me on the edge of my seat until the final credits.
The viewer is left in no uncertain mind about the might of nature versus the insignificance of human effort. This is reinforced in most spectacular fashion by the use of zoom photography, underlining the sheer size of the Andes mountains. What does make the difference, though, is the strength of the human will, particularly when it comes to a matter of very survival. In this case we are given to believe this is largely driven by the fear of dying alone, but I found myself trying to identify what other motives might have been present in such dire circumstances. Considering the semi-documentary nature of the film, and the conditions under which it was made, I cannot rate Touching the Void less than 9 out of 10. It had me on the edge of my seat until the final credits.
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Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $4,593,598
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $96,973
- Jan 25, 2004
- Gross worldwide
- $13,905,522
- Runtime1 hour 46 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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