Everest: The Summit of the Gods; or, When the Mountains Calls
If the feet don't respond, walk with the hands. If the hands
don't move keep going with the fingers. If the fingers don't work use your
teeth biting snow and ice forward. If not even the teeth react advance with
your eyes. Stare a way forward. If even the eyes are useless and there's really
nothing you can do, imagine. Imagine with all your might. Imagine…
With the beginning of each new year, I am always in the mood for mountain movies. Unfortunately, this is one of these small subgenres which does not receive a frequent dosage of new productions every year and has to be aided with Discovery Channel documentaries. Thankfully, I recently came across the movie Everest: The Summit of the Gods. I was shocked to discover that it is not only a Japanese movie about climbing Mount Everest, but that it also has Hiroshi Abe (one of the best J-actors alive) in it…
With the beginning of each new year, I am always in the mood for mountain movies. Unfortunately, this is one of these small subgenres which does not receive a frequent dosage of new productions every year and has to be aided with Discovery Channel documentaries. Thankfully, I recently came across the movie Everest: The Summit of the Gods. I was shocked to discover that it is not only a Japanese movie about climbing Mount Everest, but that it also has Hiroshi Abe (one of the best J-actors alive) in it…
Release Info
Directed by: Hideyuki Hirayama Starring: Junichi Okada, Hiroshi Abe, Machiko Ono
Language: Japanese Original Title: エヴェレスト 神々の山嶺 Runtime: 122 min
Synopsis
Makoto Fukamachi (Junichi Okada) is a cameraman who assists a
mountaineering expedition in Nepal. After a tragic accident, the expedition
returns home, but Fukamachi stays a bit longer and, in one of the city alleys,
he finds an old camera that might have belonged to George Mallory. In his
pursuit after the camera and the possible key it may convey to the mystery of
Mallory’s 1924 ascent, Fukamachi meets a legendary climber Joji Habu (Hiroshi
Abe). Living in seclusion, Habu plans to conquer Everest by spectacularly
climbing its southwest wall.
The Peak of Regrets
Everest: The Summit of the Gods is a well made motion picture.
The premise may fool you into thinking that this is yet another movie about generic
reaching-the-top motive, but Everest actually hits the undertones of
psychological drama. It deals with mountain ethics, overcoming personal trauma,
and finding inner strength to keep on living. It may seem a bit too much for
one movie, but all the themes are coherently fleshed out as the story
progresses.
The first part of Everest focuses retrospectively on Joji
Habu’s life. We get to know how he started off and how he became a legend among
the climbing community through the recollections of his colleagues: Inoue
(Masahiro Komoto) and Wataru Hase (Kuranosuke Sasaki) respectively. Then, comes
along another person, Ryoko (Machiko Ono), who has a special bond with Joji and
is determined to find him. As a result, the second part of the film outlines
Fukamachi’s quest to track down Habu and the mysterious camera.
The atmosphere of the film greatly reminded of such classics
as K2: The Ultimate High (1991) and Scream of Stone (1991). Haunting music
score together with great locations (shot in Nepal and Japan for sure) provide
a mesmerising combination, though CGI was definitely used in certain shots.
Nevertheless, these do not stand out drastically. In addition, I should
probably mention that the film is based on a manga series Kamigami no Itadaki,
but you don’t miss anything out if you have not read this 5-volume serial.
With regard to performances, Hiroshi Abe is the strongest
pillar of the picture, as he gives a painstakingly authentic portrayal of a
classic climber with an individualistic attitude. What matters the most for Joji
Habu is the mountain, simply because it’s there. Abe’s performance is enforced
by that of Junichi Okada as a disillusioned cameraman who is after a
larger-than-life story. Machiko Ono is also great as Ryoko, a woman who tries
to get over her past. Supporting appearances from Masahiro Komoto and Kuranosuke Sasaki are a great addition as well.
Recommendations
All things considered, Everest: The Summit of the Gods is a
decent motion picture for a winter afternoon. It’s part a psychological drama,
part a survival story about pushing the limits and fulfilling one’s dreams. However: At what cost? The movie poses this significant question at the very end.
In reality, we all have our own mountains to overcome.
Overall score: 8/10
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