Touching the Void (2003)

In the mid-80's two young climbers attempted to reach the summit of Siula Grande in Peru; a feat that had previously been attempted but never achieved. With an extra man looking after base camp, Simon and Joe set off to scale the mount in one long push over several days. The peak is reached, however on the descent Joe falls and breaks his leg. Despite what it means, the two continue with Simon letting Joe out on a rope for 300 meters, then descending to join him and so on... (imdb)
Cast and Information
Directed By: Kevin Macdonald
Written By: Joe Simpson
Starring: Nicholas Aaron, Brendan Mackey, Joe Simpson, Richard Hawking, Simon Yates, Ollie Ryall
Genre: Documentary
Country: UK
Where to Stream
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Touching the Void belongs to 26 collections
1. The Guardian's 1000 films to see before you die (collaborative: moderated by PeaceAnarchy - 30 stars)
2. IMDb Top 250 Complete (collaborative: moderated by Jorg - 23 stars)
3. Best of criticker: Documentary (collaborative: moderated by avgcrtckr - 20 stars)
4. Humanity and the Natural World (collaborative: moderated by paulofilmo - 18 stars)
5. Netflix USA (public: mpowell - 8 stars)
6. Positive Psychology Films (collaborative - 6 stars)
7. Times Online: The 100 Best Films of the Decade (collaborative: moderated by hristos - 5 stars)
8. List: Best of the Decade by The Documentary Blog (collaborative: moderated by KasperL - 5 stars)
9. 500 essential cult films (not seen) (public: cayh - 5 stars)
10. BIFA Winner (collaborative: moderated by paulofilmo - 3 stars)
11. Sight & Sound's Films of the Decade (00-09) (collaborative: moderated by CCLZA - 3 stars)
12. Aughties Films to See (public: theficionado - 3 stars)
13. Coheed's Films I Need To See Or Try To Track Down (public: Coheed - 3 stars)
14. Mountain film (collaborative: moderated by Moribunny - 2 stars)
15. True/False Film Festival (collaborative: moderated by theficionado - 1 star)
16. BAFTA Award for Best British Film (Nominees) (collaborative: moderated by ellinikos - 1 star)
17. Sports Documentaries (collaborative: moderated by Dunstan-xxx - 1 star)
18. jj-lib-movies (public: junggle - 1 star)
19. Film4 Productions (collaborative: moderated by Grit)
20. Best of criticker: 2003 (collaborative: moderated by avgcrtckr)
21. Play Instant (collaborative: moderated by ForrestQ)
22. Sporadic's Blu-Ray/HD-DVD/DVD Collection (public: Strive)
23. Filmspotting Ratings Project: Week 13 (public: PeaceAnarchy)
24. favoriler (public: ceseth)
25. Edgar Wright's 1000 Favorite Movies (public: coldesser)
26. Watchlist - Dokumenty (public: MikiRurk_STG)
Browse the full list of collections
Stars | User | Rating | |
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Kojiless | 91 94th |
Beautiful cinematography and emotional commentary make this unbelievable story that much better. Highly recommended, even if you're not a documentary fan.
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Quicky | 78 78th |
Really captivating documentary about two young climbers attempting to go where no one ever went before. It shows you a story of courage, struggle, happiness, endurance, faith, despair, hope and survival... Very beautifully reenacted from start to finish while the real individuals tell the story where the pictures can't.
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2 | TheOldNite | 85 81st |
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Touching the Void is an essential documentary. The struggle is so real that you can feel it on your skin while watching it. Touching the Void is a stripped experience. It is not a philosophical meditation on death. It is not a cheesy reflection on conquering oneself and growing in the face of struggle. It is not even a portrait of the elusive psyche of a risk-taking mountaineer. It is a story of fighting to take just one more step. And one more. And then one. And suddenly not being dead anymore.
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MartinTeller | 86 87th |
A remarkable and thrilling tale. I was seriously biting my knuckles during parts of it... even though, being a documentary, one knows how it all turns out in the end. Gorgeous shots of the mountain, and excellent re-creation job.
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Magb | 85 73rd |
A statistic quoted at one point in Touching the Void says that 80% of all climbing accidents happen on the way down rather than up. It's fitting, then, that at least 80% of the film revolves around the descent. The fascinating story is beautifully re-created, partially shot on the actual location where the events took place. It's almost like the guys had a cameraman with them for the actual climb. Very gripping and satisfying.
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Alex Watkins | 4 70th |
A harrowing story told quite well; the combination of narration from the principals, and superb (and surprisingly realistic) recreations of the events, makes for a very gripping and detailed experience of Joe and Simon's plight. Mountains ain't nothin' to fuck with.
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PeaceAnarchy | 74 40th |
Very well made and informative documentary about a pair of mountain climbers going through harsh travails mostly of their own making. I wasn't especially engrossed, though, as I was a little put off by their personalities and, while the reconstruction featured some beautiful shots, I felt the acting was grating.
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rob | 15 83rd |
With material this good, a documentary doesn't have to do much: thankfully, "Touching the Void" takes a step back, and lets Simpson, Yates and Hawking tell their incredible story warts-and-all. The result is a refreshingly---indeed, staggeringly---honest account of a truly hellish experience, one that oozes tension and excitement.
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Barthalen | 82 86th |
I knew everyone was going to make it out alive, but that didn't diminish the effect of the nightmarish scenario unfolding before my eyes. At times I forgot I was watching actors recreate the events, and I felt pretty damn tense once things started to go horribly, horribly wrong. It's great that the people interviewed freely talk about the darker sides of their emotions and decisions. Gripping stuff.
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whatismyname | 75 88th |
Really captured the moments with enjoyable reenactments.
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Indicam | 85 92nd |
Powerful, touching and effective.
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QuickyAPI | 83 87th |
Really captivating documentary about two young climbers attempting to go where no one ever went before. It shows you a story of courage, struggle, happiness, endurance, faith, despair, hope and survival... Very beautifully reenacted from start to finish while the real individuals tell the story where the pictures can't.
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Cinema_Asia | 85 92nd |
What's amazing about this documentary is that it re-enacts step by step through the tragedy as it unfolds. It also explains in layman's terms the technical details behind mountain climbing and the emotional state of everyone involved. Very insightful and powerful piece about survival.
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Average Percentile 70.18% from 1152 Ratings | ![]() |