It makes a better story than it does a movie

Rating: 6/10 (18 November 2010)

127 Hours, as its title suggests, recounts the 127 hours that hiker and rock climber Aron Ralston spends stranded in a slot canyon, based on recounts of the true story in Ralston's best-selling memoir "Between a Rock and a Hard Place". After an accident with a loose rock, Ralston stumbles into a crevice and ultimately lands with his right arm wedged tightly between the rock and the canyon wall. As the days pass by, Ralston runs low on water, uses up his food, and his efforts at chipping away at the rock with a dull knife seem to be in vain. The only thing that keeps him going are promises he made to his family and the hope that he would one day see his loved ones again.
As you can imagine, this movie is as much director Danny Boyle's as it is James Franco's. When nearly all of the film's 94 minutes consist of Franco's psychological turmoil, his acting has to carry the movie, and as expected, Franco pulls it off very nicely. Expect some terrific and believable acting as Ralston struggles not only to free himself from the rocky prison, but also to come to terms with personal mistakes he made earlier in his life. However, 127 Hours may unwittingly fall into the category of 'psychological thriller', and with such a genre comes some strong expectations: intense scriptwriting and extraordinary acting. While the film may not necessarily be a "thriller" because it purposely recounts the real-life story of Aron Ralston, it still falls victim to its requirements; and this is where we see a disappointment in the movie. Nothing is missing from the acting side, but the script is regular, rather boring, and predictable. We know Ralston is still alive, we know he suffered, we know some parts were gritty- but no flourish is added to the original story to make it interesting. Everything is straightforward- no twists. 127 Hours wishes itself to be more engaging than it actually is. Still, it stays close to the facts of the book, which leads me to the conclusion that Ralston's tale makes a better story than it does a movie (and that psychological thrillers may not be Boyle's strong suit).
James Franco puts out a terrific role in this movie, but aside from his performance you can't expect anything too out-of-the-ordinary or impressive. 6/10