The true story of the hiker who got trapped by a boulder for 127 hours in Canyonlands N.P.

Rating: Null/10 (7 May 2011)

Back around 16 or 17 years ago we took a driving trip into Utah, the area around Moab, and that included a brief visit to Canyonlands National Park, where this event happened, and where the movie was filmed. Canyonlands has a rich history, and has been used for such movies as "Thelma and Louise" and "Mission Impossible 2". So from that aspect it was good to re-visit Canyonlands, if only through film.
James Franco is Aron Ralston, who on weekends loves to take off in the middle of the night, drive to a location, and at daybreak head out on his off-road bicycle and his wits. On this fateful day he doesn't tell anyone where he is going, as a result no one knows to look for him when he gets trapped.
How do you make a 90-minute movie of a guy trapped in a crevice? Basically by showing him trying to chip away the boulder, trying to rig up a pulley system, trying to get water to survive, and making short videos which also contained his "goodbye" to the world, for he figured he would die there. He didn't.
The movie also uses a number of flashbacks, many back to his youth.
The movie was nominated for Oscars in a number of categories, including best actor, but didn't win any. It is a well-made movie, Franco is better than he has been in prior roles. As I watched it I kept thinking back to Hanks' "Cast Away". There is always something fascinating about watching survival, when you know it really happened.
SPOILERS: When he tumbles into a narrow crevice with a small boulder, it becomes wedged in a way to pin his right arm. No amount of effort could budge it. Finally, after about 5 days his only choice was die there or cut off his arm between the wrist and the elbow. Thanks to a 15-second skip feature on my BD player I didn't have to watch as he cut. As history tells us, he made it to safety with the help of some hikers, and today with a prosthetic continues to hike, climb, explore.