Suspenseful and heart-pounding disaster thriller about survival

Rating: 9/10 (26 September 2015)

Based on true events that took place in May 10, 1996, this disaster thriller follows two veteran mountain climbers in Nepal (played by Jason Clarke and Josh Brolin) who leads their teams on wild expedition to scale the top of Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth. With almost no warning, the expedition becomes devastated when a violent blizzard strikes the mountain. Stranded with harsh conditions including sub-zero temperatures, shortage of oxygen, and devastating winds, the trip becomes an intense and seemingly impossible fight for survival. Featuring a greatly talented cast of John Hawkes, Robin Wright, Sam Worthington, Michael Kelly, Keira Nightly, Emily Watson, and Jake Gyllenhaal, this film shines with dazzling cinematography, engrossing visuals, and a captivating screenplay.
This movie does not shy away from intensity. From the moment when the characters embark on their expedition on the mountain, you are left with your heart beating rapidly and your hands gripping your seats. This is greatly done by the amazing cinematography as we are treated with downward shots showing the depths of the canyons in the mountain and bird's eye views of the mountains. In the scene when the blizzard hits, the amount of suspense soars as we watch the characters suffer through harsh conditions. They run low on oxygen, suffer from hypothermia, and struggle through devastating winds, some of which fall to their deaths. One scene shows a graphic shot of a character's frostbitten hands. These scenes are shot so authentically and are tough to watch at times. You could literally feel the pain these characters are facing -- the freezing temperatures, the flying specks of snow hitting their faces. Then there is the cast who do such amazing jobs for their performances, although you do not learn much of the character other than Josh Brolin and Jason Clark's characters, but honestly it doesn't too much here.
Everest is one of the most intense and fascinating disasters films I have seen in recent years. I believe with this film has a great chance at earning some Oscars for its technical achievements such as film editing, sound editing, and cinematography. This is a film I encourage to watch. If you have an IMAX theater nearby, watch this there, it would an amazing experience.