North Face [DVD] [2008]

Modern German fillmaking has already proven its value with movies like Downfall or The Lives fo Others or Sophie Scholl. These are somewhat recurrent themes, but they embrace a reasonable approach and analytical view of the characters involved in the plot.In this regard, North Face is not an exception. The film runs for a whole couple of hours, giving that feeling to you, in this case opposite views on the same political stand.The only one thing that I would not prefer to see is the wavering camera technique used throughout the film. It is not fully disturbing but at least to me it is somewhat annoying.Fortunately it does not disrupt the suspenseful third act, so in the end no further harm is done to the audience.This is, in my opinion, a highly recommended piece of film, especially to those who appreciate non-commercial, alternative productions to current Hollywoodian stereotypes.A note to foreign buyers: I imported the Blu-Ray edition because the disc is codefree. However, all the extras are encoded in PAL, and will not be viewed in a non-PAL player. If one does not mind not having access to extras, the rest is fine.

Initially I found it distracting that one had to read subtitles in English - this being a German movie - but once the movie started going, this fact was quickly overlooked.Loosely based upon true events, this DVD tells the attempt by two friends, Toni & Andi to scale the treacherous north face of the Eiger. That part is true. The part that is added to enhance the story is that of Luise, an aspiring journalist & long-time friend of these amateur mountaineers.Being amateurs not with a surfeit of money, they have rudimentary equipment comprising home-made pitons & crucially, a lack of crimpons.What becomes their nemesis are two Austrian climbers who they reluctantly allow them to join on their climb. This precipitates a series of disastrous events which eventually culminates in the death of all four climbers. Their attempts to extricate themselves from this predicament results in heart-stopping & gut-wreathing moments when one feels the effects of vertigo one self.What I cannot understand is why human beings would want to put themselves into so much danger?Overall this is an excellent production

As far as historical recreations go, this is fairly good, given that no one will ever know exactly what was said and what went wrong at several crucial points during the real climb, back in 1936. That said, I agree with several earlier reviews, in that the producers took a few too many liberties in tweaking the history for dramatic effect, and the adding of a fictional character for a rather bland love-interest plot served no purpose but to annoy history purists. The fact that four men braved the north face of the infamous Eiger, encountered difficulties, overcame challenges, kept on, then tried to save themselves and perished in different ways, each tragic, seems more than enough material to me without making it seem that the men were not united in their goal from the off, that someone was specifically to blame for each accident, that one man sacrificed himself, or that a woman could sit all night on the face through a bitter storm was quite ridiculous. The way each man struggled and died, up to Kurz's actual last words, should be respected, within the lore of the Eiger's history.I also highly recommend that anyone who likes this film watches  The Beckoning Silence [DVD ], which puts right some of the unfortunate rewrites this film has, as it is a fantastic documentary by climber Joe Simpson, from  Touching The Void [DVD ]. As a documentary, it recreates the climb on the Eiger face itself, and is not intended to be a drama, but an accurate recreation. "North Face" makes the mistake of rewriting history with the false belief that people find raw history boring, or that without a love plot there is no reason for people to strive to live (Hollywood is plagued with this.. it seems to be contagious). Toni Kurz, the last to die during that climb, did not die for Nazi Germany (a swastika on the UK cover is over doing it), did not stay awake all night for an ex-girlfriend, or try to cling on to life for any reason other than he believed he could survive against the odds. The fact that he was so close yet so helpless makes it all the more painful. If you can see past the few fictional elements of this film, it remains very enjoyable, the CGI is so very good (check out the short Visual Effects extra feature), the disastrous outcome remains as poignant now as in 1936. RIP to those brave fellows, and others like them, whose efforts were an example to humanity, striving to conquer the unknown through a great sense of youth and adventure.

I can only echo what others have said about the films brilliance. Normally I don't really go for foreign films with subtitles but I saw a documentary (available on YouTube) about the climbers and when the film was mentioned felt I had to watch it. The true story is even more dramatic than the film and if they had put it into a film I don't think you'd believe it. I really loved the cinematography, the bright orange of the hotel and light blue of the mountain face. I liked the character of Luise and felt it needed it. Not to everyone's taste, granted but I felt it was a good move. The film doesn't make it into a love story it is mainly about the race to the top with a simmering romance underneath.Really enjoyed it and wish I had watched the film before I knew about the true story.

I have read this story and seen Joe Simpsons documentary about this tragedy but watching it played out by quality actors really brought the story to life for me. You get a real essence of the true bravery of these early pioneers of mountaineering. Compared to the equipment and clothing that today's climbers use you wonder how anyone ever ascended anything. This is a real must watch, not only for fans of mountaineering but for those who are in wonder at how far the human spirit will endeavour to stay alive.The photography in this film are again something else.The only thing which did annoy me were the White subtitles which were at times hard to see.But don't let that put you off..... Watch it

I enjoyed it since it was in the german language.

字幕付きのDVDがなかなか手に入らなくなってしまっていますが、なんとか見たくて、手に入れました。最高です。厳しいシーンも多いですが、アイガー北壁のリアルが伝わってきます。

Real climbers will love this movie. The mix of real climbing with CGI is so elegantly done - I've never seen anything like it before and I've seen a lot of climbing films - and I've done a lot of climbing. They needed actors who could climb to pull off a film this good, and that's what they got. I defy anyone on the first pass through the movie to pick out anything technically deficient (it helps the filmmakers that this story is set in the late 30's: climbing gear, and techniques, were very elemental).This is a lot more than a good climbing film though.The story this is based on is true. The filmmakers add a subplot or two as story-telling devices, but the main story is about two men and their love of the mountains and the camaraderie it takes to tackle immense challenges like the Nordwand as a team. The actors are brilliant, you feel everything they feel as they experience it, and you pull for them the minute you meet them onscreen.Technically and emotionally the film is a major achievement. The sub-plots make It compelling for non-climbers, the climbing is superlative, and even better: it does not overly glorify the dangers of the mountains, it deals soberly with the ever-possible tragedy that mistakes on hard mountains can lead to; and I think it will help climbers to answer that great unanswerable question that non-climbers are always asking, "Why do you do it?"I could not recommend it enough.

Simply Incredible the result of this film. Even knowing the history, not only "suspense" is a contiuum over the film, but suffering with the characters and living their dreams and fight for living is also a constant along the movie.Those who have grown with the Eiger North Face in mind as a great exploit shall share the fear, the cold and the intense days with the actors and actress.And also an special recognition for the specialists: The action scenes are so hard and so real....Resuming: A great film, with great actors, great specialists and a great Direction. You'll enyoy it!!!!!

Pour commencer : pourquoi ne pas avoir traduit NORTH FACE par FACE NORD tout simplement puisque c'est l'élément central du récit. Et signalons ce titre français ridicule DUEL AU SOMMET complétement à coté de la plaque. On se demande parfois si les distributeurs vidéos réfléchissent avant de balancer n'importe quel titre (et encore on a du bol on a échappé au traditionel PIEGE EN HAUTE MONTAGNE!!)Après la vision de ce film, je me suis dis une chose : "comment un film aussi incroyable a pu rester inédit dans nos salles?!". Quand on voit le nombre de bouses (en majorité US) dont on nous afflige, le fait que NORTH FACE n'est pas été distribué dans nos contrées est une honte. C'est le long-métrage parfait pour les salles obscures.Ici il s'agit d'une oeuvre qui représente tout ce que j'aime dans le cinéma. Des cadrages superbes, une image contrastée, des acteurs impliqués et une bande son terrifiante de réalisme. Tout y est quasiment parfait. Le cinéma allemand prouve qu'il peut lui aussi rivaliser avec les gros bulldozers américains en termes de grand spectacle et autres tragédies humaines.Bien sûr, cette ascension du EIGER dans les Alpes a quelques défauts : la romance un peu plate (mais elle ne prend pas beaucoup de place, je vous rassure), les personnages secondaires quasi-inexistants et le contexte historique exceptionnel vite expédié.Mais ce serait oublier le principal : l'aventure humaine ou sa résultante tragique. Car NORTH FACE est une oeuvre passionnante dans sa retranscription des dangers de la montagne sous toutes ses formes. Ici le politiquement correct n'a pas le droit de citer.Froid mortel, tempête, matériel défectueux, crise d'égo suicidaire, accident, membres noircis par le gel, visage marqué, sacrifice, épuisement, renoncement... tout y est exploré et pas à coup de burin comme dans le balourd mais efficace VERTICAL LIMIT. Non, tout est ici à visage humain et renforce notre empathie pour ses alpinistes qui endure ce calvaire.On est littéralement scotché et terrifié jusqu'a son final sans pitié. Un modèle de mise en scène énergique et inspiré.Parlons du DVD maintenant.Et bien c'est un sans-faute :- Image : sublime, très contrastée, couleurs et définition au top. Dommage qu'il n'est pas été édité en Blu ray car par moments on se croirait devant une image HD, c'est impressionnant.- Son : la VF DTS (très bien doublé) est monumentale surtout pour les petits détails sonores au coeur de la tempête de neige, le sifflement du vent sur les parois ou lors d'une avalanche ou l'on entend le craquement annonciateur d'un glacier. Par rapport, la VO en simple Dolby en 5.1 est écrabouillé.- Bonus : une bande annonce. Décevant!! Surtout que le tournage de ce film a surement du être une sacrée aventure.Bref vous l'aurez compris j'ai été emballé par NORTH FACE qui est devenu pour moi l'une des références majeurs des films d'alpinismes à égalité avec le terrifiant LA MORT SUSPENDUE. Un petit chef-d'oeuvre à ne pas rater.Après tout, ce n'est que mon avis.A vous de voir.