A group of ambitious climbers get more than they bargained for on the mountain of “Everest”. Two rival mountain climbing group leaders (Jason Clarke and Jake Gyllenhaal) are front and center for one of the most vicious storms to ever hit the world’s tallest peak, Everest. Their dreams of reaching the mountains peak are just the beginning, as the quest to get back down in one piece becomes the fight of their lives. Unfortunately, “Everest” is only being shown in 3D formats that include XD and IMAX. It’s unfortunate because this film really deserves a wider audience. If you can’t tell, i greatly enjoyed this film. It is such an endearing story not only about the dangers of such a big dream, but the true test of one’s will to survive. There is so much to get to in terms of why this film is must see. First of all, the sound editing and mixing really thrived in an XD screening. The increase in wind velocity is very subtle, but it hits the audience so hard that you really feel that you are being whipped by it’s fierce cold. That is really the greatest thing that this film has going for it; it has a way of putting you on the mountain, despite that we know this is only a movie. The camera angles and cinematography are really breathtaking. I was happy to find out that only a slim margin of the film was CGI greenscreened, as many of the shots were filmed on an actualy snowy mountain. The wide angles of the fast moving clouds going by, as well as the side by side comparison of just how small these climbers look compared to their vicious counterpart, really communicates how helpless these people are. Because of that, it’s very easy to get behind their characters, even without the brief but helpful backstories that the film entails in the first twenty minutes. It would be easy for this film to get lost in narrative and focus so much more on the meat of storyline, with the disaster scenes. However, this film finds it just as important to educate the audience on the hazzards and unexpected road blocks that come with this great challenge. In fact, the first 70 minutes of the film are built between the climbers training for their expedition, as well as the climb of reaching the peak. The minority of the two hour run time was focused on the aftershock after the storm hits. It’s during that period when we get some of the best makeup and prosthetic work of the year. There were so many visuals on these tortured climbers that really made me squint or grit my teeth in the visual scars reflective of the mountain’s punishment. Disaster movies are a dime a dozen, but what really sets “Everest” apart is it’s acting from a variety of A-list actors that proved there is no such thing as a small role. Besides Clarke and Gyllenhaal, there were exceptional turns by John Hawkes, Keira Knightley, Sam Worthington, and Robin Wright. What’s great about the fact that all of them agreed to be in this film, is that it’s a real shocker when someone dies. I have always thought that using A-list actors in smaller roles will make it that much more interesting when one of them hits trouble, and this film used that to it’s truest potential. I enjoyed every character and didn’t want to see any of them hurt, and that’s hard enough to do for one character, let alone all of them. The real meat and potatoes of performances came from the dramatic offerings of Josh Brolin and Emily Watson. Watson has always been dependable, but she plays the panic so well in this film, considering she is hearing everything go on over a CB radio. I wish we could’ve gotten more screen time for her, but she makes the most of every scene she is in. Josh Brolin is bar none the absolute best thing in this movie. He serves as the real reflection card for everything that these men and women go through. He’s the heart and soul for this movie, because while he isn’t the main character of the film, he is the one that we follow from the very first scenes of the film. He had so many heartbreaking facial visuals in this film, and his mental breaking is slow and very crippling. “Everest” is a mentally tough climb for it’s audience. It’s unforgiving nature isn’t something that will be a winner for everyone, but if you seek the best kind of audio and visual experience within an IMAX screening, look no further than the top of the mountain.

9/10