Review of 127 Hours (2010) by Justin F — 17 Jun 2013

So I got a little bored- not gonna lie, you know what's gonna happen (if you don't then don't read on) and, while what does happen is pretty extraordinary, there's not actually much that happens overall throughout the film. Nonetheless, Boyle brings some spark to the proceedings and Franco controls the process managing to keep it realistic.

It's a strong film that manages to go somewhat beyond the novelty of its story but the themes within are none that haven't been expressed in other films like this- Into The Wild for instance. It maybe sticks too much to what Ralston went through and not enough about the man himself- the flashbacks and mini-epiphanies seem to reflect feelings we would all would have if in that situation, which is fine, but this is obviously a guy with something extra (check out the video of him non-chalantly talking about ripping out the nerves in his arm) - it'd be nice to see more about him than just the moments themselves and the immediate events surrounding them.

It must have been a challenge to get a full-length feature out of this but everyone involved succeeded. This isn't anything particularly new though and it's a love-or-hate genre with a story that just won't appeal to everyone. This one fits in its own place but that place doesn't really penetrate where great movies lie for me.