Will Hollywood EVER get climbing right?

Oh good lord...  Just came across the trailer for this new "film."  I suppose at least they didn't have to cut the rope.  Another movie grossly mis-representing climbing (and sorta via ferrata as well I suppose) it would appear.  Like the first bit, are they simul-climbing and if so.. .why, and with ONE piece between them (and looks like a poorly placed one at that)??? Best part is the tower fall in the trailer, yeah like they wouldn't instantly be snatched right off that thing.  SMDH.  Looks like Vertical Limit is about to have some competition.  

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15325794/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

No.  Develop competence at anything besides acting itself, then see how Hollywood handles that subject and you will not hope for better.

Hot take:

Climbing is kind of boring to watch. Movies don't have to be mirrors of the real world (and rarely are). Case in point: the last movie I watched was about an emo space viking and it was alright.

Hollywood got Free Solo right.

Yeah... Free Solo wasn't exactly Hollywood. 

And yes movies don't have to  be perfect mirrors of reality, but there's a difference between obvious fantasy like superheroes in space and something that's set in the "real" world.  It could have been JUST as interesting and exciting AND gotten the technical details right.  This is just extremely lazy "film" making.  Worse, it could even make someone think they could hold a 50ft unprotected freefall by just grabbing onto something.  And yes the reason I can never get through horror movies is because at some point the protagonist(s) always do something so unbelievably stupid that they never would have survived into adulthood if they were really that dumb.

I feel that way about many people that have, somehow, managed to become adults. 

Kevin Craig wrote:

 and something that's set in the "real" world.

What's a movie that you like, that follows this rule, that's out right now? 

This may be a rhetorical question - Hollywood movies are usually about the escape from reality, rather than indulging in reality (imo).

The problem has nothing to do with climbing.  It's a simple fact that you should never watch a movie, read a magazine article, or listen to a news report on a topic you actually know something about. You will always be disappointed.

Hollywood? Not lately, based on the evidence to date.

However, elsewhere, The Summit of the Gods (2021 theatrical release, after Cannes Film Festival) was quite good. Not only did it get the climbing right, "right" included period correct details. It's also very beautifully done. Animation that you will quickly watch like live action.

Best, Helen

Old lady H wrote:

Hollywood? Not lately, based on the evidence to date.

However, elsewhere, The Summit of the Gods (2021 theatrical release, after Cannes Film Festival) was quite good. Not only did it get the climbing right, "right" included period correct details. It's also very beautifully done. Animation that you will quickly watch like live action.

Best, Helen

Agreed, thought this was a very good story and left me looking into the history of where the story came from. 

"Never let the truth get in the way of a good story" (attributed to Mark Twain but, happily, this probably isn't true)

80 years on Hollywood still thinks the USA won World War Two singlehandedly so I wouldn't hold your breath!

They do get it right -

Another perfect climbing scene fresh outa hollywood.

The reason climbing in movies is so bad, at least to people who climb, is that climbing is incredibly boring to watch.   Backdraft got a similar response from firemen when it came out.  But if you made a interior firefighting movie real it would just be a black screen.   You need to exaggerate and twist reality.  Heck even Free Solo did it. Most of those camera angles were set up for maximum dramatic effect, not that it needed it but they still maximized the angles and perspective to make the audiences palms sweat and gasp.   You can’t get bent out of shape when watching a movie, you go to a movie to escape reality for a bit not watch a mirror of it. 

I’m sure martial arts people feel that way about movies all the time. Fencing experts probably facepalm at every sword-fighting scene. Sailors probably cringe at every maritime scene. And police officers and lawyers likely groan about the crime-investigations.

Okay, to be fair here....

I really enjoy well made actual climbing films, but not as obsessively as some. I watch all kinds of stuff, same with reading.

What happens for me, far more often when watching a movie?

I am staring at backgrounds and pondering how climbable they are. Knowing full well the place doesn't remotely exist anywhere except in someone's imagination. Even all those desperately trying to escape one apocalypse or another, scenes. Hmmmm....

Yeah, I'd take a crack at buildering the ruins of those cataclysms.   

Loved the comedic clips above! Monty Python's takes on climbing/mountaineering are definitely classics, and will be forever, imo.

H.

Are you pissed because they used C4s in those giant pockets instead of Tricams? 

There's lots of good helmet cam footage on Youtube if you want to see climbing accurately portrayed. 

ubu wrote:

It's a simple fact that you should never watch a movie, read a magazine article, or listen to a news report on a topic you actually know something about. You will always be disappointed.

Yet most will turn the page to an article on a subject they know less about and somehow think the content is more factual.

ubu wrote:

The problem has nothing to do with climbing.  It's a simple fact that you should never watch a movie, read a magazine article, or listen to a news report on a topic you actually know something about. You will always be disappointed.

Also, think very hard before meeting your artistic heroes. 

They could. We’ll see how it develops. Keep in mind that this last year is the first year climbing attained a global stage with the olympics. Now there are personalities and reachable people who might have some spare time to consult Hollywood’s script.

Then again, the group that this trailer appeals to is larger than our global rag-tag group of climbers.

Kevin Craig wrote:

Oh good lord...  Just came across the trailer for this new "film."  I suppose at least they didn't have to cut the rope.  Another movie grossly mis-representing climbing (and sorta via ferrata as well I suppose) it would appear.  Like the first bit, are they simul-climbing and if so.. .why, and with ONE piece between them (and looks like a poorly placed one at that)??? Best part is the tower fall in the trailer, yeah like they wouldn't instantly be snatched right off that thing.  SMDH.  Looks like Vertical Limit is about to have some competition.  

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15325794/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
It's same story with other winter sports most of the time. Snowboarding/skiing showed in movies are at best like 60% accurate imo. Speaking of the devil - just picked up my new board+helmet from my go-to sports store( https://gritroutdoors.com/sports-hobbies/winter-sports/  new winter sports section is amazing!)

It probably really hard to make climbing exciting for a viewer without completely getting it wrong. After all watching someone climb is not as exciting as climbing yourself!