’127 Hours’ Review

Release Date – 11/5/2010

Aron Ralston is preparing for a hike through the canyons near Moab, Utah. A large stretch of land is mostly isolated from society with a few people canyoneering here and there. While out exploring, he meets two girls in need of a guide. He shows them around and has a great time but eventually its time to split up. He’s alone climbing through crevices in huge mountains when a boulder dislodges and falls on top of his arm trapping him inside one of the cavernous regions. He survives on limited food and water while his mind slowly starts to slip into madness, always hoping for rescue. The movie is pretty unique regarding plot and film style. You stay very involved and interested in this guy’s life as he’s basically trapped alone for the majority of the movie. But it’s compelling enough where you don’t get bored and edited together in a way that’s very fresh and entertaining. The fact that it’s a true story only adds to the entertainment value.

James Franco is the star of the movie. 90% of the film is just him on screen alone. We realize from the beginning that he’s a bit of an odd guy. He goes out on traveling desolate areas alone without informing anyone or even bringing a cell phone. He loves the outdoors and the feeling of exploring new areas of the mountains he has been to dozens of times before. He knows all the little secrets. He meets up with two chicks that are lost (Kate Mara & Amber Tamblyn) and shows them a secret lagoon buried deep within a mountain and has a great time swimming and flirting with them. But soon they go their separate ways and Aron is back to his lonesome exploring. This is when disaster strikes. After he gets trapped, we witness over 5 days of emotions ranging from anger to sadness to madness. We get to see his thoughts and his dreams, while also seeing his attempts to break free from the rock that is pinning him down.

Danny Boyle (2009’s Academy Award winning Best Director for Slumdog Millionaire) has put together another beautiful movie. From the scenery to the crazy dream sequences, everything looks great. He also has once again collaborated with Simon Beaufoy in writing and AR Rahman with original music to make another masterpiece. I really enjoyed how they put the movie together, pretty much every aspect. From the cool edits of pictures sliding off the screen when Aron snaps a shot to the thoughts inside Aron’s head of old soda and beer commercials. Even dreams of partying back at home with the girls he met. Everything was filmed great. AR Rahman may not have made another catchy tune like Jai Ho but the music in 127 Hours is almost like another character. And then there’s the final scene which may make you cringe. Scratch that, it WILL make you cringe. I’m not usually one to look away from the screen but I was even struggling with this one. But in the end it’s a heartwarming tale of survival when the odds are stacked against you. Aron Ralston is a true warrior and James Franco could receive a Best Actor nomination for his portrayal. Not to mention nominations all around for the crew but that’s no surprise with Danny Boyle at the helm.

IMDB – 8.6/10
Rotten Tomatoes – 92%
Movie Wiseguys – 8.5/10