"Touching the Void is cinema at its most compelling and most inspiring." Louis B Hobson, JAM! MOVIES "Breathtaking stuff that freezes the toes, harrows the soul and turns the viewer's seat into a foot-wide ledge over a yawning chasm." John Patterson LA WEEKLY "So well cast and well captured is Touching the Void that it suspends disbelief, making us feel as if we're actually watching Simpson's own icy version of Dante's Inferno." Robert K Elder CHICAGO TRIBUNE "Touching The Void is a real you-are-there experience, filmed with awe-inspiring shots of the mountains and deeply moving personal interviews." Liz Braun JAM! MOVIES "Touching The Void takes us to both heaven and hell, and knowing the final result only serves to increase our sense of awe at the achievement." Peter Howell TORONTO STAR

"Seriously blurring the line between documentary and dramatic filmmaking, this true story is absolutely gripping." Rich Cline SHADOWS ON THE WALL "As gripping as they come. It's a unique film that freely jumps genres in order to tell the best story possible." Ryan Cracknell MOVIE VIEW "A truly great film, one that puts a human face on adventure by starkly dramatizing the power of man's indefatigable resolve." David N Butterworth MOVIE BOEUF "British filmmaker Kevin Macdonald has blended elements of docudrama and documentary into a satisfying whole that will keep even the most stoic movie-goer gripping the armrest throughout." James Berardinelli REELVIEWS "The photography is awesome, inspiring many 'How did they get that shot?' moments." Jami Bernard NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

At A Glance

"You'll think twice about climbing a ladder, let alone a mountain, after seeing Touching the Void." Marshall Fine JOURNAL NEWS

Surfice to say, even though I have seen "Touching The Void" on three occassions, I can reveal I'm still in awe of those first views one gets of Siula Grande, the 21000 feet high mountain, Joe Simpson and Simon Yates conquered in 1985. That view of the ice-clad peak, it's ragged glacier, swept by storms in the nether-regions where man once believed only the Gods held sway over nature, is a chilling, inhospitable and terrible sight to behold. That no-one before or after these two climbers, has conquered the western face is testimony to how awesome Siula Grande is. Based on the best selling novel "Touching the Void" by Joe Simpson, this true tale of survival has taken nearly twenty five years to make on to the big screen. Most people wonder why. The fact is that because this is a true story of struggle and survival, both Joe Simpson and Simon Yates needed to ensure that "the truth be told without dramatic falsification, particularly since the reason Simpson originally wrote his book was to explain what really happened and exonerate Yates." Fogwood Films, the production company owned by actress Sally Field acquired the option for the film in the late nineties. They envisaged Tom Cruise in the lead role. The idea of turning the story into a Hollywood feature film lapsed and so, the story of survival had to wait until journalist and co-producer Sue Summers came on the scene. Summers who had been researching stories for Darlow Smithson [one of the UK’s leading independent production companies], soon recognized the huge potential for the story had as a film. "It is essentially a story of survival but it works on several levels which make it accessible to anyone, regardless of their interest in actual mountaineering. On one level it is about mountain climbing, on another it is about human endurance and overcoming a terrible situation against all odds. I think it’s very inspirational," she explained. "So many people have found this story very powerful and inspiring in their own lives." Simpson warmed to the approach by Darlow Smithson and why not, after all, "their work has been recognised with over 20 international awards, including a US Emmy, an International Emmy and two Royal Television Society awards." And Simpson admits, over the years it had been a struggle trying to get the story to the screen. "I thought drama documentary would be better than straight drama because it would be closer to a non fiction book, whereas if you had a movie with invented storylines to make things work, you would get a feeling that it’s just not true," he said. "Similarly, a lot of people have said about the book that if it had been written as a fiction it would have been regarded as laughable." Summers elaborated by adding, "It occurred to us that a dramatised documentary could tell the true story in a way that a feature never could. We would actually be able to say what was happening in their minds in a direct way, whereas if it was simply a drama it would have been impossible without a narration." Producer John Smithson, and director Kevin Macdonald "both realised the potential of this powerful story." What makes the film more intriguing is the use of narration featuring both Simpson and Yates in person. It adds a wonderful dimension to the film. “The problem with this unusual mix of documentary and feature film is the dilemma of whether your sympathy lies with the actor or with the real person. The dramatised sections in documentaries are usually played by faceless figures simply illustrating the actions and we really wanted to steer clear of that," says Oscar winning director Kevin Macdonald. How did they get around that? "What we decided to do was to try to go all out for drama so that you’re with the actor and with the real person too. It’s a fine balance but I think we found two excellent actors also with very good physical resemblance to Joe and Simon which is important." To achieve budget the film was shot in three stages. The first was shot in London and covered the face to face footage with both Simpson and Yates. "These interviews were long and demanding, especially as each had to relive the events of that fateful journey in the most minute detail." The second stage took them to the Peruvian Andes and shooting took place around Siula Grande where the real life drama had occurred. Setting up a base camp was no mean feat. All the equipment and needs for the shoot were brought in on eighty donkeys. "After the road ran out, the team of twenty had to trek for three days through the foothills to reach the base camp." Getting in to set up a base camp wasn't the only challenge faced. Confronting Siula Grande again posed challenges for both Simpson and Yates. “I thought that I would just be able to deal with it but what I found was that things really affected me strongly in ways I had never expected," Simpson revealed. "I got to the base camp, which had been recreated, but it didn’t mean anything to me. Then I asked Simon where he found me. He walked about a hundred yards away and pointed at this rock and I remembered it all and started having a freak-out in my head. I wasn’t shaking but I felt like I was. It was like someone walking over your grave. I had forgotten just how appalling it was being reduced to almost nothing." Director Kevin Macdonald original intention didn't include filming the two at the site. "We were telling the story of the book," he said. "I envisaged this to be a different film to any film about them going back there. But their reactions when we got there made me realise just how alive their story still is to both of them in their daily lives. In a way they can’t ever escape it." The final stage of filmimg was even tougher. It took place in the Alps where the terrain was trecherous and the temp dropped down to minus 20. Producer John Smithson remembers it well. "We were in really extreme conditions. The air was thin, dehydration was a constant issue and hypothermia remained a threat day and night. We all had basic training about where to walk, where not to walk, when to wear crampons, always wearing a harness, always being roped together." The harshness of filming wasn't lost on director Kevin Macdonald either. "The camera freezing up, the lenses fogging over, the actors and ourselves getting pulled aside by the safety guys because they said it was too cold and we were going to get frostbitten. We had to go in and out half an hour at a time," he said. "And it’s a lot of action with no dialogue so it’s not like you can just resort to dialogue scenes, you’ve got to be very physical non-stop. Every day was a fight just to get things done, just to get even some of it covered and that was exhausting." I am sure none of this will be lost on the audiences who see "Touching The Void" because part of the experience is that every minute feels as though you are there, living the climb, the elation at success and then the horror of what follows. That it will remain in your mind long after you leave the theatre is testimony of the powerful vision of survival the footage portrays. "Touching The Void", the 2004 BAFTA Award winner is a marvellous, wonderful, enthralling film. Cast & Crew Bytes "Touching The Void" was directed by Academy Award Winner Kevin Macdonald ["Chaplin's Goliath", "One Day in September" and "A Brief History of Errol Morris"]; produced by John Smithson ["The Affair", "Black Box" and "Station X"]; edited by Justine Wright ["The Rat Trap", "One Day In September", "Late Night Shopping" and "The Game Of Their Lives"]; first assistant director Nick Laws ["Wonderland", "With or Without You", "The Claim" and "The Samsara"]; makeup designer Sarita Allison ["Hard Men", "The Mummy" and "Stella Street"]; from the true story by Joel Simpson.
"Touching The Void" stars Nicholas Aaron ["Lemmings", "Don't Look Back" and "Nine Lives"], Brendan Mackey ["H3", "Nine Dead Gay Guys" and "Boxed"] and Ollie Ryall ["Touching The Void"]. The Story

"Touching the Void is for people who want to vicariously live on the edge, braving nature at its worst from the safety of their movie theater." Daniel M Kimmel WORCESTER TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

In 1985 Simon Yates and Joe Simpson set out to climb the western face of Siula Grande, a 21000 feet high mountain in the Peruvian Andes. Previously unconquered the two climbers left their base camp in great spirits. Their eleation at reaching the peak would soon turn to despair. A huge storm sweeps the mountain depositing trecherous loose snow on the sheer faces and ice shelves. There plans to make a quick ascent and decent are now in jeopardy as they have travelled light and any delay will leave them low on supplies. They begin a trecherous decent and while doing so, Simpson falls, severly breaking his right leg. The bone is driven past the knee shattering it. In normal circumstances this alone would be a death sentence but Yates rallies to assist his partner down the face. To save time Yates joins two lengths of climbing rope together. This way he can lower the injured Simpson 300 feet at a time. To do so, he anchors himself in the snow covered ice and Simpson gently slides down the face. Just as they begin making progress, Simpson plunges over a ledge. Yates finds the weight of his partner slowly pulling him down the face. Fearing for his life, believing Simpson is dead, he cuts the rope and makes his way to base camp. But Simpson has fallen into a crevasse. He is still alive. Fighting off the shock, the despair of his sitiuation he starts on an incredible journey. A race against time. To get down the glacier before Yates and Richard Hawking break camp.

"I don't like getting close to death or being so scared, it's a horrible sensation. But the satisfaction is in dealing with it, not cracking up, staying in control and getting out of it. If you get near death it's not good but you get a very clear perspective of what's important, and it's not your mortgage and it's not your job, it's just the fact that you are here. After something like this happens, you have a changed perspective and you know about living." ...... Joe Simpson

The Verdict "An awe-inspiring film everyone should see. "Touching The Void" takes us into the nether-regions of human survival. It will astound you. It will leave you breathless. White knuckle tension to the very end. A story almost unbelievable, near incomprehensible but we know otherwise. 4 1/2 STARS." The Cast

Nicholas Aaron Brendan Mackey Ollie Ryall Joe Simpson Simon Yates Richard Hawking

... ... ... ... ... ...

Simon Yates Joe Simpson Richard Hawking Himself Himself Himself

The Crew Directed by Kevin Macdonald First Assistant Director Nick Laws From the true story by Produced by John Smithson Executive Producers Charles Furneaux/Robin Gutch/Paul Trijbits Associate Producer Paul Sowerbutts Co-produced by Sue Summers Original Music by Alex Heffes & Bevan Smith Cinematography by Mike Eley & Keith Partridge Film Editing by Justine Wright Casting by Susie Figgis Production Design by Patrick Bill Art Direction by Patrick Bill Costume Design by Patrick Bill Makeup Designer Sarita Allison Production Management Emma Clarke & Peter McAleese Storyboard Artist Giles Asbury Climbing Stunt Double David Cuthbertson Rated M15+ [AUST] Run Time 106 minutes Copyright ©2004 - IFC - All Rights Reserved Copyright Protected © 2004 - The Movie Pages & Impact Internet Services - All Rights Reserved