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Sorry, this movie sucks

Just perfect...

I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

The cinematography is very good. And it is exciting that everything was caught on film (the Sherpa fighting, the rescue effort, the politically-motivated protests, etc etc). But the documentary falls flat of following through with the intended story, and instead showcases how much of grandiose liar Russell Brice is. It seems that the filmmakers started out with the intention of capturing the expedition on film, but then the tragedy occurred so the filmmakers shifted direction and documented the rescue operation. Then protests began so the filmmakers again shifted direction and wanted to make it about the plight of the Sherpa. But at the same time all of these foreigners are whining about how they can't go up the mountain because the Sherpas are complaining that a chunk of their people died. So Russell Brice and a few privileged hikers decided to stage a counter-protest by inventing this story about how a few (invisible) Sherpas are threatening to kill everyone if they go up the mountain, so they are going to withdraw from Base Camp and make all of the Sherpas suffer their wrath and learn their lesson?! I can't believe that this Russell Brice guy invented a story about Sherpas threatening to kill people, and then basically told the Sherpas that it was in their best interest if the hikers leave, and then he told the hikers that the Sherpas wanted them to leave. Appalling. THAT is the real story here, but it is glossed over and the only person in the film complaining about him lying is edited into bits and pieces to make him sound confusing.

I loved this documentary as I like many people am fascinated by Chomolungma, being it's the highest Mountain on Earth.The name 'Everest' should and the verb 'to summit' should be immediately be red flags. Nothing was discovered in the 1800s. Being named after some colonial white guy by the Royal Geographical Society instead of being called the Holy Mother in the local language. Hindi or Nepali Sagarmāthā, are much nicer names.I really think though that when you use and abuse locals and make things easy for people to climb and insult this mountain this should honestly be reflected in any film made about it. The things missing from this film about exactly the work that Sherpas do, how they really feel, and the selfishness of the capitalist system that allows people to try and tick off the 'biggest and best' when ethically what those customers are doing is highly questionable. How much really do the Sherpas earn as percentage? Shouldn't there be excellent schools, hospitals and adequate insurance for Sherpas? Some of the problems with garbage and climate change are not properly covered at all.Capitalistic money making from a Holy mountain should be properly regarded as a pretty hollow occupation, and someone risking their life to feed their family as pretty heroic, but this film seems sided with climbing company owners and clients by trying to be balanced between each side, when really one side is in the right and the other isn't.At the end of the day a real climber would walk up from sea level, hire a local directly or not at all, go without oxygen especially if under 8000 meters and bring all their own supplies in and out.

A stunningly shot and emotionally engaging Australian backed documentary, the BAFTA nominated Sherpa as directed by filmmaker to watch Jennifer Peedom and her willing crew is one of the years must see docos as well as must see films perse thanks to its well-constructed looked at both the almost indescribable appeal of climbing the world's most famous mountain Everest and the oft-unsung heroes of the successful climbs, the Sherpas.Focusing her attention on Phurba Tashi Sherpa who at the time of filming this documentary had successfully climbed to the Everest peak over 20 times, Peedom captures some otherworldly and magnificent images of a landscape filled with beauty, allurement and potential death and backed by the ever good musical ruminations of acclaimed Animal Kingdom and The Rover scorer Antony Partos, Sherpa has a polish and sheen not often found in home-grown documentaries or documentaries of any heritage at that matter and from the film's opening minutes through to its last important stanza Sherpa will gripe the viewer and not let go.Becoming one of those film crews that were there at the right place and at the right time, Sherpa's initial focus shifts as the film draws on and tragedy strikes the mountain, a tragedy that in many ways reshaped the way business was done and is to be done on the mountain that draws so many people to it each year often at exorbitant prices.Sherpa's who have long been the smiling and gracious whipping boys to Everest's various tourists and wannabe heroes, are here given airtime from both the new to the old (an interesting aspect to the film is the look back at Sherpa Tenzing Norgay) and Peedom and her team shine a light on these often fearless climbers and guides that would risk their lives dozens of times per season to make sure those that have paid to have their experience are given every chance conceivable to make the trek successfully, even if some of the Sherpas here aren't overly affable.Hot off the heels of the good if not great Everest feature from last year, Sherpa is an outstanding documentary that is one of the highlights of Australia's recent output in the medium that includes the must see All This Mayhem and That Sugar Film and Peedom has once again marked herself down as a real talent to watch, while those adventurers looking for an insightful look at one of the world's natural wonders owe it to themselves to watch this eye opening film experience.4 ½ yaks out of 5

Mount Everest brings to mind many things. High altitudes, freezing temperatures and an increasing number of foreigners climbing the peak, at one point resulting in a traffic jam of epic proportions. It has become a business, with the Sherpa people always in the background; rarely expressing any emotion, helping out willingly as it is often the only way that these people can earn themselves a living – risking their lives time and time again to help complete strangers.This film is told almost entirely from the perspective of the Sherpa. As we watch we see the insane risks that these people put themselves through, we also learn about the Sherpa as a native people. Deeply religious, they pray constantly that their journey will be successful and without death.Their prayers are of course no guarantee, and in 2013 an almost inconceivable incident happened at 21,000 feet: a fight broke out between the Sherpa and the climbers they had been helping. They felt disrespected by a western climber who had referred to one of them as a mother f***er, which is pretty much the worst thing you could say to one of these people.The small bits of footage captured from this incident show the usually calm and reserved Sherpa visibly angry. Tempers flared, rocks were thrown, as the Sherpa people finally let their voices be heard, knowing that foreign climbers see them almost as tools to help them achieve their goal, and don't respect them and their work as a result.That fight was the inspiration behind this Australian-made documentary as the filmmakers decided that to find out what had caused this tension, they should follow the Sherpa, interviewing them and their families, who often have a good sense of humour about a very dangerous job that their loved one is involved in. Also interviewed and extensively on camera is Russell Brice, who is one of many crew-leaders ready to lead his team to the summit. While he continues to fight for safer conditions on the mountain to this day, during the film he comes off as a bit of an insensitive douche; disrespecting the Sherpa and spreading rumours about them, while remaining blissfully ignorant of their hard work. His lack of respect is alarming given how much the Sherpa contribute to every climb.This latter sentiment is unfortunate, given the work these people do. One of their tasks is to transport all that is needed – for the foreign climbers – up the mountain to each base camp.The most brutal part of the Sherpa's journey is that of the ice wall, literally a strip of ice that can move at any second. It must be traversed at night where there is a smaller chance of the ice shifting. Giant blocks of ice threaten their journey, yet the Sherpa continue without fear. Somehow this bravery is largely ignored by many foreign climbers who see the mountain as a tourist hot-spot; the more people climbing, the better for business. We even see flat-screen televisions at base camp. The rise of interest in the mountain is also raising the risk exponentially as the Sherpa are forced to climb the mountain several times a year, some up to thirty times.This film is the anti-Everest. Looking even more stunning than that film, Sherpa charts the journey of the native Nepalese Phurba Tashin in the 2014 climbing season. What follows is a tragedy that leads to the Sherpa as a group making a list of demands, the meat of which involved compensation for unfortunate families left behind, as well as a rise in payment. For years the Sherpa have been silent, but here they become very vocal, accusing the government of taking their money; which is true in a sense, as they are paid pennies compared to what the business of climbing earns, parts of which go to the government. Their arguments were fair, but the reactions from some of the foreign climbers involved was disgusting to say the least, and shows just how little respect some of these foreign climbers have for the Sherpa despite the incredible work that they do, all of it so they can feed their family, and all of it to help the foreigners.One American man actually referred to them as terrorists, simply because they were chanting for a rise in pay (in another language), while the circumstances meant that he couldn't climb the mountain when he felt like it. As the protests continue, he actually asks his team leader if they can call the 'owners' of the Sherpa to sort out the situation. The packed IMAX cinema all chuckled in unison at his senseless, egregiously ignorant remarks.One of the best films to come out of Australia, if not our best documentary ever, SHERPA is an intoxicating, showing real peril and tragedy from the mountain itself. Using a combination of draw dropping visuals, head-cam footage from the Sherpa climbers themselves, brief interjections of archival footage and talking heads from both the Sherpa and the foreign climbers, this flick paints the definitive film of Mount Everest, or as the locals call it, Chomolungma.www.epilepticmoondancer.net