More Mountainfilm 2013 Highlights: High & Hallowed and Running Blind

High & Hallowed: Everest 1963

Mountaineering and remarkable physical achievements have been a big part of  Mountainfilm, a world renowned festival in Telluride, Colorado, since its origin in 1979. In addition to watching films that raise social awareness, I love taking in adventure films that thrill and inspire me on many levels. This year was no different and the two that stood out for me the most were “High & Hallowed:  Everest 1963” and “Running Blind,” both of which made their world premiere at the festival.

“High & Hallowed,” a visually stunning film, juxtaposes the first American summiting of Mt. Everest in 1963 with a recent attempt. Filmmakers David Morton and Jake Norton skillfully tell the story of Everest past and present by marrying old footage with new. It’s also the tale of the West Ridge route, an Everest ascent that has only been achieved once back in 1963 by Tom Hornbein and Willi Unsoeld, two members of the original American team. Jim Whittaker was the first to plant the American flag on Everest on the already then-established South Col route, yet even more remarkably, Hornbein and Unsoeld followed up on the same expedition with the West Ridge ascent. Some consider this to have been an even more astounding feat than putting a man on the moon; all acknowledge this as having been one of the most daring climbs in history. And it hasn’t been successfully repeated since.

Tom Hornbein on the Summit of Mount Everest at 6:15pm on May 22, 1963, after Making the First Ascent of the West Ridge with Willi Unsoeld

The team of David Morton, Jake Norton, Charley Mace and Brent Bishop attempted to do so in 2012, and despite their combined skill, courage and technically-superior Eddie Bauer clothing and gear, they failed—just like so many others that have tried this passage before them. Indeed, a ridiculous number of people have died along this perilous route. Fortunately, this 2012 American team was able to bring back flawless footage that makes us feel like we’re right there in the bright-white, crystalline backdrop of Everest forging forward with these modern-day adventurers every step of the way. The result and the history lessons in “High & Hallowed” are both sublime and memorable. This film is not to be missed.

EJ Scott

Mountainfilm celebrates the indomitable human spirit in a variety of forms and in “Running Blind” I was left cheering for EJ Scott, an intrepid guy of a different sort. How would you respond to a degenerative, debilitating disease? For EJ Scott, a young man diagnosed with choroideremia, a genetic disease of the retina that results in loss of vision, the response is one of fierce courage and determination. So in an effort to create awareness and to raise money for a cure for this disease, EJ runs twelve marathons in twelve different states in 2012, all of which are chronicled in “Running Blind.” Film director Ryan Suffern deftly transfers to the big screen this heartfelt story of human resolve, hope and supreme motivation.

Thank you to “High & Hallowed” and “Running Blind” for the use of the images in this post.

Click here to read more of my posts about Mountainfilm from 2013 and previous years.