It’s the thrill of a lifetime to be able to climb to the top of the mountain, or even to get to hike and take ann adventure outdoors. Some people may find enough excitement simply camping for a few nights, while others may want to take on the challenge of climbing Mt. Everest or the second highest mountain in the world, K2. The following are my choices for the best ten movies about hiking and climbing.
1. K2 (1991). In this climbing adventure movie, two best friends decide to join a team that will reach the summit of K2. The movie gives a realistic portrayal of what it would be like to actually venture out and climb K2, and the perils that could be faced. The scenery is incredible.
2. Into the Wild (2007). Imagine being a rich kid and having everything you ever wanted, but becoming totally disenchanted by the whole idea of civilization. That’s what happens to Christopher McCandless (played by Emile Hirsch). He decides to give up everything and take to the wilderness in Alaska. The problem is, that he hasn’t thought things through very well. The seasons are changing, and it’s about to get treacherous up there in the wilds of the North. This movie is based on a true story.
3. A Perfect Getaway (2009). The plan is always simple: to escape real life and go on a hiking adventure to just enjoy each other. That’s what this married couple was thinking when they decided to spend their honeymoon hiking in Hawaii. Unfortunately, the people they run into along the way have other plans!
4. Boot Camp (2007). Sometimes, the camping and outdoor adventure really isn’t by choice. That’s what happens to Mila Kunis’s character Sophie when her parents send her to a boot camp for troubled teens. It turns out that the camp’s leaders aren’t all they’re cracked up to be, and the camp actually has had some teen deaths as a result. Sophie’s boyfriend, Ben finds out where her parents sent her and decides to try and rescue her. He gets himself in trouble so he will be sent there, and the plot unfolds. The scenery is beautiful, but it’s not nearly as enjoyable and relaxing when you’re being held against your will and treated badly!
5. Touching the Void (2009). In Touching the Void, the mountain to be climbed is the Siula Grande in the Andes in Peru. Also based on a true story, this mountain movie is about two friends who barely survive climbing the Siula Grande. Once reaching the summit, things begin to take a turn for the worse. One friend’s leg is broken, and the other tries to help him back down the mountain. A bad situation develops where the other friend has to choose his life or his friend’s. What a decision to have to face on a mountain in a snowstorm! Watch and see who survives.
6. Vertical Limit (2000). Also about climbing the K2, Vertical Limit is about a sister who wants to reach the summit. She gets on an expedition funded by a wealthy climber, and wants her brother to come with her. However, because he was responsible for his father’s climbing death years before, he will not take to the mountain with her. When the trip goes awry, and his sister is in danger, he then has to face his fears and climb the mountain to reach her and save her.
7. Take it to the Limit (2000). Sometimes a challenge is what you need to face life head on. That’s what this teenager decides when he joins some other rock climbers climbing mountains. He doesn’t realize what he’s gotten himself into, as he learns that he can’t just rely on himself anymore and survive.
8. Cliffhanger (1993). Sylvester Stallone is Gabe, a mountain climber whose friend’s girlfriend fell to her death in a situation he believes was his fault. He now no longer climbs mountains. He returns just once to the town where the incident happened, to pack and leave for good. However, his plans are delayed when a distress call from the mountain comes in, and Gabe has to climb again to help his old friend with the rescue call. What is unknown to both of them is that the call was a fake, and actually a group of theieves are on the top of the mountain. They are looking for suitcases that dropped out of a plane with millions of dollars in them, and they need the help of two experts to help get them back. It’s all a big scheme that will either help Gabe get past his demons, or kill them all.
9. The Eiger Sanction (1975). Join Clint Eastwood as he returns to work as an assassin. He must kill one of a group of a climbing team who are about to climb the Eiger in Switzerland. To accomplish his goal, he has to join the climbing team in the expedition. Will he assassinate his victim and achieve his purpose, or will something stop him?
10. The Mountain (1956). The plot unfolds as two brothers have to climb a mountain to get to a plane crash site. The younger brother has an ill purpose: to rob those killed in the crash. He needs his older brother’s climbing expertise to help him get to the crash site. Will the older brother help him out, or keep his omorals intact?
What are your favorite mountain climbing adventure movies?