Just watched Free Solo (trailer here) at my local theater and came away moved and awestruck by the experience. This is a very well made documentary about a singular achievement. It works on many levels — as a character study that tries to understand his motivations, as a profile of a man pursuing an intensely selfish goal, as an illuminating look into the nature of rock climbing (ruthless focus, preparation and problem solving), and as a thrilling, squirm-inducing glimpse into the life and death decision of every single movement he makes.
I was particularly fascinated by Alex’s methodical approach, that he is not “nuts” or a “thrill seeker” (as I previously assumed), but a methodical problem solver, that each climb is more like a confounding math problem than a trophy hunt. He climbs without ropes because it demands perfection — in mind and body — because anything less than perfect means death. Seeing it on the big screen is a must to fully experience this achievement.
/sb
