127 Hours | Review
Coming off from his success with ‘Slumdog Millionaire‘, director Danny Boyle brings us another brilliantly-made film featuring a man’s will to survive in a seemingly inescapable situation. This man, Aron Ralston, becomes trapped after his right arm gets stuck between a boulder and a canyon wall. No one knows where he is because Aron never told anyone where he was going. Trapped, with barely any food and a minimal amount of water, the next 127 hours of Aron’s life is emotionally and inspirationally showcased in this film.
Aron Ralston is portrayed by James Franco (‘Spider-Man’ & ‘Milk’), and he does a hell-of-a-job doing so. Franco is simply terrific in the film, effectively portraying an array of emotion throughout the film. At the beginning of the film Aron is a fast-paced and impatient guy who loves to hike, to mountain-climb, and the outdoors in general. And then, in the boulder incident, Aaron becomes a frustrated and frightened individual worried for his life. Then he becomes calm and level-headed, slowly trying to pave his way out of the predicament. And then by the end of the film, Aaron becomes a man who views his life differently, apologizing for all his mistakes. James Franco balances all of these different emotions excellently.
Danny Boyle’s directing style in ‘127 Hours’ is, yet again, a visual delight. The film features a lot of interesting and energized multi-split screens, great camera angles, as well as shots of the beautiful landscape and scenery of the Utah canyons. This gorgeous cinematography is done by Enrique Chediak and ‘Slumdog Millionaire’s’ Anthony Dod Mantle. The soundtrack to the film, composed by A.R. Rahman (‘Slumdog Millionaire’), is just as amazing and complements the film well. ‘If I Rise’, the film’s main theme track, is a calm and soothing track beautifully performed by Dido, and is implemented wonderfully at the climax of the film. ‘127 Hours’ is smartly-written by director Danny Boyle as well as Simon Beaufoy (‘Slumdog Millionaire’).
What’s interesting is that ‘127 Hours’ has a slightly similar premise as ‘Buried‘, for both films feature a claustrophobic premise, though ‘Buried’ more so than ‘127 Hours’. This film is different and more entertaining, however, because it also features flashbacks and actions and events that take place away from the crevasse where Aron is trapped in. Though the film is already dramatic and emotional, it could have definitely benefited from more flashbacks and more meaningful moments. This small fact doesn’t take away from the film’s dramatic impact, though.
The final act of the film includes the big amputation scene. Many reviews have already mentioned this fact, and there have been reports of audience members fainting and suffering from panic attacks from the effectiveness of the amputation scene. This infamous scene really is that graphic, and it’s amazing. This fact about the film isn’t really a spoiler, for the film is based on the true story of Aron Ralston, who wrote the book based on his experience, titled ‘Between a Rock and a Hard Place.’ And if the film is based on a real-life experience, the main character had to have survived the incident somehow. Anyway, back to the amputation scene. It’s spine-tingling and gut-wrenching. It truly is. The scene is hard to watch, and just as hard to listen to. The cracking and screeching sound effects add to the discomfort. The effectiveness of the scene is supported by the fact that medical professionals aided in making it accurate. The amputation scene was just perfectly handled, and the fact that it was all filmed in one shot makes it even more remarkable.
‘127 Hours’ is a wonderful film with a team of strong filmmakers and actors – all just as strong as the boulder featured in the film. Danny Boyle has done it again. Though the film isn’t as great as Boyle’s previous film, ‘Slumdog Millionaire’, it’s still amazing and one of the best films of 2010.