127 Hours (2010)

Directed by: Danny Boyle
Written by: Danny Boyle/Simon Beaufoy
Based on book (and life) by: Aron Ralston

Before the awesome adventure, there were a few previews.

SOURCE CODE–Quantum Leap, The Movie! Jake Gyllenhaal stars as a military kid who keeps jumping into someone else’s body eight minutes before he dies. In those eight minutes, he has to find out who blew up the train this guy was on. Of course, he falls in love with the guy’s girlfriend (Michelle Monaghan). Moon was awesome, so I’ll definitely see this. The cast is just frosting on what should already be a pretty damn good cake.

THE LINCOLN LAWYER–Matthew McConaughey should probably stop playing lawyers. He’s done it a lot and I still don’t buy it. This time out, he’s defending Ryan Phillippe (something that also should never happen) in a murder case…but Ryan is most definitely guilty. William H Macy (sleazy long hair mode), Marisa Tomei, Josh Lucas, John Leguizamo and Bryan Cranston co-star, so there’s a great supporting cast. I just don’t have a lot of faith in the movie.

Ok. Let’s start hiking

I love to hike. If I had the time (and energy), I would do it FAR more often than I do. And, unfortunately, injuries keep me from really getting out there.

When I go hiking, I do push myself a little bit because I want to see more of the park I’m in. What I DON’T do is go into crevices that I don’t really fit into or drop 50 feet into natural pools that could have anything poking up from the floor.

Aron Ralston (James Franco), on the other hand, was a frustrated engineer who wanted to be a guide. He knew the Canyonlands National Park in Utah like the back of his hand and kept pushing himself every time he went out. This guy was no Alexander Supertramp.

The last time, though, he pushed himself a little too far and got himself trapped in a tiny canyon with his right hand pinned under a heavy rock. For 127 hours, he was trapped down there. The way he got out took balls, desperation and a pretty damn high threshold of pain.

If this movie had just been about Aron’s plight, it probably would have been pretty boring. Luckily, Danny Boyle uses it to show the story of Aron’s life (he flashes back a lot, like Aron probably really did for the entire 127 hours) and how selfish we have become as American individuals. We want to be so independent that we disconnect ourselves from each other. Aron didn’t tell ANYONE where he was going when he left. He hadn’t talked to his mother in a few weeks. He lost his girlfriend (Clemence Poesy) because he wouldn’t let her in. And now he’s stuck in this canyon because he wanted to be a loner.

When he finally screams out for help, that’s when his life changes. And that is what we all need. We need to understand our need for others. We can’t just be alone forever.

And that’s what 127 Hours is really all about. That’s what makes it a great film as opposed to an decent human interest movie.

It certainly doesn’t hurt that James Franco is a great actor who could portray these kinds of characters in his sleep. He embodies the crazed, passionate characters that he’s drawn to…partly because he IS that guy. He pushes himself with everything he does, whether it’s acting, directing, finishing school or acting in a soap opera.

He’s crazy, but kinda awesome.

This is one of those movies that will make you love your life…and your limbs. Even if you think that you can’t take the few minutes of gore, see the movie. It’s absolutely worth it.