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16 Feb 2011

127 Hours

Real life Saw movie is a showcase of Oscar calibre acting by James Franco. 

Rating: NC16 (Gory Scene and Coarse Language)

Director: Danny Boyle

Screenplay: Danny Boyle, Simon Beaufoy; based on Between a Rock and a Hard Place by Aron Ralston

Cast: James Franco, Amber Tamblyn, Kate Mara, Clemence Poesy

Release: 17 February 2011

If you bought a ticket to 127 Hours, it’s because you know exactly what happens and how the film will end. Danny Boyle’s latest film is as close to a documentary you can get, an adaptation of Aron Ralston’s recollection in his book, of a hike gone wrong in the Utah canyon and how the adventurer escaped a certain death by sawing off his right arm with a blunt made-in-China multitool knife.

In other words, you’re watching “real life Saw”, you’re willing to tolerate staring at the same actor stuck in the pretty much same position for most of its 90 minutes of runtime, framed by a set of limited camera angles. You’re watching “real life Ice Age”, where the protagonist struggles comically at times to engineer his way out of his problem. Most of all, you want to see him saw off his arm in the end – inch by inch.

Happily, it turns out that in waiting between the prologue and the coda, you will be treated to fantasy sequences and flashbacks that spice up the main story. These sequences showcase Danny Boyle’s kinetic, MTV-ish cinematography and Simon Beaufoy’s intricate and thoughtful screenplay, while James Franco’s ability to act his guts out in the main story.

Despite its gruesome topic and slow buildup, 127 Hours is a tribute to the spirit of adventure, the endurance of the human spirit. While futile, Franco’s efforts to escape the trap are as much an exemplar of the creativity of the human mind.

While Danny Boyle isn’t the best director to prepare a film audience to feel the pain and gore at the end of 90 minutes (my money is still on Darren Aronofsky), he does succeed in turning what would have been a telemovie into a visually interesting feature film.

Reader's Comments

1. 2011-02-18 05:35  
Nothing interesting or new. A typical burger munching yank does something stupid and gets trapped, does something equally stupid to get out... and we are supposed to care? By the end of the movie you just wish he would die and be quite.
2. 2011-02-18 12:01  
agreed, that's a two thumbs down from me!!
3. 2011-02-19 05:22  
Wow. I absolutely disagree. It was probably one of the most intense movie I've ever watched.

James Franco did a fantastic job conveying emotions and pain.

I think only when you get so absorbed in the movie and reflect on one's own life, u'll truly appreciate the reality of Life and appreciating every moment :)

Just my 2cents and opinion :)
4. 2011-04-05 19:24  
Im with JHayashi on this one. Vernon's review summed up the problem with this movie in his first two paragraphs. And yet .. and yet..

At the begining, I felt the adrenaline rush that most (extreme?) adventurers experience, I then recognised the self-confidence of "I can get out of this one', then the despair as he ran out of water. I especially liked the rescue scenes - all desert dust, shock, and the stunned compassion of his rescuers.

Danny Boyle HAS to be recognised for taking a well-known real-life story and giving us a thoroughly enjoyable, exuberant, at times emotional ride. One of the movies of the year for me.
5. 2011-04-06 10:05  
I see this is meant to be a triumphant truth telling epic but, don't mistake this for any negavtivity, Ralston's afterlife here is just as predicatable and boring to watch. If there is any consolation in moral speaking for any young dude out there, hey, it ain't cool venture around all solo man.

Still love Franco.
Comment #6 was deleted by an administrator on 2011-04-11 13:05

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