127 Hours

A true story, that had only started to fade from our memory was brought back to our attention by James Franco and Danny Boyle and is now up for a couple of awards. 127 Hours tells the story of Aron Ralston, a 27-year old climber, who trapped his right arm between a boulder and the wall of a small slot canyon in the vast Arizona desert. While your choice to go to this movie or to stay away may be based on the climax, you would be foolish to judge this movie on that scene alone.

When this story first emerged I doubt anyone thought to themselves, wow i can't wait for them to make a movie out of this. It's about a guy who is trapped in one spot for five days. How does one even make an interesting movie about that. Luckily for the audience Danny Boyle was brought into the fold, and he loves to use interesting landscapes, different camera angles, and many flashbacks.

It all starts with the script. James Franco's monologues seem so genuine, I have never been in a situation that I felt my life was in danger like Ralston, but I still find myself thinking and talking to myself in the same way as the protagonist. It speaks to the writers on just how realistic this all feels. His regrets, his joys, the moments in his life he kept reliving as he was put through hell, are all things anyone can relate to which makes the fear much more intense.

James Franco does a great job with the character. He leaves little doubt as to why he was nominated for an academy award. Franco uses his charm and enthusiasm to embody the climbers love of life and all things nature. But within the same film he is able to slow himself down and take a look inward as the character understands his own hubris and choices led him to this moment and this situation. It is a very sobering fact to realize that everything you have done has led you to the problems that face you. With nothing but time and his thoughts, Franco is really able to delve into the character's psyche and examine himself.

Even though it is the moment everyone in the theater is waiting the climax of the film takes up a relatively small amount of screen time. There have been much gorier scenes in movies past, what makes the scene is the knowledge that it actually happened. Even when screening this movie so late after its initial debut people were still wincing during the scene where he is breaking his own arm. While there are rumors of people passing out during the initial screenings, the scene is handled well. It does not look to overboard with the violence but really it is the way the scene is put together that makes you flex your own arm to make sure you still have the use of it.

The movie isn't just about being physically stuck, it's a psychological study of what one must do when put in such a situation. So many movies about people being trapped in get it wrong when they focus on the physical conditions, when really the story is about whether you have the will to do all that is necessary to continue living life. That is a challenging inward examination tied in with some nerve-cutting intensity. This movie is tough to watch, but certainly worth a look. A-