Review: 127 Hours

The true story of the life defining experience of Aron Ralston based on his appropriately named memoir “Between a rock and a hard place.” is one of mental fortitude and toughness not only for Ralstom (James Franco) but also for the viewer.

This film focuses on the experiences of Aron Ralston who in 2003 went hiking in the remote Canyonlands National Park to find himself pinned hopelessly beneath a boulder with no hope of rescue and scarce rations to survive. Ralstom a resourceful, energetic and adventurous individual is left isolated with little else to do than to face his own death.

Director Danny Boyle does an unparalleled job of being able to draw a viewer into the trauma of a 5 daylong struggle against not only nature but Ralstom’s own mind. As if trapped in a canyon they, the viewer has only the briefest of reprieves from the desperate scene in front of them.

The film’s only true character is Aron Ralsto played by James Franco. He serves as the films hero, villain, joker and narrator. In a Q&A, Danny Boyle stated that “You don’t see Aron Ralston, you see James Franco going through Aron Ralston’s experience.” And Franco’s outstanding performance is definitely worth seeing.

He enters the film as an adventure junkie, drawing adrenaline from nature, which he continues to challenge whether it’s traversing a canyon, racing across treacherous terrain at daring speeds or trying to shift an immovable boulder. His ultimate battle though however is when his fortress of physical ability and mental toughness is slowly dismantled by nature as in every instance where the eventual delirium wears off or a hallucination fades; Ralstom wakes up only to his nightmare.

Through the whole film you realise that the character of Ralstom isn’t alone throughout this ordeal, he is instead joined by allies and enemies within his own mind, those of a man who has turned his back on the bustling urban crowds and humanity. He’s able to relay his ordeal to his loved ones through his video camera which acts as a portal to the civilization he has abandoned. During his time in the canyon, Ralstom’s superhuman physicality and independence is eroded away and he progresses to become a man once again, realising his reliance on those he loves and has left behind.

The cinematography throughout the film is remarkable; the connection between the camera and the subject is hauntingly in sync. Working in such confined spaces, presents its obvious challenges however directors of photography Anthony Dod Mantle and Enrique Chediak, overcome these obstacles with brilliant innovation and place you with front row seats to witness Ralstom and his plight.

The score to the movie keeps this high bar hitting spectacle in place constantly as both original music and licensed music is positioned perfectly to portray desperate, bleak and surreal situations. Boyle draws songs from the collective libraries which we all have, to tremendous affect, in particular Bill Wither’s “Lovely Day” which is applied with great irony.

A viewer’s psyche will be taxed throughout which only nurses the empathy that one has to the subject, one which evolves into a genuine sense of respect for the person that James Franco portrays and for that, the viewer is rewarded with an incredibly powerful piece of cinema.

Not everyone will be trapped in a canyon pinned by a boulder however at some point in everyone’s lives; people will be able to relate to the adversity of facing an impossible situation and 127 hours will tug on those emotions evoked from such a scenario.

This review can also be found at MyVillage