Remarkably, this film is based on Patrick Meyers' 1983 Broadway play, which won critical plaudits for its dramatic intensity. The moviegoer searches in vain for a trace of that drama.
The film, directed by Franc Roddam, nicely documents the balletic movements and strenuous effort that go into the perilous sport of alpine-style climbing. But with little involvement with the underdeveloped characters, an audience will experience scant emotional payoff for accompanying these mountaineers on their ascent of K2.
Paramount marketers face a task almost as difficult as climbing that inaccessible Pakistan mountain. Ancillary markets look equally as poor, as the film's most outstanding feature -- its visual razzle-dazzle -- will get lost on a small screen.
Michael Biehn and Matt Craven play climbing partners who are a convenient study in contrasts. Biehn's character is a you-only-live-once guy who tackles life with reckless glee. Craven provides the moderating ballast, a homebody whose only vice is an addiction to the rush of mountain climbing.
The two join a group of climbers headed for K2. Perfunctory personality conflicts keep things mildly dramatic until reaching the unromantically named Karakoram peak. (Mt. Waddington and Blackcomb Mountain in British Columbia stand in for K2.)
The actors -- including Raymond J.Barry, Patricia Charbonneau, Luca Bercovici and Hiroshi Fujioka -- gracefully combine their newly acquired mountaineering skills with their dramatic responsibilities.
Production values on a film shot under treacherous, oxygen-depriving conditions, are top of the world. Cinematographer Gabriel Beristain has almost literally validated the old cameraman's saying, "Give us a place to stand and we will photograph the world.''
K2
Paramount Pictures
A Trans Pacific Film Production in association with Miramax Films
Producers Jonathan Taplin, Marilyn Weiner, Tim Van Rellim
Executive producers Melvyn J. Estrin, Hal Weiner
Director Franc Roddam
Writers Patrick Meyers, Scott Roberts
Based on the play by Patrick Meyers
Director of photography Gabriel Beristain
Production designer Andrew Sanders
Music Chaz Jenkel
Costume designer Kathryn Morrison
Color/Dolby
Cast:
Taylor Brooks Michael Biehn
Harold Jamison Matt Craven
Phillip Claiborne Raymond J. Barry
Dallas Woolf Luca Bercovici
Jacki Metcalfe Patricia Charbonneau
Cindy Jamison Julia Nickson-Soul
Takane Shimuzu Hiroshi Fujioka
Running time -- 104 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
(c) The Hollywood Reporter...
The film, directed by Franc Roddam, nicely documents the balletic movements and strenuous effort that go into the perilous sport of alpine-style climbing. But with little involvement with the underdeveloped characters, an audience will experience scant emotional payoff for accompanying these mountaineers on their ascent of K2.
Paramount marketers face a task almost as difficult as climbing that inaccessible Pakistan mountain. Ancillary markets look equally as poor, as the film's most outstanding feature -- its visual razzle-dazzle -- will get lost on a small screen.
Michael Biehn and Matt Craven play climbing partners who are a convenient study in contrasts. Biehn's character is a you-only-live-once guy who tackles life with reckless glee. Craven provides the moderating ballast, a homebody whose only vice is an addiction to the rush of mountain climbing.
The two join a group of climbers headed for K2. Perfunctory personality conflicts keep things mildly dramatic until reaching the unromantically named Karakoram peak. (Mt. Waddington and Blackcomb Mountain in British Columbia stand in for K2.)
The actors -- including Raymond J.Barry, Patricia Charbonneau, Luca Bercovici and Hiroshi Fujioka -- gracefully combine their newly acquired mountaineering skills with their dramatic responsibilities.
Production values on a film shot under treacherous, oxygen-depriving conditions, are top of the world. Cinematographer Gabriel Beristain has almost literally validated the old cameraman's saying, "Give us a place to stand and we will photograph the world.''
K2
Paramount Pictures
A Trans Pacific Film Production in association with Miramax Films
Producers Jonathan Taplin, Marilyn Weiner, Tim Van Rellim
Executive producers Melvyn J. Estrin, Hal Weiner
Director Franc Roddam
Writers Patrick Meyers, Scott Roberts
Based on the play by Patrick Meyers
Director of photography Gabriel Beristain
Production designer Andrew Sanders
Music Chaz Jenkel
Costume designer Kathryn Morrison
Color/Dolby
Cast:
Taylor Brooks Michael Biehn
Harold Jamison Matt Craven
Phillip Claiborne Raymond J. Barry
Dallas Woolf Luca Bercovici
Jacki Metcalfe Patricia Charbonneau
Cindy Jamison Julia Nickson-Soul
Takane Shimuzu Hiroshi Fujioka
Running time -- 104 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
(c) The Hollywood Reporter...
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