An Odd Photo for 127 Hours

I was invited to a bloggers screening of 127 Hours, Danny Boyle's new film. As his credits include Trainspotting and Slumdog Millionaire, I had to see it, whether I blog about something like this depends on how good I think it is, this turned out to be very good but a photo of the bloggers gathering beforehand was the best I could do for an image. The film is the true story of Aron Ralston who ended up having to amputate his own arm with a blunt knife to escape being trapped, after a freak accident while canyoning in Utah.

Given that you pretty much know the story from the outset, the film must have something special to capture your attention for one and a half hours, and this certainly does. The photography, the editing, the narrative drag you into Aron's world and let you understand why he is there. The inevitable accident happens surprisingly early, Danny Boyle draws you down with him, so you understand a little of what it must be like to be there using humour, pathos, bathos and irony - a very British film. The inevitable scene is gruesomely realistic - if that worries you, this film may not be for you - and the fusion of art and reality at the end draws the film to a natural close.

I enjoyed it very much.If nothing else it is a story of soaring human determination. I wrote this without reading other's reactions, you can see other news from the film facebook site

(PS - if you do see this film, you will appreciate how difficult it was for me watching one scene NOT to shout out in the screening "That's one for the blog". You'll know which one.)