TOUCHING THE VOID

Based on the book by Joe Simpson
Directed by Kevin Macdonald

Premiere date: September 5, 2003 (Toronto Film Festival)
R for language.

In 1985, Joe Simpson and Simon Yates set out to climb the 21,000 feet Siula Grande mountain in the Peruvian Andes - the only mountain in the Peruvian range that hadn't yet been conquered. They were young, fit, skilled climbers and were confident that they would succeed where others would fail. Their story has become part of mountaineering legend.
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Simpson and Yates' method of climbing was Alpine Style - moving quickly up a mountain with the barest of supplies and no series of base camps. This approach left absolutely no room for error. Any problem they might encounter along the way would have extremely grave consequences.
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Following a successful three and a half day ascent, disaster struck. Simpson fell and broke several bones in his right leg. His lower leg pushed through his knee joint, crippling him. At that altitude and in those remote conditions, this was effectively a death sentence. With no food or water, severe dehydration and the ugly spectre of hypothermia before them, the climbers knew they had to get off the mountain - and fast. Yates was determined to find a way to get his friend home.