ThiefHott Too much of everything

Solemplex To me, this movie is perfection.

Catangro After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

Rexanne It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

rob The movie is well made with great photography and narration. However, the subject of the film takes himself way too seriously. His actual feat of skiing "down Everest" is massively exaggerated. From what I could tell, he appears to be skiing down about half of the Lhotse face. The narrator claims that he is skiing from a level where the 1952 Swiss expedition reached. Not true. They reached 28,500 feet, just short of the Hillary step. Miuri starts from somewhere below the South Col (26,000 feet) with the aid of a parachute too slow him down. He tries to hold a wedge shape (an amateur move to control speed) then sits down on a traverse at about 24,000 feet and subsequently slides/bounces on his butt another 500 to 1,000 feet. I figure he skied from about 25,500 to 23,000 feet.This is presented as a successful and amazing run. Miuri states "I cant believe I'm alive" and "why have I been allowed to survive?", blah blah blah...etc. I'd like to know how the 800 porters, sherpas, other climbers, and families of the 6 dead men feel about this. I'm surprised the Japanese expedition didn't try to put some climbers on the summit while they were there. Apparently, it was all about Miuri and his lame ski run.

dflowerz I first saw this beautifully filmed documentary many years ago and never forgot it. The most interesting parts for me were the trek to base camp and traversing the ice fall. Many of the shots in the movie offered unique perspectives that really showcased the scale and grandeur of the region. I felt that sometimes the thoughts of Miura were overly philosophical and romantic, but what I was hearing was a translation from Japanese to English, so final conclusions are not possible without understanding Japanese. The actual skiing down Everest sequence was short but dramatic. I think that skiers could empathize more with the difficulties of trying to stay in control on such hard and bumpy ice! Crazy stuff! One reviewer had noted that Miura had died shortly afterward but this is not the case. Apparently he became the oldest person to summit Everest when he did it at age 75 in 2008. Quite a man! All these years later, The Man Who Skied Down Everest is as much about climbing Everest in 1970 as about actually skiing down Everest.

jdavis68-1 This film has a two hour build-up involving the thoughts and preparations of a Japanese skier who wants to ski Everest, which culminates in an anti-climatic ski scene that lasts about 30 seconds. This is not a spoiler because this movie spoils itself. There was about 15 seconds of skiing and 15 seconds of sliding down the mountain.There was a lot of gratuitous philosophy by this Japanese guy and it was especially galling when six Sherpas who were hauling his equipment died in a snowfall and the skier opined that it was worth it because you have to take risks in life to achieve great things or something like that.There is some good photography of Everest and the way to Everest through Tibet. This film won an Academy Award for documentary in 1975.

Chukar This film is a documentary. It was filmed 30 years ago when things in the Everest region were quite a bit different than they are today. I have had this film for some time on VHS, and If it were to come out on DVD I would buy it if I could find it. This film is very well done, but you have to be someone who can appreciate it. Its perspective is that of a Japanese, and the film represents that culture and the Japanese outlook. It shows its age more than a bit, and Miura and company hike from Katmandu to Everest Basecamp, which is seldom done anymore. But that is a good point, as it has some beautiful shots of the walk in to Everest, and relationships with the people that inhabit the areas. Nowadays, people more often fly into an airstrip that is a few hours walk to Namche Bazzar, which is the last real town of any size before you reach Everest Basecamp.The actual skiing incident, or should I say "accident," that gives the picture its title is not nearly as important, or as impressive, as the rest of the film. They could have almost talked about it rather than show it. The beauty of the film is in its cinematography and its Oriental viewpoint. There is some death in the film as there is a major accident in the Kumbu Icefall that takes the life of several Sherpas.The film is different from any other climbing film I have, and I have a great many; and I take it out and watch it at least once a year. It presents you a picture of a time and place that is long past. Miura, himself, was killed not long after his Everest adventure, doing much the same thing. I am not absolutely sure, but I believe he was attempting to ski down Denali.If you enjoy Japanese or Oriental culture, you should enjoy the film. For me the film was never dull, except for the mentioned ski accident. I love the mountains and wilderness. Perhaps my love for wild places gives me too much of a fondness for a film like this. I can only say that it is one of my favorites.Chuk'r