Trailer Trash (Permanently Left-Handed Edition)

Here is a film which could be one of the most oppressively powerful of the year. It comes from director Danny Boyle, who won it all with Slumdog Millionaire in 2008. First the trailer, then some context:



So James Franco plays Aron Ralston, a real-life mountain climber who ends up trapped under a rock in Utah. The film will depict his fight for survival, along with flashbacks to various points throughout his life. The experience will finally come to a head when Ralston is forced to cut off his right arm.

Given Boyle's track record (Trainspotting,28 Days Later, the aforementioned Slumdog) he will not subdue the intensity, and it's likely you will feel every moment that Franco is trapped, and eventually when he cuts off his arm... well, it likely won't be pleasant. However, I'd imagine that's the intended effect.

Boyle describes the film as "an action movie with a guy who can't move". That certainly would present an exhilarating challenge for any filmmaker, the basic premise being: "generate excitement without motion." If anyone could pull it off it's Doyle.

Early reviews have been positive, and more feedback is likely to come after its screening at the Toronto International Film Festival which is currently underway. There are three reviews currently on Rotten Tomatoes, all positive. However, one of them comes from Pete Hammond, who is the happy-go-lucky version of Armond White. By that I mean he always gives positive reviews. To everything. That being said I have heard one mixed opinion from A.V. Club writer Noel Murray, who gives it a 'B-' and says the following:

Aside from the exhilarating opening (where Franco bounds joyously through the desert with two fellow tourists) and the gruesome climax (where he takes the necessary steps to extricate himself from his predicament), 127 Hours isn’t as exciting as it’s pretending to be. Boyle employs a lot of visual gimmickry to indicate the passing of time, the depletion of Franco’s resources, what’s running through his head, whatnot. But it’s all in service of a pat lesson about how much people need people. I liked Franco and the ending enough that I didn’t feel as irritated by 127 Hours as I did by Slumdog Millionaire. But like that Oscar-winner, 127 Hours often seems too concerned with keeping the audience happily distracted while it’s showing us people in misery.

For the record, I really enjoyed Slumdog Millionaire, though I understand his complaints about it. It is not perfect, and I think it is ever-so-slightly overrated, but I'd give it 3.5 stars out of 4. I know people that would give it 10 stars out of 4. Murray appears to have similar reservations to all of Boyle's films, so I don't think his early review will represent the majority opinion.

127 Hours will open on Novemeber 5th, so we can all enjoy the arm-chopping action on the big screen. There are reports that during its run at the Telluride Film Festival there were two audience members who were removed due to 1) lightheadedness and 2) a panic attack. Bring the kids.