Free Solo

This documentary's final 20 minutes capture a truly monumental moment in human achievement, but it's not particularly outstanding or revealing in depicting Honnold's day-to-day life. He's a problematic subject: He's distant and unemotional and perhaps even a little arrogant, and Free Solo has very little idea how to really explore these human factors. It tries to capture ordinary life moments, but the camera setups often draw too much attention to themselves. The movie also eavesdrops on Alex and Sanni as she patiently tries to come to grips with his laid-back attitude about dying, but it doesn't really seem to understand Sanni's side of things. Free Solo seems more focused on hero-worshipping Alex, with his warrior's way of life.

Marco Beltrami's score likewise tries to add some emotional pull to the film's early sequences but never quite works, although the suspenseful music during the last act is outstanding. Directed by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin (a climber himself), Free Solo is, ultimately, a movie that knows mountain climbing. The filmmakers clearly love dropping all of the insider terms for various handholds and footholds, and other experienced climbers are interviewed, as are professional climbing camera operators and professional climbing journalists. All these little details add up to an intensely gripping finale that's guaranteed to make palms sweat -- and makes the whole venture worthwhile.