Everest (1998 film)

1998 American documentary film by Greg MacGillivray and David Breashears

Everest

DVD cover

Directed by| Greg MacGillivray,
David Breashears
Written by| Tim Cahill,
Stephen Judson
Produced by| Stephen Judson,
Alec Lorimore,
Greg MacGillivray
Starring|

* Beck Weathers
* Jamling Tenzing Norgay
* Araceli Segarra
* Ed Viesturs
* Paula Viesturs
* Sumiyo Tsuzuki

Narrated by| Liam Neeson
Cinematography| David Breashears
Edited by| Stephen Judson
Music by| Steve Wood,
Daniel May,
George Harrison (songs)
Distributed by| MacGillivray Freeman Films (theatrical)
Miramax (home video)

Release date

* March 6, 1998 (1998-03-06)

Running time

| 45 minutes
Country| United States
Language| English
Box office| $128 million[1]

Everest is a 70mm American documentary film, from MacGillivray Freeman Films, about the struggles involved in climbing Mount Everest, the highest mountain peak on Earth, located in the Himalayan region of Nepal and Tibet. It was released to IMAX theaters in March 1998 and became the highest-grossing film made in the IMAX format.

## Production

[edit]

The 45-minute documentary is narrated by Irish actor Liam Neeson and was filmed entirely in IMAX. It includes a description of the training required in order to climb the 29,029 feet to the summit of Mount Everest and the challenges faced during the ascent, such as avalanches, blizzards, and oxygen deprivation.[2] The film centers on a team led by Ed Viesturs and Everest director David Breashears;[2] among their number are Spanish climber Araceli Segarra, and Jamling Tenzing Norgay, son of the pioneering Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay.[3]

Everest was in production at the mountain during the 1996 Mount Everest disaster, in which another group of climbers became trapped by a blizzard near the summit. The film includes footage of these events,[4] as the IMAX team assist Beck Weathers and other survivors.[2] Producer and co-director Greg MacGillivray later said that while editing the documentary for release, he and Breashears decided to focus more on the tragedy, due to the popularity of Jon Krakauer's book about the 1996 disaster, Into Thin Air (1997). MacGillivray said "Ten million people have read that book, so we had to address the issue. And I think it strengthened the film."[5]

## Reception

[edit]

Everest premiered at Boston's Museum of Science on March 4, 1998 before going on general release in IMAX cinemas across the United States two days later.[6] According to an article published late that month in the Los Angeles Times, it attracted mainly favorable reviews.[7] The film subsequently opened in Australia on March 19 and Switzerland on March 20, with other European premieres, including at the London Trocadero, following during April and May.[8]

Everest grossed $128 million worldwide during its theatrical run – a figure that remains the highest gross for an IMAX documentary.[2] With domestic takings of $87,178,599,[9] it is the second highest-grossing film (documentary or otherwise) to never reach the top ten in the weekly North American box office charts,[10] and also the second highest-grossing film never to have made the weekly top five.[11]

## DVD and soundtrack album

[edit]

The DVD was released by Miramax on December 12, 1999. It includes a "Making of" featurette, an extended interview with Beck Weathers, deleted scenes, climber video journals, and a 3D map of Mount Everest.

The soundtrack features songs by George Harrison,[4] which composers Steve Wood and Daniel May reinterpreted in the Tibetan folk style as part of their film score.[12] The Everest soundtrack album was released by Ark 21 Records,[13] on March 10, 1998.[14] The music was performed by the Northwest Sinfonia, with May credited as conductor.[13]

The Harrison songs include "All Things Must Pass", "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)", "Here Comes the Sun", "This Is Love" and "Life Itself". Harrison agreed to their use in the film on the understanding that his name would not be used for publicity.[8] According to author Elliot Huntley, MacGillivray chose Harrison's music for its "spiritual quality" and "his ties to eastern religion".[15]

## Quotes

[edit]

> Narrator: Just above the high camp, a climber named Beck Weathers had been out in the storm for over 22 hours. He had been left for dead by other climbers, and then, nearly blind, his hands literally frozen solid, Beck stood up, left his pack, and desperately tried to walk.

> Weathers: All I knew was that as long as my legs would run and I could stand up, I was gonna move toward that camp, and if I fell down, I was gonna get up. And if I fell down again, I was gonna get up. And I was gonna keep movin' till I either hit that camp, or walked off the face of that mountain.

> Paula Viesturs: The difference between me and Ed is, when we go for a five-hour bike ride, I call it a workout … He calls it a warm-up.

## Cast

[edit]

* Liam Neeson as narrator (voice)
* Beck Weathers as himself
* Jamling Tenzing Norgay, son of famed Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, as himself
* Araceli Segarra as herself
* Ed Viesturs as himself
* Paula Viesturs as herself
* Sumiyo Tsuzuki as herself

## See also

[edit]

* Everest (2015), a biographical film about the same events
* The Alps (2007), IMAX documentary film about climbing the north face of the Eiger, in the Bernese Alps
* Into Thin Air (1997), book featuring a personal account
* The Climb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest (1997), book featuring a personal account
* List of highest-grossing documentary films

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Everest (1998)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved October 1, 2017.
2. ^ a b c d Niemi, Robert James (2013). Inspired by True Events: An Illustrated Guide to More Than 500 History-Based Films (2nd ed.). Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO. p. 588\. ISBN 978-1-6106-9198-7.
3. ^ Van Gelder, Lawrence (March 6, 1998). "Movie Review – Everest IMAX (1998)". The New York Times. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
4. ^ a b Baumgarten, Marjorie (October 14, 2014). "Everest". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved November 19, 2014.
5. ^ Matzer, Marla (March 28, 1998). "'Everest' Lifts Imax to Dramatic New Peaks". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 21, 2014. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
6. ^ Badman, Keith (2001). The Beatles Diary Volume 2: After the Break-Up 1970–2001. London: Omnibus Press. p. 588\. ISBN 978-0-7119-8307-6.
7. ^ Matzer, Marla (March 28, 1998). "'Everest' Lifts Imax to Dramatic New Peaks [cont.]". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 21, 2014. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
8. ^ a b Badman, Keith (2001). The Beatles Diary Volume 2: After the Break-Up 1970–2001. London: Omnibus Press. pp. 588–89\. ISBN 978-0-7119-8307-6.
9. ^ "All-Time Top Grossing IMAX Movies". The Numbers. Archived from the original on November 29, 2014. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
10. ^ "Top Grossing Movies That Never Hit #1, the Top 5 or Top 10: Never in the Top 10". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
11. ^ "Top Grossing Movies That Never Hit #1, the Top 5 or Top 10: Never in the Top 5". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
12. ^ Huntley, Elliot J. (2006). Mystical One: George Harrison – After the Break-up of the Beatles. Toronto, ON: Guernica Editions. pp. 278–79\. ISBN 978-1-55071-197-4.
13. ^ a b Koran, David A. (January 27, 2000). "Everest Soundtrack (1998)". Soundtrack.Net. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
14. ^ Batdorf, Rodney. "Original Soundtrack Everest". AllMusic. Retrieved November 19, 2014.
15. ^ Huntley, Elliot J. (2006). Mystical One: George Harrison – After the Break-up of the Beatles. Toronto, ON: Guernica Editions. p. 279\. ISBN 978-1-55071-197-4.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website
* Everest at IMDb
* Everest at Rotten Tomatoes

* v
* t
* e

Mount Everest

Topography
and landmarks|

* Base Camp
* Geneva Spur
* Hillary Step
* Hornbein Couloir
* Kangshung Face (East Face)
* Kangshung Glacier
* Khumbu Glacier
* Khumbu Icefall
* Lhakpa La
* Lho La
* North Col
* North Face
* Norton Couloir
* Rongbuk Glacier
* South Col
* South Summit
* Three Pinnacles
* Three Steps
* "Green Boots cave"
* Western Cwm

Expeditions|

* 1921 British reconnaissance
* 1922 British
* 1924 British (Affair of the Dancing Lamas)
* 1933 British aerial reconnaissance
* 1933 British
* 1935 British
* 1936 British
* 1938 British
* 1950–52 British–Swiss–US reconnaissance
* 1951 British
* 1952 Swiss
* 1953 British
* 1960 Chinese
* 1963 American
* 1975 British SW Face
* 1976 British–Nepalese SW Face
* 1979 Yugoslav West Ridge
* 1996 Indo-Tibetan Border Police
* 2006 Philippine
* 2007 Altitude Everest expedition
* Earth Day 20 International Peace Climb
* Mallory and Irvine Research Expedition

Notable fatalities|

* Francys Arsentiev (Sleeping Beauty)
* Peter Boardman
* Green Boots
* Sandy Irvine
* George Mallory
* Hannelore Schmatz
* David Sharp
* Joe Tasker

Committees|

* Joint Himalayan Committee
* Mount Everest Committee

In media|

* Beyond the Edge
* The Climb (book)
* The Climb (2007 film)
* The Epic of Everest
* Everest (1998 film)
* Everest (2015 film)
* Everest (Indian TV series)
* Everest '82
* Everest: Beyond the Limit
* EverestMax
* Expedition Everest (roller coaster)
* Into Thin Air
* The Man Who Skied Down Everest
* Mount Everest webcam
* Paths of Glory
* Peak
* The Conquest of Everest
* The Wildest Dream
* Wings Over Everest

Years|

* 1970 disaster
* 1974 avalanche
* 1988 disaster
* 1996 disaster
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014 avalanche
* 2015 avalanches
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018

Mount Everest massif|

* Khumbutse
* Lhotse
* Lingtren
* Nuptse
* Pumori

Records|

* Times to the summit
* 20th-century summiters

Mountain guides|

* List of Mount Everest guides
* Sherpas

* v
* t
* e

Films directed by Greg MacGillivray

* Five Summer Stories (1972)
* To Fly! (1976)
* Speed (1984)
* The Discoverers (1993)
* The Living Sea (1995)
* Everest (1998)
* Dolphins (2000)
* Adventures in Wild California (2000)
* Coral Reef Adventure (2003)
* Hurricane on the Bayou (2006)
* Grand Canyon Adventure: River at Risk (2008)
* Hollywood Don't Surf! (2011)
* To the Arctic 3D (2012)
* Journey to the South Pacific (2013)
* Dream Big: Engineering Our World (2017)

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