Free Solo (2018)
I wasn't aware of the full details to know the outcome, though I did know it was about free solo climbing generally and El Capitan specifically. Alex Hannold is the center of the documentary as one of the most notable free solo climbers and he had his mind set on becoming the first to scale El Capitan without ropes as a safety. I had the general sense that this film wasn't going to end in tragedy because I didn't take it for a snuff film, but it definitely does a great job of making you doubt that assumption. Free solo climbing is, after all, a pursuit that more often than not catches up with its participants at some point as one section of the film details. We also see various moments in Alex's preparations...points on the climb where he falls in roped climbs or otherwise seems to struggle. This all builds anxiety that ties into the discussion from those around Alex about the ethics of even attempting such a dangerous thing, and of those recording it. Especially in expansive IMAX format as I saw it, all this builds to an epically crafted attempt displaying a skill that really is awe-inspiring, even as it seems dubious.
While arguably I'd take a "take whatever dumb risks you want" approach to single men, I tend to have an empathic lacuna where the men have family responsibilities. At that point I become outright hostile to risk takers at even far less extreme risks than this one. As someone who longs to have a family, to see people who have one put it at risk over something functionally meaningless gets to me. Alex does not have a kid but the film focuses a lot on a developing relationship with Stephanie McCandless. That she shares a last name with someone else whose grand ambitions relating to nature ended in tragedy was not lost on me. There are moments where you see where Alex could be appealing but there are many that weigh against that. In response to the death of another free solo climber, he callously says of his widow "she knew what to expect," suggesting Stephanie should be perfectly ready to deal with his death. But while I might chide him, I too judge her a bit along those lines. Here's a guy who basically tells you to your face that he loves his climbing more than he loves you. I know jealousy is an ugly emotion, but I think I'd want to keep myself clear of that set-up for emotional disaster.
Anyway, efficient storytelling and grand visualization makes this a real gem of a documentary. I still probably favor Minding The Gap for the Oscar though.
Miss Bala
Groups like ISIS and Mexican drug cartels are real concerns. They cause a lot of misery. Yet to the degree what we see in mainstream cinema representing Arabic and Latinx characters are terrorists and drug gangs, that creates some false impressions that fuel right-wing fever dreams. This is most clearly on display in apparently Sicario 2 directly contributing to unsupported stories that President Trump cites as fact. This film takes its major structure from the 2011 Mexican film of the same name. I enjoyed some aspects of that film but found it a bit hard to get into emotionally because the lead pretty much played the whole thing in a state of shock. That may be very accurate, but it isn't as good of a movie. Here, abetted by Gina Rodriguez' charisma, you get a wishful thinking adaptation that gives Gloria a lot more personal agency, which gives us a bit more to grasp onto as an audience. With a number of solid supporting performances as well, this is certainly entertaining but not entirely free from the concerns I mentioned at the start. P.S. A wall wouldn't have helped.
