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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Year:	2010
Country of origin:	USA / UK
Director:	Danny Boyle
Genre:	Real life peril
Starring:	James Franco
Rating:	4/5
IMDB link:	http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1542344/
Tagline:	Every Second Counts
Favourite line:	"Oooops."

Following up the Oscar grabbing success of Slumdog Millionaire was always going to be a big ask so, sensibly, Danny Boyle here opted to make a movie that couldn't possibly be more different.
Based on the true story of one man's remarkable stupidity and bravery, this is almost a single actor performance, and a striking one it is too from James 'Son of Green Goblin' Franco.

The plot:
Franco plays Aron Ralston, an adrenaline junkie with a real passion for canyoning. Telling no-one, he ventures to a remote part of Utah to attempt to conquer one of its most challenging canyons, but has what can only be described as a serious mishap along the way. Plunging into the canyon, his arm becomes trapped in place by a shifted boulder, impossible to free.
With limited food, a water supply rapidly running out and only one arm in use, we follow his struggled over the next five and a bit days.

Dramatically similar to the fictional Buried, this is remarkable in that it is based entirely on a true story.
Boyle manages to keep the interest surprisingly well, given the close confines and lack of real development, Franco's facial acting alone engaging and diverting.
Whilst one scene in particular is grabbing all of the headlines - the arm hack - there is much more to this than mere build up to a moment of gruel.
With a sumptuous score and phenomenally beautiful cinematography from Enrique Chediak and Anthony Dod Mantle, this is a very good film indeed.