No doubt the mountain climbing documentary “To the Limit,” opening today for a week run at Neighborhood Flix, is on the REI crowd’s radar.
After all, the subjects, Bavarian brothers Thomas and Alexander Huber, are two of the world’s best-known climbers.
Yet German director Pepe Danquart’s dizzying, meditative documentary has reach beyond those in the know.
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Have no clue what a “baley” is or what exactly Patagonia Traverse means? No matter.
We might have said “fear not.” But fear and risk are at the thumping heart of this movie that logs serious frequent-flier miles between Yosemite, Germany and Patagonia.
“To the Limit” opens with grandeur, and cinematographer Wolfgang Thaler’s visions prove reason enough to climb into a stadium theater seat.
Yosemite Valley’s sky, meadow and mountains beckon and humble. Beneath these images, the brothers are talking about the record for speed climbing “The Nose” of El Capitan, a spectacular granite monolith. While it generally takes three to five days to climb, the record was 2 hours, 48 minutes at the time of the Hubers’ first attempt in fall 2005.
They talk (much of the movie is subtitled), and the camera floats over the grained and veined ledge approaching the edge of the 3,000-foot drop.
Visually lyrical, “To the Limit” avoids the more aggravating tics of adventure films. Gone are the breathless musical riffs that often accompany the feats of extreme athletes. Their ambitions are no less astounding for the music’s absence. Danquart, his camera crew and editor Mona Bräuer deliver the wild in long shots but also via shots of intimate human engagement with it. Bruised and taped hands, strained muscles and scrambling feet figure into the film’s powerful aesthetic.
“To the Limit” forgoes narration, relying instead on interviews or captured conversations for themes.
“Believe it or not, there are people in this world who like to climb on these rocks,” a park ranger tells a tour group as they look up at El Capitan.
Theory and context come in snatches from the brothers. They are also provided by elite free-climber Dean S. Potter and a wild-haired, 30-year denizen of the park who goes by the name Chongo. “It all depends on how richly you want to enhance your living experience,” he says while teetering on a low-slung tightrope. “To make it rich, you have to put in the element of risk.”
Danquart tempers the tug of inevitable victory that gurgles beneath many sports docs. The ascents covered in “To The Limit” (in Yosemite and Patagonia) face real physical obstacles that may rebuff attempts.
Initially, something in the brother’s rapport, especially as they tackle “The Nose” for the first time, might lead you to romanticize their kinship.
Rationalist Alexander is the younger by two years. Thomas appears looser and emotional. But this easy dichotomy comes with wrinkles that teach viewers about sibling rivalry, competition and cooperation.
More often than not, less delivers more here. The director will frustrate some by not identifying Potter and Chongo except in the credits. And plenty of questions about the Hubers are left hanging. For instance, we know Thomas has children. What must his life beyond the climbs be like? We never learn that Alexander is a physicist.
There could be more, but what is here is beautifully gripping.
“To the Limit”
Not Rated 1 hour, 35 minutes. Written and directed by Pepe Danquart; photography by Wolfgang Thaler; starring Thomas and Alexander Huber, Dean S. Potter and Chongo. In German with English subtitles and English. Opens today at Neighborhood Flix.
