The Alpinist
The Alpinist
Starring Marc-Andre Leclerc
Directed by Peter Mortimer & Nick Rosen
"The Alpinist" is a documentary directed by veteran climbers Peter Mortimer and Nick Rosen, and focuses on young reclusive Marc-Andre Leclerc, a Canadian 23-year-old who's been free soloing in the frozen mountains for years. The concept of "free soloing" consists of climbing without the use of artificial aids or safety equipment, such as a rope. In essence, it's just you, the mountain, and minimal supplies, and obviously it's an extremely dangerous sport. Leclerc was always an eccentric child, having ADHD, and his mother nurtured that state instead of suppressing it by teaching him in the outdoors, where he grew a love for climbing. Due to his ADHD, he constantly moves from one mountain to the next, from one adventure to another, and isn't really excited to be the center of attention - so much so he disappeared from shooting the documentary for a few months while he embarked on a few solo adventures. He only returned if the directors would shoot him climbing after he finished the first climb, otherwise, to him, it's not a "free solo" trek. Despite his reclusiveness, he became a big name in different climbers' circles and allowed the presence of the mountains to shape his own spiritual identity.
Obvious parallels can be made between "The Alpinist" and the 2018 Oscar-winning documentary "Free Solo," but the only connection between the two is that it focuses on an outstanding, unique individual who embraced their shortcomings and used it to achieve greatness. Alex Honnold channeled his highly functions Autism into his rock climbing free solos, concocting an elaborate plan to scale a mountain before he approached it. Leclerc, meanwhile, used his ADHD to fearlessly scale any icy mountain in his path, without a plan. To him, the thrill is working off the cuff, finding solutions in the midst of problems, and centering his wild energy into accomplishing his goal. This is two vastly differing views on how to free solo, and while Honnold's way is more methodical and precise, Leclerc's is more sporadic and free-spirited. While Honnold views free soloing as an athletic event, Leclerc sees it as a spiritual experience, and one that he wants to experience alone.
So choosing Leclerc is probably an odd choice if you want to make a documentary featuring his accomplishments, as he's one of the rare few who doesn't do things for the limelight - he'd much rather go out in secret and scale a mountain alone without having a camera crew and fans around him. This is why he disappears from the shoot, because he felt like having other people climbing with him - even to just shoot the adventure and not assist - took away from the essence of free soloing for him, and he finally agreed to continue on if they allow him to truly free solo a climb before doing it again and filming him doing it. In a sense, it's like watching a replay of an event that occurred that you didn't see, which sort of dampens the experience. Yet in another sense, it's downright insane that Leclerc would return to another death-defying free solo climb just to be filmed doing it.
Leclerc is a force of nature, and not just when it comes to free soloing. As a fellow free soloist described in the film, Leclerc belongs in another era. He's carefree, funny, sincere, and honest, and he has this infectious glow that emulates from his very soul. He attracts the attention of other people while not seeking it, because he has this carefree attitude toward life. Be it hula hooping with a hippie from the seventies or interacting with a young Argentinian boy while he prepares to scale the seemingly impossible Torre Egger, he was a spark of energy and light wherever he went.
Yet while on the ground he was a bundle of energy, when he enters his free soloing expeditions, he becomes laser-focused on his task. While he never practices his solos and goes into every hike nearly blind (apart from checking weather conditions), he has a unique sense of methodically moving from one icy spot to the next, and the cinematography here is downright unnerving yet visually beautiful. One scene in particular finds him literally dangling from a thick icicle hanging off the side of the mountain, where you see the space between the icicle and the rocky foundation, as he dangles carefree from it, before finding a spot to hook his axe in again. That alone unnerved me, as he was putting his weight on the icicle that could've broken off at any moment, but it didn't phase him at all. It was a thrilling adventure, and was filmed with thrilling gusto.
Leclerc said that he finds the most peace when he realizes how insignificantly small he is within the grand expanse of the mountains, and that's a very different viewpoint as to what other people would consider finding the most peace. Most people would say they'd find peace with family, friends, wealth, or privilege - things that make us feel bigger than we are - but with Leclerc, he finds the most peace by being invisible. There's another stunning shot that accompanies his voiceover here, as the camera slowly pans out from Leclerc dangling from the mountain face until you can't even see him anymore. Again, kudos to the cinematography work, and extra kudos to a tag team of directors who chose to stick it through and tell the story of this unique, exceptional, one-of-a-kind individual who - without trying - forces us to question our own existence in the best ways possible.
Highlighting a truly exceptional individual who questions our own existence, "The Alpinist" focuses on the life of Marc-Andre Leclerc, a reclusive free soloist who never wanted the limelight, but used it to show us that nothing is impossible if we put our minds to it, and to find inner peace is to look within ourselves and burst through our limitations.
The Score: A+
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