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I just recently watched 127 Hours, which I thought was a great movie.

I really enjoy movies that explore the limits of human endurance, so I thought I'd share a couple I like and I recommend you do the same.

The first is a movie called Touching the Void (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Touching_the_Void_%28film%29). It's a pseudo-documentary, with all of the main people involved being interviewed on camera while actors re-enact the events. Basically, the story is that two climbers attempt a highly dangerous mountain climb. On the way back down a storm hits. As events turn out, there is a point where one of the climbers ends up hanging by a rope over a ledge. With zero visibility and no communication, the climber holding him up has to make the agonizing choice to cut the rope supporting his friend. Here's where the movie gets interesting, the guy hanging in space falls and ends up breaking his leg, but doesn't die. The rest of the movie is his brutal journey down the mountain with a broken leg.

It's horrifying stuff. There's never a question that he survives, the guy it happened to is there on screen talking about it. Fascinating, and very well done.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t65VrYZ2U9s&feature=related

The second is a documentary called The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Endurance:_Shackleton%27s_Legendary_Antarctic_Expedition). It tells the story of Ernest Shackleton's exploration to try and cross Antarctica during the early 20th century's exploration boom. The venture fails very early on when the ship gets stuck in the ice. For the next several months, Shackleton manages to keep his crew alive and non-mutiny prone. Eventually the fact that there is no out raises it's ugly head, and they all have to cross the ice to stay alive. I don't want to spoil the story for you if you're not familiar with it, but the lengths they all have to do to make it back to civilization is an amazing story. Inspiring really.

The Canyon (2009)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xibmU-VMKE

Some people say its better than 127 Hours but I have yet to see 127 Hours. I did enjoy The Canyon quite a bit though.

I saw a very similar documentary on the PBS program AMERICAN EXPERIANCE about the Shackleton expedetion-and what they endured is amazing and horrifying. And in the end,inspiring.
Oh-all this week on our local PBS staion they've been showing Ken Burns the CIVIL WAR-which is a great look at the bloodiest war in American history. The causalties at the Battle of Shiloh were higher than that of D-Day during WW 2.

  The Endurance is an amazing story. I could probably watch it over and over and not get bored by it. It's too unbelievable to be fiction. Good topic RC.