An adventurous mountain climber becomes trapped under a boulder while canyoneering alone near Moab, Utah and resorts to desperate measures in order to survive.
Director: Danny Boyle
Writers: Danny Boyle (screenplay), Simon Beaufoy (screenplay) | 1 more credit »
Stars: James Franco, Amber Tamblyn, Kate Mara
Story Plot:
Mountaineer and adventurer Aron Ralston (James Franco) drives to Utah's Canyonlands National Park for a day of hiking. On foot, he befriends hikers Kristi (Kate Mara) and Megan (Amber Tamblyn), and shows them an underground pool. After enjoying a time of swimming, Aron parts ways with the hikers, and continues his hike through a slot canyon, in Blue John Canyon. While climbing down through a narrow canyon, he accidentally slips and falls, with a boulder pinning his arm against the canyon wall. After several attempts to remove the boulder to no avail, he tries calling for help, but realizes that he is alone. He begins recording a video diary on his camera to keep morale, and uses his pocket knife to chip away parts of the boulder in order to free his trapped arm. He rations his food and water, in order to survive the ordeal.
After several hours of chipping away parts of the boulder to which he finds is futile, he attempts to move the boulder by setting up apulley system using his climbing rope, in combination with his body strength. With the boulder being too heavy, it cannot be removed. He is almost completely immobilized, but continues to record his testimonies.
Days after being trapped, he realizes that he cannot survive for long, so he attempts to use his pocket knife to break into his skin. He stabs his arm, but realizes he will not be able to cut through the bone as the blade is too blunt. With too much of pain and stress he exhausted his resources. With no water, he is forced to drink his own urine. His video logs become desperate as he feels himself dying slowly. He hallucinates about the escape, relationships, and past experiences, including a former lover (Clémence Poésy), family (Lizzy Caplan, Treat Williams, Kate Burton), and the hikers. He reflects that everything he has done has led him to this accident. Later, he sees a vision of a little boy.
Ralston realizes that by using his knowledge of torque and applying enough force to his forearm, he can break the radius and ulnabones, letting him amputate his arm in order to escape, and make it back to civilization. He uses his pocket knife to break into his skin with force, fashioning a crude tourniquet out of the insulation for his CamelBak tube, uses a carabiner to tighten it, and soon cuts off his arm. He wraps the stump of his arm to prevent loss of blood and takes a picture of the boulder that trapped him. He makes his way out of the canyon, rappels down a 65-foot rockface, using his other arm, and drinks rainwater from a small pond in the hot midday sun. Moments later, he meets a family on a day hike. The family alerts the authorities of Ralston's presence, and aUtah Highway Patrol helicopter is sent to rescue him. Ralston is saved, and taken to a hospital, where he recovers. He is fitted with a prosthesis, and continues his hobbies of climbing canyons and mountains, along with starting a family of his own.
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