"I was an eagle, and I flew down, and I was a fish swimming."
Looking at the world of climbing video, it is clear that the trend is towards the Big Up style of video. We see big names in amazing locales, the latest test-pieces filmed using high-tech equipment, and a generally professional polish put on the whole thing. Yet often we are left wondering in the end about what it is exactly that is being captured. Yes there is a big show and we are left amazed but not much else.
A gorgeous panning shot across the rise of land at Cuisinere Franchard that holds Karma leads seamlessly into Ty leaping onto the starting holds. As he completes the problem, a frozen image of Ty remains at the top while another Ty runs back down to the base. This kind of camera work could go all wrong, seem pretentious and “arty” but here it just works. Ty comments on the problem while the boulder just looms there in the background like a kind of sculpture, framed by three pines.
You might say that it's inevitable that Fontainebleau would shape the film and to a certain extent I would agree. However this emphasis on environment emerges time and again, too often to be merely coincidence. It is a trait I noticed also in Keith's other films, a tendency to seek out subtle, understated visual environments that frame both climber and problem in the realm of the natural world in all its mystery and complexity. By way of contrast, one might refer to the old-school classic, The Real Thing, with Ben Moon and Jerry Moffat, which often literally rides roughshod over the same terrain. I wonder if Ben is performing an act of expiation by sponsoring Keith's efforts to film Fontainebleau. It would be an appropriate gesture. Keith has truly got the real thing here.
The less artistic among you may appreciate other aspects including the sheer diversity and number of problems depicted. An eclectic soundtrack keeps things lively and unpredictable. Ty reflecting on the nature of climbing in the forest brings us back to the dual natures of Font climbing, how it is cerebral and athletic at the same time. Seated in a wheatfield, or a deserted picnic area, he reminds us of the uniquely meditative aspects of climbing. If I have one issue with the film, it's this: Keith tie your shoelaces already!
This is an extraordinary moment in climbing film, in my view, and one that deserves real recognition.
Perhaps it is the time of year that gives this film a valedictory feel, an elegiac tone. The colours are sombre, the skies mostly grey and subdued. The photographer constantly seems to reach beneath the surface to what is buried rather than what apparently meets the eye. This to me is the essence of art and what makes this film special. It is beautifully realized in the sequence featuring Elephunk, where the problem is immaculately captured at close range and then the view is lengthened to reveal piles of stacked piles of logs, dead objects in front of the living forest, the climber caught between these two states of being. This is an extraordinary moment in climbing film, in my view, and one that deserves real recognition.
Between The Trees Purchase Options
Between The Trees - DVD [IN STOCK]
This is the DVD version. ie. The physical product
Price: £14.00
Between The Trees 720p HD Download
This is the high def 720p download version (ie. you won't be receiving a DVD!)
Price: £12.00
DVD AND HD download - Best of Both Worlds
For those who can't decide between chocolate and vanilla!
Price: £17.00
BUY HERE:
www.unclesomebody.com
Keith tried asking for donations with his last film and apparently got 20 of them out of 1000+ downloads of the L'Etranger video. This film deserves much more support and recognition than that. It is quite literally the best climbing film I have seen in years and Keith should be rewarded for taking the genre in new and important directions. So go to his website and find out how you can purchase this work and support authentic climbing films.
INTERVIEW WITH KEITH AND TY
Peter Beal interviews Keith and Ty at his blog: MOUNTAINS AND WATER
There is also a good interview at the Low Down: bjornpohl.blogspot.com.
NB. This was first published in French at the Kairn.com site along with a very favourable review, again in French.
ABOUT PETER BEAL:
Peter is an art historian and long time climber living in Boulder who can't seem to stop trying hard routes and problems, and thinking about what it takes to do them. His blog MOUNTAINS AND WATER is one of the most popular and respected climbing blogs around.
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