K2

Customer Reviews:

A Great, Great Movie.......2007-09-06

This came on television late one night. It has what few movies do - a great story. Everything supported the plot, which is dynamite. Parts are perfectly cast. Acting is transparent. Well-drawn characters. Jaw-dropping conflict. Everyone I know who has seen it reacts the same way - astonished that it isn't more well-known.

great movie.......2007-01-09

Fast service and great price. Had this on VHS but wanted it on DVD.

Fantastic Movie.......2007-01-04

K2 is in my personal top-5 of all time. I'm an armchair mountaineer, so I like the story and scenery, as well as climbing action (most of which is pretty accurate, with just a few petty mistakes). The very good story is a character study within an action movie, and it stars Michael Biehn, a very under-appreciated actor who was also great in The Terminator, Aliens, and The Rock (he was even pretty good in the really horrible Navy SEALS). Matt Craven is quite good as the best friend. Among mountain action movies, K2 is better than Cliffhanger (which is very good) and WAY better than that stupid Vertical Limit a few years ago.

The Best Mountain Climbing Movie Ever Made.......2005-12-05

This is the best mountain climbing movie made! I like to watch it every 3-4 months, which is why I had to get the DVD (my video tape version was about worn out). There are probably better documentary style movies about mountaineering, but for a hollywood-style movie this is the best. The images of mountains and the feeling of high adventure are awesome! I'm surprised by the other negative reviews about this movie.

I am a recreational mountaineer myself, and have read many mountaineering adventure books. I wish there were more mountaineering movies. Compared to "Vertical Limit", I thought "K2" was much more realistic.

This movie had me Climbing to Hell.......2005-09-20

Aw man...This movie made me want to climb inside a volcano. This movie is about to boring characters, (one who is an uptight snoozer, and the other a typical party boy) who argue about climbing a lousy mountain for half of the duration of the film. There are some useless and boring conflicts about one guy's wife not wanting him to go, and the other guy is a loser and has nothing better to do.

If the ending was anything fun to talk about I would love to spoil the ending for you, but I found myself hoping they both die a horrible death up on the mountain. As a matter of fact,I was hoping I would die because the movie really is that terrible.

Average customer rating:

DECENT ADVENTURE STORY FOR ARMCHAIR CLIMBERS...

K2 [Region 2]
Starring: Michael Biehn , Matt Craven , Annie Grindlay , Elena Stiteler , and Blu Mankuma
Director: Franc Roddam
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

( K ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

ASIN: B0000C24GD

Customer Reviews:

DECENT ADVENTURE STORY FOR ARMCHAIR CLIMBERS..........2006-03-07

This is essentially a buddy movie clothed in mountaineering garb. It is a story about two climbers: one, a Seattle based attorney, the other, a physics instructor. They are a mismatched pair of friends who are brought together because of their love for climbing. The story line is about the ultimate test that their friendship endures while high on K2, the second highest mountain in the world but the most perilous to climb.

The rock climbing scenes that take place in the first fifteen minutes of the movie are terrific to watch, even though they may not be technically correct. After all, it's a movie, not a documentary. The scenery is spectacular and the cinematography is excellent.

These friends decide to grab an opportunity to climb K2 with an expedition that lost two of its team members to an avalanche on Denali. The attorney has no problem going to K2, but the physics instructor leaves behind his weeping wife and child. Yet his friendship with the attorney and his own desire to climb K2 compel him to leave his distraught family.

There are a number of scenes in the movie that seem to be taken from real life. While on expedition to K2, the porters leave them stranded, refusing to go any further on the mountain, as they have portents of doom. They also want more money. One scene has the attorney burning rupees in defiance of the porters' strike. World class mountaineer Jim Wickwire did the same thing, when he climbed K2, and under similar circumstances.

In another scene, a number of climbers fall into a crevasse only to be saved at the last minute by the physics instructor, as he digs his ice axes in and grips the road. The film also include a scene that shows the expedition leader succumbing to high altitude sickness, necessitating his descent of K2 as soon as possible.

Animosity on the mountain between the climbing leader and the attorney over who will be part of the first summit team is also reminiscent of real life expeditions. It is here that the attorney's friendship with the physics instructor becomes strained, as he lays claim to be on the first summit team and does not include his friend, even though they had been climbing partners for ten years. So much for the brotherhood of the rope.

After the first summit team is finished off by the mountain, the two friends summit, but on the descent the physics instructor falls and is seriously injured, breaking his leg. As you can imagine, this is really bad news, as it is tantamount to a death sentence, especially when you are in the death zone and without oxygen.

Since this is a buddy movie, the attorney comes up with a plan to get his friend down K2. I won't tell you what it is, but I will give you a hint. The plan used is to be found in Joe Simpson's book "Touching the Void".

Interestingly enough, the movie is dedicated to two mountaineers of renown: Seattle attorney, Jim Wickwire, and physicist, Lou Reichardt, both of whom were among the first Americans to summit K2 in 1978. This film seems to be loosely based upon some of their mountaineering exploits. It is a moderately enjoyable film that should appeal to armchair climbing enthusiasts everywhere.

Average customer rating:

The New Independent SCI FI Movie Classic
The Extras Make The DVD

Radius (Director's Edition)
Starring: Matt Mccoy , Paul Logan , Michael Yavnieli , and Catalina Larranaga
Manufacturer: K2 Films
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Genres | DVD | Video

( R ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
ASIN: B00065EB1I
Release Date: 2004-09-15

Customer Reviews:

The New Independent SCI FI Movie Classic.......2005-07-20

"Radius" is the consumate classic independent film. It is as much about the making of the movie as it is about the movie itself. It is a half hour of Sci Fi magic and MASTERFUL, ENJOYABLE fast paced filmmaking. It was generated on a shoestring budget by a dedicated crew and cast that went through abominable conditions in the 130 degree heat of Death Valley to nail the project successfully. It makes some of the budgets of movies on the Independent Film Channel seem like big studio production jobs. Indeed, anyone from 'wanna be' directors to the big studios like Paramount and Fox can clearly see in "Radius" what is possible, without the big production bucks and the overpaid actors. (One can speculate that if producer Andrew Trapani and director Helmut Kobler had run the so-so "StarTrek: Enterprise" or "Voyager", they might still be on TV. "Radius" has a rich palette of SciFi characters and possibilities.)

The cast is wonderful. Matt McCoy is top notch. Catalina Larranaga probably puts her finest work on film to date and the surprise last minute casting of Michael Yavnieli pays off immensely. But Paul Logan's malevolent Diamone character steals the show (as does his stunt choreography). It's interesting that over 1000 actors applied for roles in "Radius". As special effects go, the outer space effects are unremarkable, but the terrestrial special effects are mindblowingly good. The powerful soundtrack pushes things along wonderfully. The storyline is gripping enough for a huge Sci Fi fan like me. The 3O minutes or so seem like a fast-paced hour, but there is a reason for the 30 minute time limit on the film.

"Radius" contains a really great "making of" second disk that is very educational for both experienced and inexperienced film-makers. Having seen a number of "making of" disks that accompany "studio" films, the dedication and determination of these underpaid actors and film-makers is AWESOME and the product is very enjoyable. When one compares the "making of" disks of other desert films like "Fiight of the Phoenix" and "Hidalgo", those studio guys were in the lap of luxury. The film camera, the casting, director of photography, set design (total cost: a phenomenal $4000 and lots of cunning improvisation), casting, and locations are all addressed in detail. Outside of the camera, the key piece of equipment apparently was the Macintosh Powerbook notebook computer running the Mac OS X software and the incredible Final Cut Pro 4. Even the utility of the website "cinematographer dot com" played a major role in acquiring the 'killer' indie crew so essential to the success of this film. No closed captioning available. Some foul language. No nudity. PG-13 minimum.

"Radius" will enthrall the veteran Sci Fi fan and filmmakers in general. Make no mistake about it, "Radius" is astute independent filmmaking at it's finest. Five Stars!!

The Extras Make The DVD.......2005-07-03

The film Radius was OK, not great. However, the film school extras were fantastic. They take you from idea to execution and marketing. Too bad the short film wasn't better. If you have visions of filmmaking in your future I suggest doing your own film on 16mm or DV instead of 35mm film and make sure your script is worth the time to make and view when complete as a movie.

Average customer rating:

K 2 World's Most Deadly mountain
Hidden gem
DECENT ADVENTURE STORY FOR ARMCHAIR CLIMBERS...
Some great vistas, ...
Great mountaineering video

K2 [Region 2]
Starring: Michael Biehn , Matt Craven , Annie Grindlay , Elena Stiteler , and Blu Mankuma
Director: Franc Roddam
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

( K ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

ASIN: B00004RYA0

Amazon.com

Michael Biehn plays a Seattle attorney who talks his friend, a physics instructor (Matt Craven), into joining a party with plans to climb the tallest and least accessible mountain in the world, K-2. Biehn's arrogant character immediately bumps noggins with the tour's leader (Raymond J. Barry) and the latter's strong-willed girlfriend (Patricia Charbonneau). But when various disasters begin to strike at the group, cooperation ensues, followed by assorted acts of heroism, friendship, and self-sacrifice under almost unimaginable conditions of lethal distress. Based on a play that examined the view on human values from a perch far above the world most of us know, K-2 surrounds that essential drama with extraordinary location footage. Director Franc Roddam (Quadrophenia) succeeds very well at turning a thoughtful piece into a fine action movie--and vice versa. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

K 2 World's Most Deadly mountain.......2004-09-30

K2 is not the world's tallest mountain (as everyone knows, Mt. Everest is) but it is the world's deadliest. It is the second-tallest mountain but climbing it is far more challenging than climbing Mt. Everest. It has the most deaths of any 8000+ metre mountain in the world. The fatality rate of climbers attempting to summit K2 is about 50%. As of early 2004 only 198 people had summited K2, while over 1700 have summited Mt. Everest.

This movie is about an attempt to summit K2. I've read the other reviews of this movie and I'd like to stress a few additional points. First, this is the best movie I've ever seen about high-altitude mountain climbing. Second, while the characters are "fictional", they are actually based on real-life mountaineers. Those who know the history of high-altitude climbing will recognize some of the real-life characters reflected in the movie. Third, while the story is not strictly true, it is in fact a composite of various actual events that have occurred over a number of summit attempts. The events as depicted are very realistic, and give the armchair viewer some sense of what it must be like to tackle one of the world's greatest physical challenges.

This is more than just a "guy-buddie" movie. It's more than just an adventure movie. It's more than a semi-documentary about high-altitude climbing. It says something about why we humans, or some of us, strive for almost-impossible, "crazy" accomplishments. It portrays the characters realistically, with their strengths and their weaknesses. The movie brought tears to my eyes. I found it profoundly impactful and deeply moving. I strongly recommend it for anyone interested in why and how people test themselves to their limits.

Karl Weaver

Hidden gem.......2002-11-19

This is not so much a story about mountaineering as it is about personal transformations and the bonds of friendships. It's a very personal story driven by characters and very playlike as was pointed out to me. Sure enough, if you read the credits, you will discover that this was a play.

It's a hidden gem. I recommend it.

DECENT ADVENTURE STORY FOR ARMCHAIR CLIMBERS..........2000-11-07

Some great vistas, ..........2000-04-09

... K2: The Ultimate High. Well, while I'm sure climbing the actual mountain really is a great high, this movie does a mediocre job of portraying the thrill. It's not that the acting is bad, but the plot is pretty generic and predictable. Leaves you just a bit wanting in places. Too much "made for TV" juice in its veins.

The real strength of this DVD comes with its crisp video and pretty impressive camera work on the slopes. You almost feel cold and light-headed as you travel up the spine of K2 with the protagonists. No clues in the special features or jacket info about the actual filmed locations for the movie, but especially the shots from the climax at the apex connote well the feeling of reaching nearly to the top of the world (I don't think I've revealed any plot twists here). I doubt the scenes here are all from K2 itself, but some good aerial camerawork make it just as well.

Not much on the special features perks for this one. A chapter selection list and two bios, but that's about it.

Overall, not a bad buy if you like moutains and climbing and can find it for a decent price. Recommended viewing with hot brandy and licorice.

Great mountaineering video.......2000-04-05

Spectacular footage and intense scences make this one of my favorite movies. Wish it was available on DVD!

Karmina 2 - K2 (Original French Version - With English Subtitles)

Average customer rating:

Karmina 2 - K2 (Original French Version - With English Subtitles)

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Art House & International | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Foreign & International | Stores | DVD | Video
ASIN: B000CEQQOS

Product Description

Following the first Karmina, all the vampires need to take the special potion to be humans. The potion is made by Ghyslain Chatbot (Gildor Roy) and send to Transylvania for the others vampires. Chatbot's wife (Diane Lavallée) isn't a vampire yet and she wish to be one. Ghyslain doesn't want to because of all the rules & responsabilities of being a vampire. She throw Ghylsain out of the house without the potion. Ghyslain try to get back in there to get the potion for the others with the help of Vlad (Yves Pelletier). Meanwhile, Philippe (Robert Brouillette) comes to Montréal because they're running out of potion in Transylvania.

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