Free Solo | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | |
Produced by |
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Starring |
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Music by | Marco Beltrami |
Cinematography |
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Edited by | Bob Eisenhardt |
Production company |
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Distributed by | National Geographic Documentary Films |
Release date |
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Running time | 96 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Box office | $21.8 million[1][2] |
Free Solo is a 2018 American documentary film directed by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin. The film profiles rock climber Alex Honnold on his quest to perform a free solo climb of El Capitan in June 2017. The film premiered at the Telluride Film Festival on August 31, 2018, and also screened at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival, where it won the People's Choice Award in the Documentaries category.[3] It was released in the United States on September 28, 2018, received positive reviews from critics and has grossed over $21 million. The film received numerous accolades, including winning Best Documentary Feature at the 91st Academy Awards.[4] The film is available to stream in the United States through the National Geographic TV channel app and website, on Hulu, and will also be available to stream on the upcoming Disney+ service at launch.
Contents
Production
In the film, director Jimmy Chin and his crew struggled on camera with how to film and not affect Honnold’s climb. According to director Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, the key to solving this problem was in the extended preparation.[5]
One of the greatest difficulties was getting sound from Honnold, who often was too far from the camera to use wireless mics. Meanwhile, the wiring of the mic couldn’t interfere with his climbing, and any recorder on his body would need to withstand the rigors of climbing. To solve the problem, they turned to production sound recordist Jim Hurst, who was a climber himself. He utilized a microphone system that could transmit a signal to the camera and also store the audio signal within itself when the camera was out of range.
The film was made by National Geographic Partners,[6] which at the time of the film's release was majority-owned by 21st Century Fox, with the remainder owned by the National Geographic Society.[7]
Reception
Box office
As of April 16, 2019, Free Solo has grossed $17.5 million in the United States and Canada, and $4.2 million in other territories, for a total worldwide gross of $21.8 million.[1][2]
The film made $300,804 from four theaters in its opening weekend, surpassing Eighth Grade and An Inconvenient Truth, respectively, for the highest per-venue average of 2018 and of a documentary all-time with $75,201.[8] It expanded to 41 theaters in its second weekend, making $562,786.[9] The film grossed $859,051 from 129 theaters in its third weekend and $1 million from 251 theaters in its fourth weekend.[10][11] During its fifth weekend, it earned $1.06 million from 394 theaters, bringing the total box office gross to over $5 million.[12]
Critical response
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 99% based on 135 reviews, with an average rating of 8.21/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Free Solo depicts athletic feats that many viewers will find beyond reason – and grounds the attempts in passions that are all but universal."[13] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 83 out of 100, based on 25 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[14]
Writing for Variety, Peter Debrudge said, "Apart from a slow stretch around the hour mark, the filmmakers keep things lively (with a big assist from Marco Beltrami's pulse-quickening score, the nail-biting opposite of Tim McGraw's soaring end-credits single, "Gravity"), featuring test runs at Zion National Park's Moonlight Buttress and the nearly sheer limestone cliffs in Taghia, Morocco."[15] Richard Lawson of Vanity Fair called the film "bracingly made" and wrote, "I left the theater invigorated and rattled, in awe of this charismatic man's accomplishment but scared that it will inspire others to attempt the same ... But maybe Free Solo's detailed, transfixing portrait of their hero will at least show some sort of barrier to entry, communicating to those eager wannabes that very few people indeed are built quite like Alex Honnold. And thank goodness, in a way, for that."[16]
Accolades
Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) and nominee(s) | Result | Ref(s) |
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Toronto International Film Festival | September 16, 2018 | People's Choice Documentary | Free Solo | Won | [3] |
Critics' Choice Documentary Awards | November 10, 2018 | Best Documentary | Free Solo | Nominated | [17] |
Best Director | Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi | Nominated | |||
Best Sports Documentary | Free Solo | Won | |||
Most Compelling Living Subject of a Documentary | Alex Honnold | Won | |||
Most Innovative Documentary | Free Solo | Won | |||
Best Cinematography | Jimmy Chin, Clair Popkin and Mikey Schaefer | Won | |||
Best Editing | Bob Eisenhardt | Nominated | |||
Hollywood Music in Media Awards | November 14, 2018 | Original Score – Documentary | Marco Beltrami | Nominated | [18] |
Original Song – Documentary | Tim McGraw and Lori McKenna | Nominated | |||
IDA Documentary Awards | December 8, 2018 | Best Feature | Free Solo | Nominated | [19] |
Best Cinematography | Jimmy Chin, Clair Popkin and Mikey Schaefer | Nominated | |||
National Board of Review | January 8, 2019 | Top 5 Documentaries | Free Solo | Won | [20] |
Cinema Eye Honors | January 10, 2019 | Audience Choice Prize | Free Solo | Won | [21] |
Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography | Jimmy Chin, Clair Popkin and Mikey Schaefer | Won | |||
Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Score | Marco Beltrami | Nominated | |||
Outstanding Achievement in Production | Free Solo | Won | |||
Producers Guild of America Awards | January 19, 2019 | Outstanding Producer of Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures | Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin, Evan Hayes, and Shannon Dill | Nominated | [22] |
Directors Guild of America Awards | February 2, 2019 | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentaries | Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin | Nominated | [23] |
British Academy Film Awards | February 10, 2019 | Best Documentary | Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin, Shannon Dill and Evan Hayes | Won | [24] |
Satellite Awards | February 17, 2019 | Best Documentary Film | Free Solo | Nominated | [25] |
Academy Awards | February 24, 2019 | Best Documentary Feature | Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin, Evan Hayes, and Shannon Dill | Won | [26] |
References
- ^ a b "Free Solo (2018) – Financial Information". The Numbers. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
- ^ a b "Free Solo (2018)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved March 24, 2019.
- ^ a b Nordine, Michael (September 16, 2018). "TIFF 2018 Awards: 'Green Book' Wins the People's Choice Award, Upsetting 'A Star Is Born'". IndieWire. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
- ^ "Oscar Nominations 2019: The Complete List". Variety. January 22, 2019. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
- ^ O'Falt, Chris (October 17, 2018). "At 3,000 Feet, Shooting 'Free Solo' Was More Like 'Mission: Impossible' Than a Documentary". IndieWire. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
- ^ https://itunes.apple.com/us/movie/free-solo/id1435961341
- ^ O'Falt, Chris (October 3, 2018). "Alex Honnold's Freerider Free Solo: 360 Degree Video". Climbing.
- ^ Rubin, Rebecca (September 30, 2018). "'Free Solo' Documentary Climbs Indie Box Office With Best Screen Average of 2018". Variety. Archived from the original on September 30, 2018. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
- ^ Brooks, Brian (October 7, 2018). "'Studio 54' And 'Free Solo': It's Still All About The Parties – Specialty Box Office". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
- ^ Brooks, Brian (October 14, 2018). "'Beautiful Boy' Tops Not-So-Hot Weekend; 'Free Solo' Over $2.1M: Specialty Box Office". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
- ^ Brooks, Brian (October 21, 2018). "'Mid90s' Off To Far From Middling Start; 'Can You Ever Forgive Me?' & 'Wildlife' Solid In Bows – Specialty Box Office". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
- ^ Brooks, Brian (October 28, 2018). "'Suspiria' Opens Big with Year's Best Average; 'Can You Ever Forgive Me?' Solid: Specialty Box Office". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
- ^ "Free Solo (2018)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved March 3, 2019.
- ^ "Free Solo reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
- ^ Debruge, Peter (August 31, 2018). "Film Review: 'Free Solo'". Variety. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
- ^ Lawson, Richard (September 1, 2018). "Review: Free Solo Is a Dizzying, Fascinating Rock-Climbing Documentary". Vanity Fair. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
- ^ Lewis, Hilary (November 10, 2018). "Mr. Rogers Film 'Won't You Be My Neighbor?' Tops Critics' Choice Documentary Awards". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
- ^ Xu, Linda (November 15, 2018). "Hollywood Music in Media Awards: Full List of Winners". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
- ^ Lewis, Hilary (December 8, 2018). "IDA Documentary Awards: 'Minding the Gap' Wins Best Feature". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
- ^ Lewis, Hilary (November 27, 2018). "'Green Book' Named Best Film by National Board of Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
- ^ Tapley, Kristopher (November 8, 2018). "Hulu's 'Minding the Gap' Ties Cinema Eye Honors All-Time Nominations Record". Variety. Retrieved November 24, 2018.
- ^ "All Motion Picture and TV Nominations for 30th Annual Producers Guild Awards presented by Cadillac". Producers Guild of America. January 4, 2019. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
- ^ "DGA Announces Nominees for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Television, Commercials and Documentary for 2018". Directors Guild of America. January 7, 2019. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
- ^ "Documentary – Free Solo". British Academy Film Awards. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
- ^ "2018 Awards Nominees". International Press Academy. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
- ^ "The 91st Academy Awards". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved January 22, 2019.