127 Hours

If I torque my arm far enough, I can break my forearm bones,...

--Aron Ralston, Between a Rock and a Hard Place

It's an unforgettable story: a hiker trapped inside a narrow crevasse, pinned by a boulder in a Utah canyon for six days, amputates his own arm in order to survive. Aron Ralston was an accomplished climber and 'canyoneer' when he endured an ordeal so horrific it seemed the stuff of fiction. He wrote a book about his experience, Between a Rock and A Hard Place, that was adapted into the film, 127 Hours by director Danny Boyle, which opens this weekend.

Probably everyone that sees the film will already know the story, and know that Ralston (played by James Franco) survives by resorting to an unimaginable act of desperation. Compressing a nearly week-long nightmare into a two-hour movie seems impossible enough, but to transport the audience into a half-lit corridor to ride with Ralston through panic, claustrophobia, dehydration, and hallucinations requires masterly filmmaking.

Danny Boyle's films are visually dazzling and pulsate with energy and exuberance. 127 Hours has those qualities despite the limitation of being in a fixed location for most of the movie. Even in the quietest, most gut-wrenching moments of the film as Ralston contemplates death, you will experience his zest for life.

You hear about actors having to 'carry a film,' but James Franco does just that, with virtually no scenes with other characters, and restricted movement, he opens himself utterly to those watching. It's an exceptional, inspiring performance.