The Conquest of Everest (1953)

Director:

George Lowe

Writer:

Louis MacNeice (commentary)

Stars:

Meredith Edwards, John Hunt, George Band

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 5 wins.

Cast

Cast overview:
Meredith Edwards	...	Narrator (voice)
John Hunt	...	Himself (Army Officer)
George Band	...	Himself (Student)
Tom Bourdillon	...	Himself (Research Scientist)
Charles Evans	...	Himself (Surgeon)
Alfred Gregory	...	Himself (Travel Agent)
Edmund Hillary	...	Himself (Bee Keeper)
George Lowe	...	Himself (Schoolmaster)
Wilfred Noyce	...	Himself (Schoolmaster)
Griffith Pugh	...	Himself (Physiologist)
Thomas Stobart	...	Himself (Film Technician) (as Tom Stobart)
Tenzing Norgay	...	Himself (Sherpa Sirdar) (as Tensing Norkay Sherpa)
Michael Ward	...	Himself (Doctor)
Michael Westmacott	...	Himself (Statistician)
Charles Wylie	...	Himself (Army Officer) (as Charlie Wylie)

Storyline

---

Plot Keywords:

mount everest | expedition | icefall | group 3 | high altitude photography | 

---

Genres:

Documentary | Adventure

---

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 December 1953 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

La conquête de l'Everest

Filming Locations:

Himalaya Mountains, Nepal

Company Credits

Production Co:

Countryman Films, Group 3

Technical Specs

Runtime:

78 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

When the "Daily Mail" newspaper is shown, Edmund Hillary's name is shown as Edward.

User Reviews

Historic Gem on Everest

I did not know this documentary existed until I found it at Kathmandu airport as I left Nepal recently. What fascinated me was the amazing changes that I noted, particularly on the West Buttress and some other places in the 56 years since this was filmed. It also amazed me how long it took them to find a way thru the Ice Fall. I was born a couple of weeks prior to Hillary's summit and I summited Everest myself on May 23, 2009 within a few days, give or take 56 years from the first summit. In fact, our climb was documented by Discovery Channel and will be aired in November, 2009. The experience is difficult to explain, but when I saw this video with the highest quality cinematography, all using presumably large, heavy cameras and 16 MM film or larger, it is truly amazing to watch. The music is typical of the 50s but that adds to its historic nature. The documentary is wonderfully accurate, is not overly dramatic as many of today's efforts are (such as Discovery's Everest series) so its really a pleasant review of an awesome achievement over 56 years ago.