I enjoyed Vertical Limit. One thing I would have done differently, as a director, is to eliminate the explosives. Blowing a hole at the top of the crevass that your friends and family are at the bottom of is folly, and even if you do feel the need to bring explosives (in avalanche country), use something relatively stable, like dynamite.
Dynamite would have been readily available, for it is used to mine Himalayan salt in Pakistan. Certainly, the man with the millions of dollars could have afforded some. The exclusion of explosives from the scenes would have contributed to a more believable Himalayan adventure (think Into Thin Air).
The story line was good, and I appreciated the strong, complex dynamics and connections between the brother and sister, and between the two siblings and the rescue team leader. While Vertical Limit strove to expose the harsh realities of technical climbing (especially at K2), however, it lost some steam by being very lax in re-creating the conditions that would have been met by the climbers, even at K2's Base Camp at 18,645 feet.
No one was even wearing hats at the alcohol-ridden "barbecue" at Base Camp, the night before the climb. It would have been blisteringly cold, between -20 and -50 farenheit. No professional climber would have been drinking alcohol at that time.
On the mountain, in the raging storm, the climbers did not even have the sense to pull the Cord-Locs on their hoods tight: Snow would have accumulated inside their hoods and parkas, then melting. There were some scenes when protective face masks were used, and that was excellent.
Chris O'Donnell's character makes a terrific leap onto a snowy cliff face. I am not entirely certain that the jump would have been possible in real-life, but just maybe. They should have made the jump less-ambitious and more believeable.
Although I am glad that there were not one but two women in the rescue team, in reality, they would have not been allowed: Women just don't have the brute force necessary to haul 200-pound guys down the mountain (or up on a rope).
While I am tempted to say that it is unrealistic that the veteran and renowned ascent team leader and National Geographic photographer (also a highly-experienced climber) could be cajoled into continuing the ascent after the severe storm warning had been issued to them, we have seen bad decisions in the past by real-life alpine team leaders,culminating to disaster.
Although it may seem that I am being very critical of Vertical Limit, my score of 8 shows that I am willing to forgive the sins that Hollywood felt compelled to commit. The strong inter-personal dynamics, memorable characters, strong story line in-general, and clear, bold decision making in the screenplay made this film worth watching. Heroism is always a welcome theme in the movies I watch, and in Vertical Limit, everyone's a hero in his or her own way.
Scott Glen's character as the rescue team leader and sage mountaineer was superb.
