Tell It on the Mountain (2013) User Reviews

Experiencing nature on the Pacific Crest Trail: Soul Food

[gradyharp · 10/10 · 17 March 2013]

Experiencing nature on the Pacific Crest Trail: Soul Food

Commitment - a term we banter about in relationship to many cloud bourne ideas - but commitment is something this gratifying film by director Lisa Diener is all about. It is not a film to review or to describe - it is a film to experience.

The two hours of this movie details the 2600+ miles of the Pacific Coast Trail that hikers committed to experiencing nature and getting in touch with survival and solitude witness yearly. Some are repeaters, some are newcomers, and in this film we get to know a group of these people from all over the world and follow them through the course of the hike. The hike begins at the border between Mexico and California (Campo) and proceeds through to Agua Dulce, Kennedy Meadows, Mt Whitney, Forrester Pass, Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, Mt Lassen, Mt Shasta, then into Oregon through Crater Lake, Three Sisters Wilderness and Mt Hood, and then into Washington at Cascade Locks, Goat Rocks Wilderness, Mt Rainier, Snoqualamie Pass and finally to the border of Washington and Canada at Manning Park.

The hikers walk with back packs carrying food and water at a rate of approximately 20 miles per day and the entire hike takes 5 months to complete. The hikers are caller Thru-Hikers - a brand of hikers that are not just casual walkers but committed spirits who gain more from the adventure than words can express. Along the way they encounter Trail Angels (people who give them shelter and nourishment and encouragement in exchange for the dazzling stories of the adventures of struggling through the wild). There are places known as Hiker Heaven where friends of the hikers can mail supplies to help the hikers on their journey.

The many joys of watching this film are appreciating the beauty of nature ('Set design by Mother Nature') and hearing the response of the hikers as they fully appreciate and experience daybreak and nightlight and the gloaming. The photography is breathtakingly beautiful and the accompanying music is fitting for life in the wild.

Perhaps few of us would be able to endure the full hike, but it is a joy to live it through the warmly friendly Thru-Hikers who reintroduce us to the magnificence of nature. This film is food for the soul - restorative, nourishing and inspiring.

Grady Harp

A Story Well Told

[c_hall521 · 9/10 · 16 March 2013]

I watched Tell it on the Mountain on the suggestion of a friend. As a lukewarm hiker myself, I was a bit dubious when she told me how eye opening and inspiring the movie would be. But I watched it. And, to be honest, I was drawn in from the first minute and left not only inspired, but touched by the sincerity of the material. Although a lukewarm hiker, I'm an avid fan of documentaries. Tell it on the Mountain brought out the best of the art form.

With the backdrop of the PCT, several thru-hikers and trail angels take center stage in the arching narrative. Personality is certainly in abundance with the hikers. The most venerable of the crew, a man in his 70s called Billygoat, garners the respect not only of his fellow hikers, but of the audience. My favorite thought from Billygoat was when he posed the question to himself: "What will you do when you can't thru-hike the entire trail anymore?" He answered, "Then I'll do half the trail. When I can't do half, I'll do a quarter." This piece really captured the spirit of the story.

Beyond the personalities, the photography fits the grand scope and beauty of the locations. And the interjection of hand-held cameras from the individual hikers' points of view stirs imagination, at least for this viewer. With all the ups and downs (not everyone finishes their goals on the hike), Tell it on the Mountain captures what it means to be adventurous. The fascination is in the details, so I hesitate to add more (I want to talk about the Uranium water for example!), but, believe me, this documentary is multi-layered and holds enough substance to capture a wide variety of viewers, not just the hiking set. Watch it!

A Truly Amazing Documentary!!

[kpsweetie08 · 10/10 · 11 March 2013]

Watching this film has opened my eyes on what its like for hikers and especially long distance hikers. The many trials and tribulations they face physically and emotionally on a long hike like the Pacific Crest Trail. The film follows hikers from the U.S doing the trail and also foreigners that traveled there just to do this amazing 4-6 month, 2,663 mile hike from the border of Mexico to the border of Canada. I am very glad I watched this and seen the journey they take through the Pacific Crest Trail. It's a trail I myself probably will not do but because of this documentary I got to see the trail and the beautiful scenery that these hikers got to see, almost like I was right there going along with them during their months of hiking. They are inspiring people as they did not let the weather elements or even health issues stop them from somehow completing the hike they set out for. Overall this film is a must watch for anyone to get a inside look and knowledge of that of a true hiker and the things they do to be one with nature and be worry free from the everyday life problems.

A deep inside look at a new mountain experience

[Nukem999 · 7/10 · 18 March 2013]

Beauty is often something we overlook or do not appreciate unless it is right in front of our faces or on the news. Sadly, many beautiful places do not get front page coverage and end up getting ignored or left behind while atrocities ruin the beauty it once had to offer. This documentary deals with Kiritimati, which in English means Christmas Island and we learn about its story and its inhabitants in this short but touchingly effective documentary. There's a lot of turmoil on this island, from global warming to disastrously toxic nuclear fallout from bomb testing by both the UK and the USA in this island's region.

It's quite painful and saddening to hear from these island people how their fish stock and food supply has become tainted by the nuclear fallout with little to no reprimands being taken place. I love the in depth camera view going inside these people's lives, getting a first-hand look at what the radiation has done to their food supply and affected their fishing. I think the documentary does an excellent job getting the message across with its gorgeous visuals, and taking interviews and reactions directly from the island people.

For a short documentary, the message gets across much more effectively than others. I feel this film's most powerful point comes from its delivery through the people and not through some celebrity narrator or any narrator for that matter. The approach this film takes makes everything seem and feel more real, more natural, more like were inside the lives of these people and are experience their plight directly. "Between sky and ocean" is a bit on the short side but its delivery method and use of people's reactions on film really nails the message home. I was really impressed how a short little film could use it's time and message implantation so wisely and expertly, very nicely done!