The Conquest of Everest

2/2/2024

So we all remember the names of Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay but for me, the plaudits here have to go to the expedition cinematographer George Lowe who manages to colourfully capture in considerable detail the treacherous and perilous journey they all undertook in 1953 to become the first people to top Mount Everest. The narrative takes us from the planning stages in London that built upon the previous (failed) attempts at this summit. Then they must work the logistics - how to get tonnes of essential supplies to base camps as high up as any European mountains are at their peaks. The lack of oxygen, relentless winds and the crippling cold are again well photographed as I found myself looking for a cardigan to settle down to the latter stages as the hostility of this avalanche-prone sy