The Summit of the Gods on Netflix, A Feature-Length Animated Adaptation of the Acclaimed Mountain-Climbing Manga Series

Mount Everest is home to legends, of climbers who have reached the highest mountain in the world and those who have tried all their lives. The pinnacle of the gods, an adaptation of Popular manga series by Jiro Taniguchi comes to Netflix this month, uncovering one of the most infuriating myths: the fates of George Mallory and Andrew Irvine, the first men to try – and possibly succeed – to the top. When a reporter learns that the camera that famous mountaineers carry — the camera that can prove whether or not they’ve made it to the top — may have been found, he sets off on the journey. unravels the climber’s greatest unsolved mystery and the even bizarre story of the man who may have found it.

Gist: In the 1990s, Japanese writer Baku Yumemakura published The pinnacle of the gods, a five-part sequel story that follows the mystery of Habu Jôji, a talented mountaineer who disappeared from view after a personal tragedy, and Fukamachi Makoto, a journalist who is disappointed to stumble across the story. his. The novel was adapted by renowned artist Jirô Taniguchi into an eye-catching manga series, and that graphic work was the inspiration for the French-language series, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival this year. now on. Mallory’s missing camera is just one part of the story, a gripping piece that will appeal to even viewers unfamiliar with the original or manga in general.

What movies will remind you of?:Casual viewers of the anime may see some similarities to the works of famed director Hayao Miyazaki, but there are really few widely accessible reference points for this stunning piece of work. Showcasing the beauty and horror of high-altitude climbing in a way few non-cartoons can.

Performances worth watching:Summit of the Gods fully animated, and the real star is filmmaker Andrew Imbert’s lovable interpretation of Taniguchi’s art style. It is not a direct imitation of the original manga drawings but remains faithful to the spirit and tone, accurately representing the elevated environment with a simple, beautiful style.

Memorable dialogue: “You need me,” Fukamachi pleaded with Habu, hoping to convince the reclusive mountaineer to allow him to join his latest expedition. “I don’t need anyone. Now, clean up. I stopped long ago. Now it’s all over”.

“More than 8,000 feet, you are in the death zone,” one hiker warned Fukamachi later. “The body is not meant to exist.”

Gender and Skin: Without, and save for some scary moments in the mountains (and related to death), there is nothing in this movie that can stop the patient audience from seeing it.

Our Take:I’ll probably call myself a spinster when I say this, but there simply aren’t enough quiet movies being made these days; Mainstream filmmaking has become an exercise in frenzy, noise, impatience, and it’s rare to find a work that takes time, to linger on the shots, the moments, the silences. The pinnacle of the gods beautiful for reasons other than this, but it’s admirable that this melancholy, poetic film takes the time to tell a story that remains thrilling despite — or perhaps because of — its regular pacing.

Filmmaker Andrew Imbert had the noble task of adapting Jirô Taniguchi’s original work, a five-episode story with multiple themes to condense into a 100-minute run, but he didn’t. admirably succeeds here, delivering a complex and nuanced story without feeling overly tense. The art direction is the real star of the movie; The simple line style for the characters is realistic without being overwhelming or distracting, while the images of the mountain scenes showcase the harsh, uncompromising beauty of these astonishing landscapes. .

While Mallory’s alleged camera provides an important plot device for the film, the central emotion is that of tragic mountaineer Habu and his motivation to continue climbing alone after while banishing many old climbing friends and suffering a tragedy that still haunts him to this day. Less tragic, but equally tortured is the story of reporter Fukamachi, a man at the end of a rope with pointless quests, a man searching for the one thing he can’t complete. . The interaction of these two is emotionally engaging even as they go long without dialogue, moving together through the beautiful landscapes.

Nothing in The pinnacle of the gods that requires familiarity with manga or anime to find the series accessible; in fact, it’s the kind of work that can convince viewers unfamiliar with the genre to explore further, wondering what they’ve been missing all this time.

Our call: INSTRUCTIONS IT. If you don’t mind reading the subtitles (or if you speak French), Summit of the Gods is a visually compelling, deeply engaging story that keeps you hooked from start to finish.

Scott Hines is an architect, blogger, and Internet user who lives in Louisville, Kentucky with his wife, two young children, and a large, small dog.

Clock The pinnacle of the gods on Netflix