23/10/26

Apple TV

When I was a young lad at primary school in the 1960s, my teachers were forever banging on about an event that had happened more than a decade earlier. A British expedition, we were proudly told, had ‘conquered’ Everest in 1953 and the first man to climb to its peak was called Edmund Hillary. There was no mention back then that Hillary was actually a New Zealander – and even fewer references were made of a certain Sherpa Tenzing, who had ‘accompanied’ him. The implication was that Tenzing was little more than a servant, someone who set up the equipment and made the meals – but of course he was much more than that, an equal climbing partner, whose skill and tenacity helped guide the expedition to success.

It’s shameful that it has taken over seventy years to set the record straight. This Apple Original film, written by Luke Davies and directed by Jennifer Peedom, offers a more truthful account of the historic climb and it has Tenzing Norgay (Genden Phuntsok) as its central character. We first meet him as a young boy (Sandrup Dorje Lama) staring up at the peak of ‘his’ mountain, Chomolungma (as it’s called in Tibetan) ,shortly before having an encounter with legendary climber, George Mallory (Johnny Flynn), a brief event which sets Tenzing on tbe long path to his eventual role in that 1953 triumph.

In between these two events, we witness Tenzing (now played by Tenzin Dalha) as he relentlessly goes about securing a place on successive expeditions, aided and abetted by his wife, Dawa (Thinley Lhamo) – but by the time he finally has the opportunity to embark on that eventful climb led by John Hunt (Willem Dafoe), he’s a widower with two young daughters. It’s on this climb that Tenzing meets and befriends Edmund Hillary (Tom Hiddleston).

The era has been faithfully recreated and, while the jaw-dropping climbing sequences were actually shot in New Zealand, you’d never know that it wasn’t Nepal. Of course, in a time when there are literally lines of people queuing up to ascend the infamous world’s highest mountain, it’s staggering to witness the gruelling nature of that fateful expedition and the ever-changing fortunes that determine who will be the duo chosen for the final ascent. The growing friendship between Tenzing and Hillary is nicely portrayed as we see the mutual admiration and respect the two men have for each other – and the film makes no attempt to disguise the unfair treatment that the Sherpas often received from their white employers.

Handsomely produced and occasionally downright thrilling, Tenzing hasn’t received much in the way of a theatrical release, but it’s right there on Apple TV whenever you’re in the mood for some vertiginous viewing.

4 stars

Philip Caveney