“Touching the Void - Sturz ins Leere”

Alpine Documentation (), Kevin Macdonald (Deutschland/Germany) 106 min

On the 20th of May 1985, Joe Simpson and Simon Yates set off for the first ascent of the west face of the 6,356 m high Siula Grande in the Andes of Peru. The two experienced mountaineers climbed under the most dangerous conditions: a special kind of powder snow, a characteristic of the Andes, makes their ascent more difficult. Exhausted but euphoric, they reached the summit on the third day. The descent seems to be no problem, until Joe falls. His knee joint is shattered – a death sentence in the Andes. Simon started an extraordinary one-man rescue operation and abseiled his partner under extreme conditions. Snowstorms render any sight or communication impossible. The second disaster happens when Joe falls into a hidden crevasse while abseiling. Simon is barely able to hold the rope before he is slowly thrown from his belay. Before both of them are pulled into the gorge, Simon makes a serious decision…