The Last Descent

I'm not sure why this film is rated so low. It is not a Hollywood blockbuster, not a Citizen Kane, you can tell its low budget. Regardless, the acting is pretty good, the directing and cinematography are good. It IS difficult to tell a story when we all know the outcome, so it feels a little long at times, but it is otherwise watchable.

The film was made with the utmost respect for John Jones. Aside from the scenes of him in the cave, there are many flashback and dream sequences that make John Jones a real person, not just the "guy who got stuck in the cave."

I will say that I do NOT recommend this film to anyone who suffers from claustrophobia or anxiety. I do not think you will enjoy it, as it will only exacerbate those issues.

This movie deeply impacted me, on many levels. I'm old, but in my youth, I did things, pushed the envelope, that to others might seem crazy. After med school, after marrying, my life choices flattened out a little. I can understand why John went into the cave, the feeling of needing one more adrenalin fix. But, and I say this with love and humility, John was a damned fool. Loving beautiful wife, the girl he dreamed about. Through med school, soon to be a pediatric cardiologist. One healthy beautiful child, soon to have a second. Parents and siblings that loved him. Good health and prosperity. And instead of dropping to his knees and thanking God for his gifts, he crumpled that life into a ball and threw it away.

Its important in life to appreciate good, and not beat yourself up, because you think there should be more. Youi think you deserve great.....whatever that is. In nearly 50 years as an M. D. I've seen so much imaginary discontent, people that seemed to have it made, but managed to find something to feel bad about. Things that 99% of their family. Friends would think, "are you crazy?"

Personally I think this is why theres so much addiction in the world. The inability to find contentment. The movie was well made. The acting solid. Directing, casting etc., all great.

But, if you want to give Dr. Jones tragedy meaning, look to your own life. Examine the self destructive behaviors that put your "good" at risk. Too bad John was unable to do this.

Based on a true story that happened in 2009, this movie 'The Last Decent' is similar to another movie called "147 Hours" concerning Aron Ralston, but in this film a caver or Spelunker named John Jones who is accompanied by his long-suffering brother Josh, go to Utah to begin exploring an unmapped section of what is called Nutty Putty Cave and Josh gets out safely, but John becomes stuck upside down 150 feet underground. Actor Chadwick Hopson who plays John Jones, is such an emotional character and you feel his overwhelming sense of dread and sadness. The rescue efforts to bring John out to of the hole to be re-united with his loving wife Emily (played remarkably by Alexis Johnson) and the whole scene between John and Aaron(Landon Henneman), is imprinted in your mind. There's a few scenes with Susie (Jyllian Petrie) that are truly heart felt and the Stock footage of scenes from the actual newscast interspersed in the movie make you feel the impact of what actually happened back then. Aaron, and John's interaction wrench your heart. I'm still reeling from this. That's all I can reveal! Please watch this!

So let's get this out of the way: it's not a high-quality movie. So don't watch it if you're interested in skillful filmmaking. Acting not great, writing not great, etc.

What it *is* is the only available cinematic retelling of the Nutty Putty Cave tragedy. So if you're interested in that sort of thing, you probably want to watch it. It helped me get the human element in this instead of just being horrified by online diagrams of a guy stuck forever upside down in a hole.

I consider myself a mini-expert on the event after having read everything I can find on it. There are inaccuracies in this movie, important details they left out on purpose, lots of romanticizing (probably for the sake of the surviving family), a ton of sappy dream sequence filler as an artistic liberty, an inordinate focus on John's courtship with his wife, and they don't even show his death from a third-person POV and the closing off of the cave. They totally gloss over the death part and don't even show the aftermath.

In the end this feels like a B movie commissioned by his friends as a gift to his surviving family, so they can memorialize him in a touching light. And I get that, and it's very sweet.

But if you're a Nutty Putty armchair scholar, you probably wanted something with more substance and less fluff.

Chadwick Hopsin gave a stellar performance as John. Kudos to Halasima for a beautifully done mosaic of John's life & ordeal. All actors were believable, set was well-done w/great attention to detail. Those saying you shouldn't watch if you're claustrophobic weren't kidding; it is very tense when John is scooching thru the narrow passage. Later, that extreme level of tension diminishes. However, I found that days after watching, this story still haunts me. Many call it similar to 127 Hours but it's more similar to Everest (Rob Hall), imo. Despite the horrific ordeal, there simply isn't the same level of suspense.

Some reviews are unhappy with the way the film was done. But w/any art, you need to look for what the presentation is trying to convey, not what you think it should convey. This is a beautiful retelling of who John was, what became of him, & some interesting ideas of what he might have experienced. But it does leave a lot out, which can be found on the web. IE, it doesn't reveal they tried to dig rock away to make more room, that 2 rescuers got stuck, or that only 15 were qualified to actually go into that part of the cave. It doesn't tell that the son of the cave-access manager was sent in to do the final crawl with a stethoscope. The nimble 15 y/o was a regular caver who also brought with him the radio for a final goodbye to Emily, which never took place.

I would definitely recommend watching this part-documentary/ part-drama & then do a search where you'll find things like a drawing depicting how John was positioned & the narrow access routes. The rescuer called Aaron in the film was actually Ryan Shurtz. In the only detail I could find about Ryan it was said despite his cave & rescue expertise when he first saw John's predicament he had to hold back tears. Both Ryan & Susie became friends of the families. But be warned: This film will stick to you. Many viewers find their way to YT channels like TFIL or CBG, where seasoned spelunkers film their adventures and make it back out. For me, watching those videos gave me some relief and a better understanding of what happened to John and even what kind of person would attempt such a challenge.

For those complaining there was a religious thread, this film wasn't designed to avoid personal triggers but to portray a man's touching journey. I think those who fear believers to the point they're compelled to constantly draw attention to their distain are the very people who need such trust & tranquility in their own lives. It's yours for the asking. I found this aspect of the film to be very moving, personally. Regardless if a person considers themselves a believer, we all long to know our loved one has found some solace and that they are not really lost.

Truly an amazing, intense watch. So glad I stumbled onto this film. There are many other harrowing stories of cavers around the world but, to my knowledge, this is the only full-length docudrama. But I will stress again, this will haunt some of those who watch.