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Every now and then a film comes along that defies traditional genre labels. The 'documentary' is a trusted label that promises to truthfully 'document' some aspect of the real world. Calling Mountain (2017) a documentary shows how inadequate labels can be for what is a film meditation on nature that leaves viewers to create their own message.

Mountain is a visual and aural ode to the beauty, mystery, and power of mountains. It draws on 2,000 hours of filming across twenty-two countries and is narrated sparsely and with solemnity by Willem Dafoe. The Australian Chamber Orchestra provides a rousing score that blends seamlessly with the visuals. The film showcases the world's highest places rather than any individual mountain. Unlike the brilliant Sherpa (2016) which had a coherent social and political message, Mountain is a poetic meditation on mountains everywhere. It includes footage of early mountaineers as well as examples of the modern-day exploitation of mountains. It lingers over their majestic beauty, sneering briefly at queues of commercial trekkers, the clearing of ski slopes for paying customers, and the never-ending cable-cars, chair lifts and helicopters that move hordes of skiers and hikers. The film admires not only snow-covered peaks, but all kinds of mountains and all kinds of mountain activities, including people in wing-suits or on mountain bikes jumping off cliffs and climbers grappling up vertical rock walls where a single misstep can be fatal.

A higher aesthetic is created when you mix stunning mountain-scape cinematography with a superb orchestral score. It is spell-binding for at least half the time, and then the repetition and lack of narrative begins to bite. While the score enhances the visuals, it can also feel like one long musical cliché. Just as we can identify Jaws and Psycho by their signature musical tropes, the dominant orchestral effects in Mountain are predictable aural cues telling us that scaling cliffs is dangerous or that flying over a mountain peak will reveal a wondrous valley below. Some might ask why the film title takes the singular form when it shows many unnamed mountains in many unnamed countries. The reverence given to the subject does not include respect for identity or acknowledgement of place, so the film does not work as a travelogue. The anonymity of the mountains is also reflected in editing that often seems random and incoherent. In one second, a climber is scaling an icy sheer wall, in another, a mountain bike jumps off a ledge. The brief mention of harm caused by commercialisation is tokenistic and so much documentary potential is left unexplored. This means the film is about appearance not substance.

If this is a documentary, it is not clear what it documents. It would make a thrilling short film on a big screen or as a visual background to a live orchestral performance. While the individual aural and visual elements have great beauty, without a narrative purpose they are lovely to admire but all too easy to forget.

With the Australian Chamber Orchestra doing the music, and Willem Dafoe doing the narration, Mountains (2017) is a delight to the eye and ear. The director embarks us in a cinematic trance, using an incredible essay that depicts the relationship between nature and human perseverance. Portrayed as an eternal fight, this relationship seems to go into extremes at times. A must watch film for any mountain lover.

Keep in mind when watching this movie that this is not your ordinary documentary about mountains and the movie also doesn't intend to be one. It's a philosophical journey among the high peaks on earth. The writing of Robert Macfarlane is one of the best on contemporary nature writing. The narration in this 'documentary' is therefore also based on his book 'Mountains in my mind'. I'm still convinced the book itself is a bit more exciting than this movie. If you like to read at least. Mountain tells a amazing philosophical story about the mountains and the humans who conquer and exploit them. It's a movie of not much words, but the words that are spoken will keep floating through your mind. The music made it even more enjoyable. Overall great movie, sometimes it misses the point of it all, but a must watch for anybody who enjoys the outdoors, the mountains or the writing of Macfarlane.

Poetry, music and visually stunning. Willem Dafoe narrative was awesome. I loved the music selection. Just a beautiful piece of art.

A gifted director and cinematographer film their buddies free climbing El Capitan at Yosemite and the like, accompanied by the sublime arrangements of a world class chamber orchestra.

We were lucky enough to catch this in live performance after skiing for the day in the Australian Alps, and I honestly thought we'd be asleep within ten minutes.... but it was riveting. The director Jennifer Peedom brings a wonderfully poetic sensitivity to put the viewer in the picture, as if you are there... awestruck by the majesty of some of the world's wildest places, and pumped by the adrenaline of the risks of personal conquest.

William Dafoe presents a compelling narrative by travel writer Robert Macfarlane with a gravelly charm, and there, in the background, is Richard Tognetti and the Australian Chamber Orchestra, casting a spell with their beautiful harmonies...when you go and see this at the cinema, if you can bear it, close your eyes during Vivaldi's Four Seasons, and listen to Tognetti's violin soar....you won't be disappointed.

"Mountains were places of peril, not beauty. An upper world to be shunned, not sought out. How then have mountains now come to hold a spellbound? Drawing us into their dominion. Often at the cost of lives. Because the mountains we climb are not made only of rock and ice, but also dreams...and desire. The mountains we climb, are mountains of the mind."

Passages from Macfarlane's book 'Mountains of the Mind' sweep through the piercing crevices of Ozturk's mountaineering photography, accompanied by Dafoe's heavenly soothing narration. Exploring the relationship between humanity and mountains across time, "into a space where time warps...and bends". Providing insight into their alluring endangerment, the mind's requirement to feel alive. A lust for death-defying experiences where the stoic poses of grandiose mountains intimidate, cursed with the uncontrollable meteorology that governs them. Souls perish beneath the snow encrusted rocks. Others enlightened by the achievement they have just accomplished. "Sensations are thrillingly amplified". Earth's most imposing natural wonders of the world, have now become passions. "Our fascination became an obsession". To conquer. To discover. To relinquish one's self unto the summits where deities rest.

Mountain refuses to be categorised as just a documentary, but rather cinematic immersion. Enabling nature's seduction to beguile and mesmerise. Towering peaks hypnotise to the accompaniment of Beethoven and Vivaldi's stringed odes. The Australian Chamber Orchestra supplying an additional poetic interpretation to the lofty heights of snow-capped summits. Panoramic horizons woven into a methodical observation, edited exquisitely to create a narrative flow. The first expedition to Everest. Humanity's eternal desire to achieve the unachievable. Modern tourism and its environmental impact. Extreme sports. Nature's water cycle. A symphony of characteristics brought together to enrapture those who dream of the bone deep cold. Stunning. Bewitching. Photographic beauty that is rarely surpassed onscreen. For every shot of these formidable rock formation, is a mental link that questions the psychology of humanity. A surprisingly affecting and visceral experience.

However, much like the terrain that is captured, its pace is uneven. The balance between physical and human geography tipped towards the latter. Aspects such as the water cycle, volcanic surplus and glacial formations failed to coincide with the human element that enveloped this documentary. Furnishing no insight other than to resemble a rudimentary geography lesson one would watch at school. The daredevil stunts, mountaineering expeditions and environmental detriments were at the forefront, fortunately. Still, even these aspects were depicted unevenly with the environmentalism garnering a total of five minutes of the runtime. Considering the feature is just over an hour long, its secondary message had insufficient time to manifest.

To end this review, a passage from Macfarlane's book, which should be read just for its exquisite poetry in itself, will suffice and perfectly sum up Mountain as a feature. "Stone and ice though are far less gentle to the hand's touch than to the mind's eye. The mountains of the Earth have often turned out to be more resistant, more fatally real, than the mountains we imagine".

Incredible movie, amazing music - I suppose not for everyone to enjoy, just the ones in love with nature, with mountains and classical music. It touched my heart.

The mountains were beautiful. The violin music was very annoying. The commentary was incipient. I thought that the movie was boring.

I've watched this several times and I'm in awe. The music, narration and visuals are breathtaking and outstanding. Editing was done brilliantly. Watch this in peace, with headphones and take a step into the allure of mountains.

Willam Dafoe's voice was humble and respectful when he narrated, the soundtrack, scores played by the orchestra were just sublime and quite matching what those great mountain scene after scene on the screen. There were so many of them so scary to watch. Those fearless climbers on the cliffs, those snowy vertical, dangerous ridges, my heart was uncontrollably pounding....A film about those high mountains, cold, relentless, fierce, silently ready to kill you....Gee, just don't know why so many people wanted to what they called "Conquer" those mountains and conquering themselves. Those mountains are just there, no matter what kind of objects or excuses that human beings trying to climb them to the tops. There were so many scenes that we could only barely see some tiny dots which were actually the human climbers. What I do know is, mountain climbing is a very expensive hobby or sports or whatever vanity that we human beings created. And such adventures are becoming more and more expensive now, more expensive than driving on the cities' street pavements.

I gladly take this film as it is, it dont mind they dont tell you which locations, i dont mind that it is adressing mountains and human interaction in a limited way, the images are incredible, the spoken words are deep but the MUSIC KILLED me, i had to mute. They should have used deep trance/lounge music not thee obnoxious violins

The 2017 film Mountain is a collaborative film between Australian Director Jennifer Peedom and the Australian Chamber Orchestra.

Director, Jennifer Peedom has really brought a crystal ball experience as a well-informed citizen of the world to the table, showing unearthly Mountains from around the globe to explore. Freakish opening visuals have been guided in by Rene Ozturk, narration by a Willem Dafoe and lastly a great music score to take refuge in by Richard Tognetti. It expertly touches on our consistently fragile and adventurous human nature. It's a perfect set up of creatives to entertain the viewer.

The music is a stand out element being utilized in sequences that balances electronic textures with other world like vocals that whisper in your ear, as you visually fall back to earth, alongside the daredevil mountain folk from an unscalable precipice. The Australian Chamber Orchestra deliver music by Vivaldi, and other classical composers perfectly supporting the epic montages with a fantastic hand.

There are great editing sequences throughout the film that let you experience intimately every the kinetic feeling of the insanity of jumping off a cliff, or tightrope walking between unfathomable red rock desert monsters. The sequences of the earth's seasonal rhythmic patterns pay tribute to our everyday emotions.

American Actor, Willem Dafoe voice deeply narrates the words of the British writer Robert Macfarlane like a timeless guide unpacking dialog that unlocks the mystery behind each mountain, whilst you wait quietly your fate.

Jen Peedom and the team have really taken us to the top of the form here. We are in her safe hands with plenty of poetic substance. Only advice is to go and see it.

Loved it!

Stunning visuals, however:

• The commentary is pompous, grandiloquent and abstract. It creates distance between the viewer and the material.

• The dramatic classical music can be really annoying to listen to and makes it all even more pompous.

• Not anywhere the sites are listed. Where are these mountains?

• There's not much meat on the bone. This could have been released as a slow TV screensaver. This is purely about the mountains. Climbers are just puppets on the mountains.

I can't recommend this unless you turn off the volume and enjoy the phenomenal visuals.

It is perfect for a screen saver, just make sure it is muted.

Fantastic footage, breathtaking scenes and empty story. Music can be pretty annoying as well.

Would have been great to know the names and locations of the different mountains.

Mesmerizing scenery and camera angles.

Film was lacking in overall theme/message.

It is about height, about being so high, about the highest peaks and those we note and those we climb in challenge and those challenge in recognition...

First and foremost, it should be stated that the cinematography for this doc was fantastic. A good chunk was done by the uber talented Renan Ozturk, who is arguably the greatest current mountaineer slash cinematographer on the planet. The accompanying classical music soundtrack was equally as enjoyable; it was a pleasant surprise to NOT hear the standard Mozart 41 or Beethoven's Moonlight. And while there were a few (appropriately used) pieces from the standard repertoire (eg Vivaldi's Four Seasons, Chopin Nocturnes...) there was an appreciable inclusion of names such as Grieg, Arvo Pärt, Tognetti, Sculthorpe, and several other contemporary composers. Placing Willem DaFoe into the role of Narrator was a smooth move as well, as it gave the world a break from (yet) another Morgan Freeman monologue but retained the unique and recognizable aural quality that often provides a sense of familiarity & comfort when we hear such a voice. Unfortunately, that's about where the praise ended for me.

As noted, the cinematography was stellar, but there were a couple of specific issues with the doc that I felt detracted from the potential:

#1) the entire doc was basically short, 3-10 second clips of various natural scenery stitched together as one long (well...70 minutes) piece. A majority of those clips, however, were culled from previously recorded sources, including Red Bull, The North Face, Patagonia, and a few others. In fact, I don't know how much of this footage was shot specifically for this doc, but it definitely was less than half. Maybe even WAY less than half. Frustratingly, as these 3-10 second clips of beautiful scenery crossed the screen, there was no identification of what we were seeing. No country, no massif, no mountain range...nothing. Just 70 minutes of stitched together clips, some music (which also wasn't identified, but that's not unusual), and Willem Dafoe popping in here and there. Which brings me to...

#2) Willem Dafoe. I really dig Dafoe's voice. It is instantly recognizable without being overbearing or irritating, rather, providing a sense of familiarity that allows the viewer to connect to these far off lands (well, kind of). How can that be a negative, you ask? Because the total time that Dafoe actually speaks is probably in the 15-20 minute range. And when he does speak, it's these cheesy, wannabe existential/spiritually deep attempts given as one-liners. For instance:

(no narration for 10 minutes, just music) "Time has flown over you but left its shadow behind." (back to music for 10ish minutes) "Mountains don't seek our love, or seek our deaths. They want nothing from us." (back to music)

You get the point. There is not a single narration that provides facts or discussion on what is on the screen. None...zero...zip...nada...just 70ish minutes of classical music interspersed with faux deep thought based one-liners from Willem Dafoe.

As mentioned above, it really irked me to see some of these incredibly beautiful places but not have them identified in any way. And even the credits only identified the countries where film was shot. No specifics in any way.

Similarly irkish was the way the last 15 minutes descended in to a typical National Geographic broadcast, playing clips of oceans, rivers, lava flows, swimming mammals, owls, and even salmon spawning. For 15 MINUTES! I mean, I love that stuff as much as the next nature nut, but what does it have to do with mountains? Sure...I could red-thread their connection, but that is certainly NOT what the doc was about. I dunno...it just seemed like a lazy way to end the 70 minutes.

So yeh...there you go. There were some really nice things to look at, but the whole thing was just kind of lazy, if you ask me. Had they wanted to focus on the mountains (hence the title, "Mountain") a detailed script containing geographic locations and locales along with accompanying histories or descriptions of the people shown in the clips would have been much preferred. Maybe I'm in the minority with all my opinions here, but it just missed the mark with me. Or I could be getting old and missed the point entirely. So GET OFF MY LAWN!!!

One of the best documentaries I've ever seen. Beautiful cinematography and music that really fits the theme. It just flows from start to finish. Well worth watching...

Magnificent cinematography and a range of music from classical to contemporary. Footage of mountains on all 7 continents. Saw this with a friend who's an excellent skiier and even he was blown away.

I just really enjoyed the experience of watching this movie. I thank this film for showing me the beauty I have not yet experienced.

I saw that a lot of people hated the narration and the music and said it sounded like cacophony, but for me they both worked really great. In fact I especially liked the slightly twisted and heavy feeling the opening music gave. It lightened something up inside of me with its magic and led me through this unforgettable journey.

I found it very irritating how the movie was going on and on about how mountaineering is completely new. Humans have suddenly come to the realisation that they are beatiful. Of course they haven't Mountains have been the scene for adventures forever.

"To those who are enthralled by mountains their wonder is beyond all dispute... to those who are not, their allure is a kind of madness!"

It takes us through that inexplicable journey to a higher plane with some explanations on how you get into that mad spell in first place.That "the mountains we climb are not only made of rock and ice, but also dreams and desire.They are mountains of the mind!" It also weighs up that sublime takeaway of an expedition by beautifully summarizing how one comes back to the world from heights with experiences that cannot be expressed or be priced.

A moving visual marvel that leaves the ones who seeks the pinnacles within and the summits laid out out by the nature, spellbound!

Not all people go to mountains or do extreme sports such as rock or ice climbing, skiing, free flying, bungee cording or mountain biking and things like that ... but i'm sure those who do (even those who don't, but love to do it and thus highly admire those who do!) will surely LOVE this 'poetic documentary' movie!

the type of docu you can keep a copy of and watch many times and --as some others have noted in their reviews here-- "meditate" with this masterpiece ... most feature films lose their 'magic' (if any!) after a few times of watching but kind of documentary is not like that ... you can go back to it once in a while as if it's a kind of drug or medicine your body and mind needs in order to feel better!

beautifully shot flawless imagery, perfectly matching musical picks with exceptionally well done arrangements performed masterly, thoughtful revealing narration ... an adventurous exploration of humans inner soul offered in a not too short not too long work of art worthy of being archived for future generations to enjoy and delve into knowing what and who we are ...

As many have said here, they were cognizant of music that didn't fit the project. They're right - it was "dreadful" at least just past the halfway point. I was transfixed by what I was seeing, and tried hard to avoid what I could hear, except of course of the fine work by Willem Dafoe.

I loved seeing mountain adventures that went far beyond my imagination. So many ways to climb mountains; climb, ski, mountain biking and jumping off of them~

The final 15 minutes was majestic - the music improved and I was very glad to have seen the athleticism of so many young, talented people.

Of late I have watched quite a few "Mountain" films & documentaries and haven't been impressed until this one. Initially I couldn't help but compare it to Ron Fricke's films but this film has it's own unique impact.

My words are paltry compared to those read by Willem Dafoe who narrated this so please watch & enjoy this beautiful work. Both the cinematography & music are exemplary. Richard Tognetti's music along with Mr. Beethoven's will transport you if you allow it to. Vivaldi was in there too. I only wish I could have seen this in a cinema. I wonder if the soundtrack is available?