I saw Meru three days ago and still feel giddy with vicarious altitude sickness. Stunned with admiration for the three people who not only conquered The Shark's Fin but produced this film so other wimps like me could be blown away by its grandeur. I kept asking myself, "How are they filming these scenes and still climbing?" Getting one's body to the top of the Shark's Fin is astounding, let alone lugging cameras and setting up for shots. Any OMG, the scenes are to take one's breath away and they are succeeding at almost 20K feet up in the sky and at 20 degrees below zero at times. Adding footage about the death of fellow climbers really brings the deep soul motivation of these three men to the heart. Not to mention that Renan Ozturk pulled this off after crushing his skull and breaking his neck a half year prior to conquering Meru.

Watched it after reading the good reviews on IMDb. The reviews are right in many ways, at least the positive ones.First this is not a movie . This is real life with real drama , tragedy , courage , hope and a celebration of human spirit.The documentary captures the eerie beauty and loneliness of the most amazing mountain range in the world. There is cracking footage of 3 courageous men slowly inching up to the summit 20000 ft above land.At times the viewer will feel the very real vertigo , the absolute silence , the sheer complexity of the climb. It is said that this route to Meru is the most difficult in the list of mountaineering challenges.The night sky looks like you are in space literally. I guess the climbers had the fortune of good weather resulting in beautiful cinematography .What some may find equally moving and beautiful is the story of each of their struggles and how they use the climb to the top as a catharsis of sorts.Best documentary in a long long time.

Wow, this is one of the greatest viewing experiences I've ever had. The whole film put yourself as one of the team climbers with these three great, stubborn, die-hard, totally obsessed mountain climbers. What a cathartic therapy viewing journey! The Meru is just part of the Himalaya but more pure and an absolutely non-commercial summit unlike the Everest. We didn't see any littered garbage like what we usually saw along the route to Everest. When I watched this film, I couldn't help thinking of those films related to the mountain climbing: K2, Into The Thin Air, Everest, Cliff Hanger, Vertical Limit, even a old thriller, The Elgar Sanction. But this particular film would stand out quite uniquely. A simple narration, not exaggerated, not pretentious, not self-important or self-promoted with strong commercial stink. And the camera work, my, so crystal sharp and beautiful. I think 'Everest 2015' is way off the chart if compares to this one, plain and simple.If you have the chance to watch this film, don't miss it, folks.

I am surprised by the high reviews of this film. I enjoyed this film, but it was good not great. The entire film heavily relies on the account of four interviews including the three climbers in what seems like a single interview with each. There were many dramatic moments that could and should have been captured on film, but were instead reenacted. In "Meru" the drama surrounding the endeavor to summit Meru is soft and the stakes are not clear. Better execution of storytelling and drama in the climb movie sub-genre can be found in films like "Touching the Void," "La Dura," and the TV series "Everest: Beyond the Limit." In those films the stakes of the endeavor are real, present, and apparent thought the storytelling. One of the reasons I think opportunities for drama in "Meru" are missed is because one of the climbers was also the director of the film. A few events that seemed important were somewhat glossed over. Although it is a documentary this film still has characters, and I am not a fan of a character that closes a long drawn out sub-plot with, "so yea, I survived." Again, the film is good, not great. Edit: I am told that the shot that are captured are what make this film great. If you say so, I'll watch again, I guess.