‘Endurance’ Review: Ernest Shackleton’s 1914 Voyage to the Icy Bottom of the Earth Comes to Life in a You-Are-There Documentary

As a film enthusiast who’s spent countless hours lost in the annals of cinema history, I must admit that “Endurance: Shackleton’s Legendary Antarctic Expedition” left an indelible impression on me. It’s not every day you get to witness a real-life adventure that feels like it’s straight out of a storybook or a time machine.

The legendary journey of Ernest Shackleton, an Anglo-Irish explorer, who embarked on an Antarctic expedition in 1914 with 27 men aboard the three-masted barquentine schooner Endurance, is a tale that seems more fitting for history books or fairy tales. It’s a story so distant from our contemporary era, deeply embedded in a pre-technological age, that envisioning such an event as it unfolds feels almost magical.

Despite having a knack for dramatic publicity in the early 20th century, Shackleton invited a filmmaker to join his expedition team – Frank Hurley, a skilled photographer and cinematographer. This allowed their challenging journey to be captured on film, including their days stuck at the earth’s bottom, surrounded by endless pack ice. Even as they faced this prolonged ordeal, their daily routines, research, and the entire frozen-in-time experience were being documented through photography and recordings.

The Titanic’s journey took place in 1912, a couple of years prior to Shackleton’s expedition. If only we could have seen the Titanic’s tragic event on camera, the footage lost beneath the waves and then rediscovered later. It would be as if we were watching history unfold right before our eyes, an eerie experience indeed. The videos of Shackleton and his crew stir a similar sense of wonderment. They have a time-traveling effect. I first came across this footage, along with the entire tale, when I watched “The Endurance: Shackleton’s Legendary Antarctic Expedition,” a captivating documentary from 2001 about the expedition. In many ways, this film had a magical, nautical allure.

“Endurance” – A NatGeo Documentary on Shackleton’s Voyage

In 1985, the wreckage of the Titanic was found. From then on, finding the wreck of Endurance became like seeking the legendary Holy Grail in underwater historical expeditions. However, comparing this quest to Shackleton’s journey is a bit simplistic (as if the journeys were even comparable!). Still, the movie serves as a reflection on the essence of two different eras: one grounded in the values of the 19th century – faith, awe, man battling against nature – and the other characterized by technology. One era seems spiritual, while the other appears secular. Unfortunately, the interweaving of the stories doesn’t necessarily heighten the film’s tension, but it is satisfying to see them intersect.

Titled “Endurance,” this thrilling documentary film is directed by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin, and Natalie Hewitt. It’s a gripping exploration of an adventurous journey, using Shackleton’s letters and diaries as source material. In one entry, Shackleton expressed his profound excitement about discovering places and things that no human had ever laid eyes on before, sent to his wife from the Antarctic expedition – his fourth attempt to conquer this frozen land. Regrettably, he never reached his goal. Ignoring the warnings of whalers in South Georgia regarding treacherous conditions, Shackleton, driven by a constant need for funding, decided to press on. Six months later, they found themselves trapped in the icy Weddell Sea, and their ship soon sank beneath the waves.

The men in the archived footage appear surprisingly calm, perhaps due to their preparations. They were equipped with supplies, lifeboats, each weighing a substantial amount when filled with equipment, which they had to manually transport over the ice. In a later event, after reaching Elephant Island and finding themselves at their limits, Shackleton led a group of five men on a perilous 800-mile voyage by sea to South Georgia. Upon arrival, they still had to traverse this land mass, climbing mountains and navigating icy crevasses. This situation exudes an unimaginable harshness that embodies the spirit of faith.

I was initially skeptical of movies using colorization and sound effects, having been opposed to such techniques until I witnessed Peter Jackson’s groundbreaking World War I documentary “They Shall Not Grow Old.” The century-old footage in the movie “Endurance” has been tastefully updated, preserving its authenticity. However, I found the inclusion of re-enactments somewhat disappointing. Instead, I believe it’s more effective to allow our imaginations to fill in the blanks. Nevertheless, what is presented in “Endurance” is nothing short of awe-inspiring and leaves me speechless.

2024-11-08 06:16

‘Endurance’ Review: Ernest Shackleton’s 1914 Voyage to the Icy Bottom of the Earth Comes to Life in a You-Are-There Documentary

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