Over the years there have been many films about overcoming extreme adversity to achieve a goal. On the fictional end of the movie spectrum films like this are frequently sports films like ‘Rocky’. While they may make the audience feel good as they watch the hero do what everyone told him was impossible in the back of our minds we known they are fiction. There have been some that were based on real people but the real gems of this genre are to be found in the venue of the documentary. One movie made in this vein is inspiring lifting the spirits of the viewers; ‘Blindsight’ by Lucy Walker. It is about the most unlikely of people and circumstances. A group of six Tibetan teenagers climb the Lhakpa-Ri peak of Mount Everest. Six young people taking on such a dangerous and daunting task is amazing but when you consider that they were all blind it is mind boggling. One other thing that adds to the unbelievable nature of this trek is their climbing guide was also blind. Most able bodied adults in the peak of physical condition would not even think of making such a climb. The genius of the film is that is does not take the path you might expect. The actual trek, as incredible an feat as it is, doesn’t not take center stage here. What really matters is the group of young men and women who took on this astonishing challenge. This serves to personalize the film drawing in the audience not only to the events but the people engaged in it. The film was produced for a minuscule budget of just over $100,000. No studio would touch something like this; it was never destined to become a box office smash hit. It is very obvious that money was not the goal here for the film makers. They wanted to share the courage of these teens with the world and in that they succeeded. The film started is own travels through the international independent film festivals back in 2006 and as of a few months ago was still in a few of them. There was also a limited domestic and foreign release but none of these venues have offered the film the wide recognition it so richly deserves. It won several fairly major festival awards over the course of the last couple of years. Image Entertainment searches through the Indy film world and provide DVD releases for some of the best around. This is something to watch with the entire family. The inspiration it presents will touch the lives of all who watch.

This is the sophomore film for director Lucy Walker. Don’t let the short resume fool you; she has already begun to make a name for herself in the Indy film world as one of the documentary directors to watch. She has some television credits in the hit children’s series ‘Blue’s Clues’, but the real splash made by Ms Walker was with her documentary ‘Devil’s Playground’, a 2002 film about Amish teens on rumspringa. This is a period in their culture when they are free to go out into the world before making the final decision to become part of the Amish community. I have seen that film and was immediately impressed with the skill Walker demonstrated in handling a sensitive subject. Walker appears to prefer topics that center on young people facing a cross roads in their lives. She hasn’t taken the easy path in either of her films. Walker takes on topics that are about a small section of society but the way she tells their stories highlights the universal nature of just what these teens are facing. Fr this film the tag line sums it up nicely; ‘they lost their sight, not their vision’. Walker is a woman with great vision and has focused her considerable talent to a pair of the most worth while documentaries I have seen in many years. The topics such as the one under consideration here do not lend themselves to the tricks of perspective that many documentary film makers have relied on in the recent past. Walker does something rare and wonderful with her film; the subjects present the material from their own vantage point.

Just when you think this film could not be more poignant Walker raises the bar even more. In this country the handicapped are not only protected by law our culture is generally one that provides understanding and assistance to those with physical disabilities. As a person in a wheelchair I have witnessed first hand someone with an attitude towards the handicapped but for the most part people threat the disable with respect and consideration. This is not the case in Tibet where these brave teens come from. In many Buddhist nations a disability such as blindness is considered a result of demons or retribution for sins in a previous life. These teenagers grew up cursed, shunned and neglected by their neighbors and frequently their own families. These courageous young people where not just proving that their blindness was not the hindrance most think of; they were proving their humanity and right to be treated as such. Sitting in your comfortable living room watching this film should make you extremely thankful. It is almost impossible to think that the blind and disabled are still considered as deserving of their handicaps through some cosmic retribution but this attitude is still very much alive in parts of the world. A film like this not only demonstrates the soaring strength of the human spirit it is able to make you aware of situations in the world that you most likely never thought still existed. Most documentaries can barely make a single point. This film manages to succeed in a two fold mission and does both in an exceptional fashion. It is just not possible to watch this film and not be moved on the deepest emotional level possible.

Ms Walker is not only an excellent director she is a fantastic cinematographer. The beauty of the mountains in the distance; the peak looming ever close is breathtaking. These young people took on an ascent of over 23,000 feet. That is over 4.3 miles. Many Americans would be heavily challenged walking that distance on a level street. The air becomes thin, almost un-breathable. The climb pushes every muscle in their young bodies. Next time you think the day at the offices was unbearable just watch this movie and put your troubles into a different perspective. Most of the story is about the six young people taking on this trek. They are quite, polite and usually it takes a lot to get anything out of them. They are humble in the face of a great accomplishment and that only adds to the magnificence of this film. Image Entertainment has a lot of variety in their catalogue but this one is truly special. Gather the family around and see what determination can bring about.