Kilimanjaro - To the Roof of Africa (Large Format) | 
 enlarge | Director: David Breashears
Actors: Heidi Albertsen, Nicole Wineland-thomson, Roger Bilham, Audrey Salkeld, Hansi Mmari
Studio: Sling Shot
Category: DVD
List Price: $19.99
Buy New: $5.51
You Save: $14.48 (72%)
New (29) Used (6) from $5.49
Avg. Customer Rating:  11 reviews
Sales Rank: 20733
Format: Color, Dvd-video, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), French (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 70
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: D9904D
UPC: 017078990423
EAN: 0017078990423
ASIN: B00006IUK4
Theatrical Release Date: March 1, 2002
Release Date: October 8, 2002
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: New! Mint in case. Factory sealed.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 6 more reviews...
 Great Kili DVD October 19, 2005
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Excellent film... shame that IMAX films are typically only 40 mins long.. but the dvd has extra features such as a 'making of' which adds to the package. From someone who's climbed the mountain the movie is a nice reminder of the experience.. some amazing aerial shots... worth the money just for those.
 GREAT MOVIE! Inspiring! June 9, 2005
9 out of 10 found this review helpful
This movie was great! It had beautiful cinematography and it was great seeing it on the IMAX screen!
I felt that it was inspiring and made me want to climb Kilimanjaro myself.
I saw it 2 times in theaters, then bought it on
DVD.
In the movie, they show 5 ordinary people brave the mountain. They go throught 5 different climate
zones, all beautiful and mysterious in their own ways. This movie also teaches you about Kilimanjaro itself,
the Great Rift Valley, and other unique features. The narrator and trek leader- Jacob. The trekkers- (adults) Roger, Heidi, Audrey, (kids) Hans, and Nicole (also Nicole's father, but you don't really get to now him) are ages 12-64 years old. David Breashears, the Director/Producer says he pick those 5 people to represent the audience- the ordinary people.
The movie shows each trekkers journey with interviews along the way.
Also another great feature of the film is the music. Composer Alan Williams really brings to life the beauty, power, and mystery of Kilimanjaro with the great score!
Other reviews criticize this movie because they don't show how hard it is to climb this mountain and what not. I say WHO CARES?!?!?!?!?! THis movie isn't about the hardships of making it to the top, it's about Kilimanjaro; its beauty, power, and mystery.
There are special features on the DVD that are a Making of Kilimanjaro: To the Roof of Africa, production slide show, quiz, and what else is on DVD.
Kilimanjaro: To the Roof of Africa is a great and inspiring movie that moves you.
Needs some straight-talk on Western Breach October 4, 2004
51 out of 52 found this review helpful
I came across this DVD a couple months before leaving for Kilimanjaro and enjoyed it much. If you are going to climb the mountain via the Western Breach route, purchase is a no-brainer.
It, along with a Nova documentary that appeared about the same time, seems to have contributed to an explosion of thousands of Americans climbing Kilimanjaro in the last 3 years. Said one porter-aid worker I met in in Moshi, "Americans used to be rare in Tanzania, but in the last 2-3 years, they are suddenly common ...". Everyone I met seemed to have viewed or been prompted to go by these two videos.
The film is definately IMAX-ie; beautiful photography, nice swelling music, numerous scenes of herds of animals fleeing in terror along the plains of Africa as the camera swoops down from an airplane overhead. You get the idea.
The narrator (mountain guide Jacob Kyungai) intones that climbers of Kilimanjaro are "ordinary people people, mostly", then goes on to introduce a Gilligan's Island cast of climbers, picked to reflect (or engage) the folk who might go to the science museum IMAX theater on a Saturday afternoon -- as compared to those who actually climb Kili.
You have The Professor (Roger Bilham, an expert volcanologist), Ginger/Mary-Ann (Heidi Albertsen, identified on the DVD only as "Trekker: Denmark", but in reality a New York super-model you have probably seen more often on the cover of women's magazines at your grocery store check-out line), a couple of precocious 12-going-on-25 year old kids (self-possessed and well-behaved, every Yuppie parent's dream-child), a writer (Audrey Salkeld), and Rick Thomson, who barely made it out of the editing room, but is the father of the 12 year old girl (and was in a bad car accident shortly before the climb and had a pin in his hip, etc.)
Basically, the film shows a sort of idealized climb. This is not a movie about man against nature, or pushing the limits of human endurance. It's about a beautiful, diverse mountain and some "ordinary" (*cough*) people who went to the top.
Bottom line: if you are going to experience a Kilimanjaro climb, it's hard to beat tagging along with an expert volcanologist and a super-model.
The DVD contains a "Making of" feature that is of even more interest to prospective climbers than the main film. Behind-the-scenes shots of the logistics and events provides context to the apparent effortless serenity of the main feature.
The problem with the film is this: having climbed Kilimanjaro (via Lemosho - Shira -Western Breach route), the depiction of the Western Breach is disturbingly glossy. This problem is not unique to this film; it exists in the Nova documentary and virtually all text and sales-pitches advocating the Western Breach. Basically, the pitch is that the Western Breach route is "non-technical" and suitable for anyone in good physical condition who is capable of hiking for 6-8 hours a day.
The reality is there are at least 4 spots where you will find yourself clinging to an ice-covered rock, searching for slight finger & toe-hold indentations as you skitter 20-30 feet sideways. Miss a finger or toe, have a balance problem, or slip more than one hold, and you will fall 1000 feet to the rocks below. And aside from those 4 sections, a misstep or slip on any of the rest of the breach also means falling hundreds of feet. And keep in mind you are likely wearing a 20+ pound pack with several pounds of water. Basically, anything is "non-technical" if you don't use safety equipment.
The Western Breach is precarious and dangerous. In the film, they show the cast clambering over refrigerator-sized, step-like blocks of stone. This amounts to at most 15% of the climb. The rest is not really shown, probably because it is too precarious to get footage of. A parent allowing a 13-year old on this route is inconceivable to me, unless ropes and support equipment were used to assist.
While clinging to ice-covered rocks and seeing nothing but air beneath my feet, my initial reaction was anger at the public-relations puff-job in this movie and other sources. This was quickly subsumed by the desire to simply stay alive, repeated a couple dozen times that day.
While this movie might lead people in good shape, used to jogging around the park or hiking the local hills, into thinking it's no big deal to climb Kilimanjaro via WB ("hey, a couple 13 year olds did it"), the reality is inexplicably different than the PR. You have been warned.
By the way, if you read the companion book to this film, there is a note at the end that mentions that a few months after filming, the cast and crew was reassembled and climbed Kilimanjaro AGAIN (a 2nd time) to obtain more shots.
NICE IMAGES, NOT TOO EXCITING August 13, 2004
10 out of 10 found this review helpful
This is a very nice video in which you get the see all the amazing sites of Kilimanjaro. After having climbed, I can say that it is as nice as it seems in this video.
The only problem with the video is that there is not too much excitement upon achieving each of the stages. Reaching the summit is very anti-climatic, as they simply walk onto it. Perhaps it would be impossible to express the true excitement and beauty of the summit, but I do believe they could have tried harder.
If you are planning a trip to Kilimanjaro, it is a nice video to see what you are going to face. But don't rely on it to predict the difficulties, I think it is a bit more difficult and a bit more exciting than they make it out to be.
Great flick November 25, 2003
10 out of 11 found this review helpful
I enjoyed this movie a lot... went to the IMAX theater 3 times to see it! The cinematography is terrific... some totally unbelievable views. Made me want to go and climb the thing (sabbatical coming next summer)! Anyone who likes the mountains/hiking/climbing should see it... go to the IMAX to see it first, then order the DVD.I agree that they could have spent more time showing the climbers personal experiences. There was a "Naked Planet" special on Kili that was on PBS a couple of years ago, that did it much better. Just a few clarifications to som of the other reviews: the approach is via the Machame Route, but the summit climb is via the Great Western Breach, which is the most difficult trekking route on the mountain. The route that is known as the Coca-cola route, is the Marangu route, which is the most popular route on the mountain, that also has the highest failure rate, because it ascends too fast.
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