THE SUMMIT OF THE GODS

"I know why. There doesn't have to be a reason. For some, mountains aren't a goal, but a path. And the summit, a step. Once there, all that's left is to keep going." - Makoto Fukamachi

With the saturation of Disney and Pixar in the animation world, the expectation of animated feature films has been tainted. With sing-along songs, bright colors, and emotive characters, the ubiquity of Disney animation has become the industry norm. Nineties classics like ‘Beauty and the Beast’ and ‘Aladdin’ helped establish a certain predictable childhood formula, and that played true in several leading animated films last year from Lin Manuel Miranda’s ‘Viva’ to Disney’s ‘Luca’ and ‘Encanto.’ So what is to be expected going into Patrick Imbert’s French adaptation ‘The Summit of the Gods?’ What is there to truly gain from a 2D animated film about a photojournalist documenting the climb of Mt Everest? The answer… everything.

Based on the manga series written and illustrated by Jiro Taniguchi, ‘The Summit of the Gods’ follows young photojournalist Makoto Fukamachi on his quest to discover the first person to successfully climb Mount Everest. Originally the feat was claimed in 1953 until a camera was found by climber Habu Joji. The camera's owner, George Mallory, went missing in 1924 after attempting to be the first to climb Mount Everest. Fukamachi becomes obsessed with obtaining this photo evidence, of which would prove Mallory was actually the first to climb Everest. In doing so, Fukamachi becomes more involved with Joji, leading to the preeminent expedition, climbing Mount Everest together.

A boring script and average cinematography can be saved by the performances of the actors. Animation, unfortunately, doesn’t have this luxury. With the transition to 3D animation in the last decade, many animation studios are able to skillfully add more realistic emotions and vivacious characters to their films. However, some animated films like ‘The Summit of the Gods’ have such powerful stories and cerebral subject matters that 2D animation actually doesn’t impede the impact of the story. Because of the simplistic nature of the film, the audience is forced to rely on the emotionally driven narrative, as opposed to colorful, distracting animation antics.

The most respectful aspect of this film is its ability to know when to have dialogue and when to embrace silence. This allows every piece of dialogue to hold more weight and importance. Whether a profound metaphor about life or pensive remark about self reliance, everything spoken feels necessary for the development of the plot. These long stretches of silence grant the score and cinematography more priority, providing time to process emotions and soak in each frame. The viewers are pushed to be introspective, forced to turn inward and dissect success and how that plays into the human condition. The audience becomes more than just observers on the other side of the screen, they are immersed onto the mountainside and feel the pang of fear during every misstep, catch their breath during every gust of wind.

The biggest thematic home-run in ‘The Summit of the Gods” happens midway through the film. What starts off as a yearning for knowledge and truth regarding the first climb on Everest turns into a much different type of journey of self perseverance. The core of this film traverses the question; why do people push themselves to the brink of death in the pursuit of being first? It becomes less of a documentary type narrative and turns into a dramatic journey to self discovery. This existential narrative shift is swift and silent, and completes a full circle emotional dilemma. The complexity of this question is what makes the story so compelling: Why do we push ourselves so hard? What are we looking for in doing so? Does the end justify the means if you have to risk your life to do it? And if you do succeed, if you do climb to the top the fastest, what next? Did you find what you were looking for?

'The Summit of the Gods' is a lesson that all types of animation deserves our viewership. Given the chance, lots of creative, out of the box, messier types of animation can have more of an emotional impact and represent something deeper. Simple, concise, meaningful in every stroke, Imbert provides a spiritual journey down the road less traveled. Everybody has a Mt. Everest to climb, the path to fulfillment is never easy, but how do you know what’s on the other side if you don’t try?