Astonishing Mountain-Climbing Doc 'Meru' Is Our Thanksgiving VOD Pick

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A photograph of Conrad Anker on the Meru expedition, courtesy of filmmaker and climber Jimmy Chin

You know about Mount Everest, but have you heard of Meru? The central peak of the Himalayan mountain, nicknamed the “Shark’s Fin,” is an even more difficult and dangerous climb than the world’s tallest mountain: A 21,000-foot journey culminating in a sheer vertical wall of ice. Many climbers have attempted to scale the Shark’s Fin, but until recently, none had succeeded. The extraordinary 2015 documentary Meru tells the story of three men who decided to undertake the perilous journey — and when they failed, made the life-threatening decision to go back. Newly available on VOD, the real-life adventure story is the perfect film to watch with your family this Thanksgiving; the visuals are stunning, the story is mind-boggling, and it will give you plenty of conversation fodder that has nothing to do with the 2016 election. Watch a trailer below.

Meru centers on three climbers who undertook the Meru expedition together in 2008 and 2011: legendary mountaineer Conrad Anker, accomplished climber and photographer Jimmy Chin, and up-and-coming rock climber Renan Ozturk. The film delves into their respective life stories, exploring the question of why mountaineers will put their lives on the line repeatedly to scale impossible peaks. Interviews with family members are accompanied by useful exposition from Jon Krakauer, the author of Into Thin Air among other books, who is well-acquainted with both the climbers themselves and the risk they are undertaking.

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Renan Ozturk (left) and Conrad Anker build a portaledge camp at 19,000 feet on the fifth day of the expedition. (Photo: Jimmy Chin)

What really makes Meru stand apart from similar documentaries, however, is that climber Jimmy Chin co-directed the film, and shares a cinematography credit with Ozturk. (The other director is Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, who happened to fall in love with Chin during the production; they’re now married.) In other words: The movie doesn’t need to rely on re-enactments, because the climbers shot the expeditions themselves. Their footage is astounding, from birds-eye views of the Himalayas that few humans have ever seen, to intimate footage of the three men roasting leftover cheese rinds in a bag-like tent (called a portaledge) that hangs precariously from Meru’s icy face.

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‘Meru’ directors Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival (Photo: Larry Busacca/Getty Images)

The film’s extensive talking-head interviews with the climbers pretty much give away the fact that they all lived to tell the tale. But that doesn’t dull the shock when one expedition member experiences a devastating accident, nor does it take away from the suspense when the climbers embark on their second Shark’s Fin journey. For those of us whose most ambitious plans this weekend involve digesting three kinds of pie, Meru is a chance to experience a genuinely thrilling adventure without leaving the comfort of your couch.