Steep: Boring Interviews Turn Documentary Into 90-Minute Advertisement

"Steep" is a documentary based on extreme skiing. It combines interviews with the top big-mountain skiers, archival footage and stunning clips of beautiful mountain scenery. The movie takes us from the early beginnings of the sport 35 years ago to today's modern daredevils of the downhill. To extreme skiers, the line between exhilaration and insanity can sometimes get a little blurry.

This film starts out showing us the beginning of the sport, when Bill Briggs made his solo ascent and descent of Grand Teton in 1971. From there it follows the general history of this mad sport until we arrive in today's time. Each generation of skiers has attempted to find more dangerous slopes and perform more outrageous stunts than their predecessors. These are not your typical Vail vacationers. These are serious, hard-core people who don't feel alive unless their lives are on the line.

"Steep" lets us peek into the careers of the sports biggest names, showing us interviews and some amazing footage. We're also treated to a number of vintage clips of past big-mountain ski legends. Such names as Plake, Backstrom, Coombs, and McConkey, while unfamiliar to most people are the heroes of this sport. Places like Valdez, Alaska and Chamonix, France are their destinations of choice.

Most of the interviews tell the same story of how living on the edge is the only way to live. Unfortunately, most of the film revolves around these interviews, which get repetitive rather quickly. If it weren't for the stunning clips of alpine acrobatics that occasionally punctuate the movie, this would be one long advertisement for extreme skiing. While the ski footage is exciting and visually stunning, it isn't enough to hold your attention through the tedious interviews of folks explaining how life is better on the edge, over and over and over. If you're a fan of skiing or extreme sports, you'll probably enjoy this documentary. If you aren't a big fan of either, this movie will just be a waste of 90 minutes of your life.