WHAT IT'S ABOUT: In the context of rock climbing, the title "Free Solo" becomes self-explanatory: It's the act of climbing a rock formation alone and without equipment. Aside from good sneakers and a bit of friction-inducing chalk on the palms, there is nothing to prevent a free soloist from a fatal fall. These climbers are a niche group, for obvious reasons, but one, Alex Honnold, has become a minor celebrity for his increasingly difficult ascents. "Free Solo," which just won the Oscar for best documentary, follows Honnold's quest to become the first free soloist to scale El Capitan, a 3,000-foot-tall rock formation in California's Yosemite National Park.
MY SAY: Directed by spouses Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, "Free Solo" is a powerful combination of outdoor adventure story and thoughtful character study. The moment we meet Honnold, a lean and weathered 30-something with boyish jug ears, it's clear he's the real deal. Whatever wealth climbing has brought him, Honnold still lives a van, as he has for years. He eats meals with a spatula, wears the same clothes each day and bathes at friends' houses. Neither glory nor fame is much in evidence; Honnold just seems to climb, climb, climb. (He also founded a nonprofit devoted to clean energy.)
Relationships don't seem to interest him, but a sparkly-eyed blonde named Sanni McCandless recently slipped him her number at a book signing. The last thing Honnold needs while climbing El Capitan is a woman worrying about his safety _ he's worried enough _ but McCandless is so good-natured and game that she's hard to resist. She piles into the van, too. "She's cute and small and livens the place up a bit," Honnold says grudgingly.
