Everest (12)

MOBBERLEY mountaineer George Mallory once famously said he wanted to climb Everest 'because it's there'.

He became one of the first to attempt to climb Earth's highest mountain before he died 800ft from the 29,029ft summit in 1924.

It is remarkable that more than 90 years on, Everest continues to inspire climbers from around the world despite the extreme risks.

And director Baltasar Kormákur was wise to base his film on a true story from 1996 – because the incredible tales of people who have climbed the Nepal mountain do not need a Hollywood makeover.

Kormákur, who directed the acclaimed Icelandic films Jar City and 101 Reykjavík, looks back at the era when Everest was overcrowded by commercial expeditions.

The film is led by Jason Clarke as patient and kind expedition leader Rob Hall. With a baby on the way, he agrees to lead one last group of clients, of varying degrees of inexperience, to the peak before becoming a father.

But rival groups working against each other, small but fatal mistakes in planning and a ferocious snowstorm begin to put lives at serious risk.

The star-studded cast also includes Jake Gyllenhaal, Keira Knightley, Josh Brolin, John Hawkes, Robin Wright, Michael Kelly, Sam Worthington and Emily Watson.

And despite having many stories to tell from that doomed expedition, Kormákur just about holds it together.

Credit also goes to the director for his restrained style, letting the drama of the true events speak for itself.

If you have the opportunity to watch Everest in high definition do so because the cinematography is breathtaking, showing the mountain in all its awe-inspiring glory.

It will go some way in helping viewers understand why the mountain gives people the courage and endurance to take on this force of nature.

DAVID MORGAN