The Endurance

One of the most amazing and grueling survival stories is retold in George Butler’s 2000 documentary. This is the same guy that brought us Pumping Iron 1 and 2 and basically introduced us all to Arnold. That aside, this film marks the end of an apparent eleven-year hiatus from filmmaking. Regardless of the fact that this film seems well constructed and visually stunning with its inclusion of historic photographs, the story would be compelling if told over a black screen. Ernest Shackleton’s failed Antarctic endeavor is both devastating and captivating. Well more than a year spent navigating the ice flows of the southern continent, most of the time fighting for survival, did little to dampen his determination and will. In what should have been a tragic misadventure resulting in many deaths was instead a laborious rescue operation resulting in zero deaths.

Butler’s film is at once jaw-dropping and inspiring thanks to Shackleton’s story. This film is a testament to the medium’s ability to capture the power of the human spirit as well as the intensity of the world we occupy. Butler would follow this up with Shackleton’s Antarctic Adventure the next year.