A One Mann’s Movies review of “Skywalkers: A Love Story” (2024).
Occasionally, a documentary will throw up a subject that absolutely astounds and horrifies you. “Free Solo” was one. The tale of a climber, Alex Honnold, who attempts to conquer the first free solo climb of the famed El Capitan’s 900-metre vertical rock face at Yosemite National Park. A vertiguous tour de force of a film. “The Deepest Breath” was another similarly scary film, revealing the terrifying dangers – this time ‘down’ rather than ‘up’ – experienced by world-record-seeking free divers. “Skywalkers: A Love Story” is equally jaw-dropping, exploring the crazy and illegal world of ‘tower-climbers’: young men and women risking life and limb to scale the tallest structures in the world in the interests of social media fame and fortune.
Bob the Movie Man Rating:
Documentary Summary:
Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus are two Russian ‘rooftoppers’ and bloggers who scale high structures, without any safety equipment, posting their photos and videos to commercially-sponsored blog sites. The independent climbers come together for a specific climb, fall in love and then become the world’s most well-known action bloggers, turning their ‘sport’ into an art-form. The pair have their sights set on scaling a brand new and terrifying structure – the Merdeka 118 tower in Kuala Lumpur – and performing an even more terrifying stunt while at the top.
Certification:
UK: 18; US: R. (From the BBFC web site: “Dangerous and criminal behaviour”. This is an interesting certification, since – aside from some upsetting scenes – there is no explicit sex, violence or bad language that would normally necessitate an ’18’. This certificate is purely to discourage younger teens, with their un-developed sense of self-preservation, from taking part in copy-cat attempts.)
Talent:
Starring: Angela Nikolau, Ivan Beerkus.
Directed by: Jeff Zimbalist & Maria Bukhonina.
Written by: Jeff Zimbalist.
Running Time: 1h 40m.
“Skywalkers: A Love Story“ Summary:
Positives:
- Truly astonishing footage.
- Heart-stopping moments that terrify far more than any fictional horror/thriller output.
- A really insightful analysis of the physical and mental requirements of the couple and the strains it puts on their relationship.
Negatives:
- You question whether something so reckless and illegal should be publicised at all.
Review of “Skywalkers: A Love Story”:
“Fall” but for real
The 2022 movie “Fall” saw two reckless young female Youtubers climbing a desert radio-tower. It has some really vertiguous moments that have your heart in your mouth. Watching “Skywalkers” reproduces those feeling of terror, but multiplies them by ten because you know that these individuals are doing this for real…. and without the benefit of ropes or any form of safety equipment. We do see some of the young couple’s compatriots making a single, simple mistake and plummeting to their deaths. So, given we have become invested in the young couple, there is a horrible sense of dread as we progress to more and more ridiculously dangerous stunts. Will Ivan, or more likely Angela, plunge to a horrible death on camera?
Astonishing footage
Some of the posed acrobatic stunts by the circus-performer Angela, on the very brink of man-made precipices, are truly extraordinary. Many of these are reproduced over the end-titles and some of them really beggar belief: they are daring, beautiful, heart-stopping and sometimes extremely sexy (Angela Nikolau is not an unattractive young Russian lady).
More in the mind than in the body.
These two young people are in the prime of physical fitness. Ivan can repeat the “Dirty Dancing” hold on Angela again and again and again! And their climbing ability is undeniable.
But what is fascinating is the effect of doubt on their ability to succeed. Angela in particular is vulnerable to this. At one point she meets a circus acrobat/clown who nurses a massive scar on his arm where he ‘fell’. You see the doubt in Angela’s eyes: the physical manifestation of her worst fears of failure. In another powerful scene she learns that not one but ALL of her fellow rooftoppers that she used to hang out with in Moscow have now died through falls. The news is mentally crippling to her and a scene of her panicking on a rooftop, frozen and unable to move is one of the most powerful bits of film you will see on film this year.
Ivan is an incredibly driven person and Angela’s fear, plus his genuine concern for her safety, drives a wedge between the couple. It’s fascinating to watch.
But just because they could doesn’t necessarily mean to say that they should.
This is illegal activity. If you were to film a documentary of a gang planning a violent bank heist, you probably wouldn’t get it made/released. So we are in a morally grey area here. Their ‘sport’ is sponsored by big international organisations. But their investment, aimed at promoting their brand through ‘social media likes’, really is blood-money. These companies surely have some responsibility for the twisted and battered bodies lying at the bottom of these towers.
I’m old enough to remember watching the original Batman series of TV, starring Adam West and Burt Ward. This always started each week with a warning to kids from the pair not to replicate the scaling of walls and stunts seen on the programme. Seems ridiculous now doesn’t it? But clearly there was a spate of incidents of kids dangerously pretending to be Batman and Robin on rooftops. The 18 certificate on Netflix might deter younger people from watching this (YEAH.. RIGHT!!) and there is a similar “DO NOT REPEAT THESE ACTIONS” message up front in the film. But I can fully see teens ignoring this and thinking “that looks a fun adrenaline-fuelled activity”. And in that way, this documentary might indirectly lead to young deaths. Is that worth it?
Summary Thoughts on “Skywalkers: A Love Story“
Although morally dubious, this documentary is a stunning piece of work and both thrilling and horrifying. Like “Free Solo”, this is a film that takes courage to watch. If ‘heights’ are not your thing, you might want to watch something else instead.
Where to Watch it (Powered by Justwatch)
Trailer for “Skywalkers: A Love Story“:
The trailer is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jA1KpESAqk .
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