aphrodisiaciix These westerners should be ashamed of themselves for their exploitation of the locals, and in taking recognition as Mt. Everest climber. They did not climb the mountain by themselves, but rather with the bulk of the hard work was done for them by the Sherpas. The ONLY reason they were able to summit is because of the Sherpas' efforts. This is a rich men's game, and these climbers are usually millionaires (and more) or with extremely rich sponsors.The government of Nepal should be ashamed of themselves as well; not only for what they do to their own people, but also what they allow to happen in this mountain with the man-made destruction of this beautiful natural environment. These climbing operations and their climbers leave countless of oxygen bottles, climbing equipment, tools, garbage, non-degradable trash, human excrement, etc. on this mountain. Almost all of these trash and garbage will remain there forever because of the preservation characteristic of extreme cold temperature. There are efforts to retrieve these refuses, but only as symbolic attempts at best with no real solutions to make a difference.I have no respect for those people who do extreme sports (or extreme of anything). In their quests of accomplishing their goals, they always have to destroy or harm something else with much more devastating impacts (whether it's the environment, the animals, their competitors, their societies, their communities, their families... or even themselves). They are just like those bad auto mechanics who fixed the brakes, but allowed the tires to detach down the road, or those plumbers who unclogged the toilet, but caused the toilet water leakage in the process.I propose a complete ban of Mt. Everest climbing for 10 years or until when all the man-made objects/trash completely be removed from this mountain. Once it's allowed to be climbed again, all climbers must carry their own supplies and equipment beyond base camp, that means Sherpas can only help climbers and transport their cargoes up to base camp (no more 30-trip climbing for each Sherpa and no more laying down ropes and tracks for climbers from base camp to summit; and, ANYTHING taken up must be brought down each climbing season. This rule alone will cut down a huge number of rich/part-time/amateur climbers and their share of the destruction of Mt. Everest. Last but not least important issue: past and present Sherpas are to be recognized for their summits in the history books/records just like their westerner counterparts. Sherpas are to be recognized as professional mountaineers at the national and international level with their salaries/benefits shall be commensurate with their experience and years in service.

no name given As just a documentary, the film is beautifully produced. Unfortunately, I had a very hard time trying to find a good version to watch. I suspect there is a lot of pressure to keep this out of public view. If I recall in the doc they said that climbers typically pay 70k and upward to attempt the climb and it's a 350 million dollar (?) enterprise to the nepalese. So this is a major industry in nepal that certainly a lot of people do not want to upset. Very well photographed and edited and remarkably candid interviews. While I was watching this I wondered if the owners and the climbers actually believed what they were saying. I mean in one interview a climber actually likened the sherpas to terrorists and 9/11. I was astonished that there were so many they interviewed that had a similar view. Okay so you pay 70-100k to climb but the sherpas, at least according to the doc, see very little of this money but enjoy the most risks out of those making money off the enterprise. Unfortunately the doc is very sketchy about the overall economy of the operation but probably because it's most suitable in the written word. If anyone knows if this has been documented please post. That is, it would be interesting to see how the money gets distributed to the operators, nepalese government, local businesses, and the sherpas. And the film never quite explained how the losses are handled or if the operators or their clients have insurance to cover certain events. Anyway, the climbers pay a lot of money and then expect the sherpas, come 'hell or high water' to perform despite any disasters or risks involved. Sorry but I have no sympathy for the two climbers who attempted twice but were denied when their seasons were both shut down prematurely. Lucky for them they have the money to spend on such things. Personally I'd feel lucky just to afford to get to the base camp. But, using other people, even if absolutely necessary, to reach your personal goals, considering the risks involved, deserves appropriate compensation not exploitation, and an appreciation for individual choice. Anything else shows tremendous lack of wisdom and compassion.

Dr Lewis I loved this documentary as I like many people am fascinated by Chomolungma, being it's the highest Mountain on Earth.The name 'Everest' should and the verb 'to summit' should be immediately be red flags. Nothing was discovered in the 1800s. Being named after some colonial white guy by the Royal Geographical Society instead of being called the Holy Mother in the local language. Hindi or Nepali Sagarmāthā, are much nicer names.I really think though that when you use and abuse locals and make things easy for people to climb and insult this mountain this should honestly be reflected in any film made about it. The things missing from this film about exactly the work that Sherpas do, how they really feel, and the selfishness of the capitalist system that allows people to try and tick off the 'biggest and best' when ethically what those customers are doing is highly questionable. How much really do the Sherpas earn as percentage? Shouldn't there be excellent schools, hospitals and adequate insurance for Sherpas? Some of the problems with garbage and climate change are not properly covered at all.Capitalistic money making from a Holy mountain should be properly regarded as a pretty hollow occupation, and someone risking their life to feed their family as pretty heroic, but this film seems sided with climbing company owners and clients by trying to be balanced between each side, when really one side is in the right and the other isn't.At the end of the day a real climber would walk up from sea level, hire a local directly or not at all, go without oxygen especially if under 8000 meters and bring all their own supplies in and out.

Hallam Drury Beautifully shot, Sherpa is certainly pretty to watch. The cinematography is stunning, assisted very much by beautiful natural landscape and the people at the centre of the film. Technically the film has little to no faults. But I feel as though it only captured a small part of the lives of the Nepalis who work at the mountain. It is very much a film about porters, but there is some distance between their job and them as people. The story at the centre of the film is fantastic, helped in no small part by the film crew being in the right place at the right time, while others were in the wrong place at the wrong time. It's a good film that captures a microcosm of the issues with the Everest tourism industry. I just feel that despite the big budget, the beautiful shots and access to the Sherpas that there is far more to their lives than Everest, and the final edit of the film could have addressed this. But otherwise a fine documentary.