Staff Writer Annabelle Duggan praises ‘Tenzing’, a biographical film about Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, noting its importance in bringing the Tibetan community together at a preview event for the film.
Pronounced “Tenzin”, as my good friend Tenzin (a common Tibetan name!) corrects me after an incredibly special MilkTea community screening of Jennifer Peedom’s new film. See more details on the event here. Based on the first successful summit of Mount Everest in 1953, the film’s narrative centres on the under-valued perspective of Tenzing Norgay. Tenzing, an outcasted Tibetan refugee raised in Nepal, fights against personal and societal obstacles to achieve his lifelong dream of going “home” to Chomolungma (Everest), Tibetan for “Mother Goddess”.
One of the main themes of the film is the key distinction between the motives of reaching the summit. The central dichotomy is between the British expedition team’s imperial hunger, embodied by expedition leader John Hunt (Willem Dafoe). Their drive is to win the race against other nations and “conquer” the summit. Juxtaposed with Tenzing’s spiritual yearning to look inward, the tension of both motivations to summit pulls and pushes equally throughout the film. Through avoiding a polarised focal point of one single perspective, the film felt more balanced, human.
Why The Film Matters Now
As mentioned above, there’s a reason why Tom Hiddleston’s or Willem Dafoe’s names don’t come up first on the poster, but Genden Phuntsok’s. This is his story, and, watching the film, it was made incredibly clear the importance of a film like this being produced and distributed right now. “The Ascent that Made History” as the poster states: and what follows is a part of our shared history that is finally getting the recognition and representation is merits.
The film presents an interesting parallel between Tenzing and his eventual climbing partner, Edmund Hillary, played sensitively by Hiddleston. At varying points, they are both portrayed as outsiders of sorts within their own social circles; Hillary as the only Kiwi amongst the British climbing team, and Tenzing as the only Tibetan climbing member.
Also viewing him as an outsider due to Tenzing’s refugee status, were the sherpa porters. Sherpas are an ethnic group who migrated from Tibet to other Himalayan regions over many centuries, renowned for their mountaineering skills. Hiddleston’s humbled performance of the quietly compassionate Hillary, paired with Phuntsok’s impassioned and raw interpretation of Tenzing, worked in a delicate harmony onscreen.
“Tenzing is an outsider in the film. He represents the Tibetan identity today.”
“That’s a beautiful point, you should write about that!”
“No, you!”
This was a beautiful exchange between me and my friend Tenzin post-screening. So, let him take the credit for this powerful insight. And let this platform echo that message. This is the story of tibetans, an allegory for the displaced identity.
Why It works
‘Tenzing’s emotional beats were well-placed and well-paced. The technically splendid cinematography did well to aid this, especially in creating visual motifs of perspective around Everest. There is a shot at the beginning of Tenzing looking up at the mountain as a child, an intense contrast of scale, giving the impression of the mountain bursting out into the frame in front of him like a revered goddess. Then, at the end, we see him look down at that same spot as an adult, this time from the summit, fully realising his sense of self.
The soundtrack uses motif in the exact same way; echoes of strings and Tibetan mantra, acting almost as the voice of Chomolungma herself, calling Tenzing back to the mountain throughout the film. It is another way the film explores not the act of climbing, but the reason of climbing – literally and metaphorically.
Impact on the Community
A short note on these incredible community partners: MilkTea, UK Asian Film Festival, Tibet Film Festival London and ESEA Outdoors supported this preview. It is thanks to them that the screening was accessible to the whole community. I highly recommend following their respective social media platforms to engage with their work and help keep these events as accessible as possible.
I don’t know about climbing Everest, but performing for the first time at Ronnie Scott’s an hour after the screening (which I was incredibly nervous for) felt like a walk in the park after watching this marvel of a film. I don’t want to say “climb your own mountains” but go climb that mountain. And watch the film.
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