Everest: The Other Side Premieres Friday
The documentary follows climber Jim Morrison’s attempt to ski down Everest’s north side following the death of his partner.
By Henry Castro ·
The new documentary Everest: The Other Side hits theaters this Friday.
The film is a Walt Disney Co. release rated PG-13 for thematic material and brief strong language. It runs 115 minutes.
Director Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and cinematographer Jimmy Chin made the film after working together on Free Solo. Chin is a professional climber who summited and skied down the south face of Everest in 2006.
The story centers on climber Jim Morrison and his partner Hilaree Nelson. They planned to be the first people to ski down the north side of Mount Everest. Only five people had previously summited that specific route.
In 2022, while waiting for the right weather to attempt Everest, Morrison and Nelson climbed a different mountain in Nepal. Nelson fell into an avalanche during the descent. She died shortly after the accident.
Morrison recovered her body two days later. The film captures these events in IMAX format. Vasarhelyi states in the movie that the worst happened during the production.
The death of Nelson, who left behind two sons, changed the direction of the film. It shifted from a pure sports documentary to a study of grief and risk. The filmmakers note that they have lost people they know to climbing accidents.
Vasarhelyi asks Chin in the film how many people who have eaten at their dinner table have died. The couple divorced in 2025, a fact not mentioned in the movie. They have two children of their own.
Morrison had previously lost his first wife Katie and their two children, Wyatt and Hannah, in a plane crash. He decided to continue with the Everest project despite the recent loss of Nelson. He described the descent as the raddest ski line in the world.
The team made two attempts in 2025. The first ascent was aborted due to risks identified by Sherpas. Morrison proceeded with the second attempt successfully. The descent took four hours.
The film ends with Morrison completing the ski down. He notes that the snow conditions were rock hard and terrible. The movie receives a two and a half star rating out of four.
Source: Sentinel Colorado
