Following archaeologist Johann Reinhard and his team to the top of 22,000 foot Mt. Llullailloco on the border between Chile and Argentina, we observe as the team unearths a small miracle: three young children sacrificed to the Inca gods about 500 years ago.

The bodies have been perfectly mummified by the constant cold of the air, and are instantly recognized to be "Argentina's patrimony" by Reinhard. The drama of the story has just begun as we observe the team bringing the mummies and artifacts down and attempting to get everything into the right hands and into cold storage to avoid any damage to the priceless treasures.

An expertly crafted film by producers Kevin Krug and Gail MacFaraquhar, 'The Ice Mummies' tells an important and fascinating story set in one of the world's most beautiful landscapes: The high Andes.

Utilizing little more than gorgeously rendered visuals and a sparse original soundtrack, filmmaker Stephen MacMillan brings us the story of a unique artist who carries his own giant canvases deep into Switzerland's wilds to paint the natural wonders all around him. Using only charcoal, white paint, and his hands, our protagonist creates impressionistic and yet somehow very real interpretations of surrounding mountains and unique dead trees.

The lack of a clearly defined goal for the film combined with its almost agonizingly long shots and slow dissolves must have turned off many of the Banff audience. I, on the other hand, found it to be incredibly refreshing in a world of ever faster cuts and fast moving visuals. The peace and serenity which the film exudes stayed with me for some time.

A fairly clever concept of a mockumentary about the new sport of 'Downwalling' from Czech directors Lubomir Slavik and Jaromir Zid started with three minutes of laughs, followed by 23 minutes of yawns. Making extensive use of reverse photography and low production qualities (hopefully for its campy qualities), the filmmakers showed how the new generation of 'downwallers' have perfected techniques for throwing the ends of ropes through rappel rings, climbing down, avoiding beautiful "Downwalling groupies," and then "de-beering" (regurgitating beer) at the end of a long day at the crag.

Again, the concept is a good one, but the execution lacks any restraint, and the result left me, along with much of the audience, groaning.

Too bad the films are boring.

Even though the cinematography (and skiing) is maybe the best in the industry, the creative forces behind Y2sKi just miss the mark. Euro-style techno alternates with bizarre operatic segments with black and white footage of Perret skiing in slo-mo. These diversions don't seem to serve any purpose other than breaking up the monotony of the amazing footage of Perret skiing with the euro-style techno. It doesn't work.

The film, produced for National Geographic, features a first ascent on a remote big wall in Greenland: Ulamertorsuaq. Bringing three Wyoming cowboy buddies along for the ride, Skinner leads the journey pushing up a beautiful 3000+ foot wall. The four are very comfortable together, naturally, and joke constantly about anything and everything. And with Skinner narrating the film live, the laughs were plentiful in the theatre.

I enjoyed the film immensely, totally buying Skinner's act. The cinematography was spectacular, the goal exciting, and the fun factor very high. Skinner has a polished, almost Hollywood, feel to him, but the audience loves him all the same, and he just whetted our appetite for what would prove to be many more amazing climbing films over the next three days.

DROP INTO: Climber Interviews | 14 14ers in 6