The Last Mountain, a feature-length documentary exploring the life and ultimately the disappearance of British climber Tom Ballard, has gotten a brand-new trailer that shows snippets of footage recorded over more than two decades. The 1 hour and a half long documentary was directed by Emmy award-winner Chris Terrill (Alison's Last Mountain) and produced by Emmy award-winner Julia Nottingham (Kingdom of Us), BAFTA Award-winner Olivia Lichtenstein (Silent Twin: Without My Shadow), with music by Paul Chandler and Yann McCullough.
This documentary explores the lives and untimely deaths of two mountaineers, Alison Hargreaves and Ballard — mother and son. As can be heard in the trailer, Hargreaves was lauded as "the first British woman to conquer Mount Everest alone and without an oxygen supply." However, in 1995 she, along with five other members of her team, perished while attempting to climb K2.
The trailer also makes it clear that Hargreaves was an inspiration to her son while leaving behind "a heavy heritage." Indeed, the apple did not fall far from the tree. During his career, Ballard became the first mountaineer to climb the six major alpine north faces alone in a single season. Tragically, like his mother, Ballard died while doing what he loved. In 2019, just a few years younger than his mother was when she died, 30-year-old Ballard disappeared while on an expedition to Nanga Parbat — nicknamed the "killer mountain." The documentary's title, The Last Mountain, refers to both K2 and Nanga Parbat.
This is a must-see documentary about one of the most pioneering climbing families and how two brave individuals were ready to risk their lives for their passion. In addition to unseen archive footage from 1995, the documentary contains Tom's own footage taken days before his passing. It also follows those who were left behind to cope with the loss of their family members, Tom's sister, Kate, and their father, Jim. The film will show what motivated Ballard to continue his ascent with Italian climber Daniele Nardi after the other two members of the expedition gave up and went back.
The Last Mountain will be released in the United States on Digital and On-Demand on March 15. Check out the trailer and poster below.
