Endurance and leadership of Sir Ernest Shackleton

I created a new category on my blog here called Movies/Music to blog. Probably my favorite category of movies is true stories and documentaries. I was inspired to blog on the topic of movies/DVDs on the topic of Sir Ernest Shackleton when I recently listened to the Channel 9 video MQ also equals Carol Grojean, program manager extraordinaire in the developer division. Near the end of video (43:00 minutes), the topic of Sir Ernest Shackleton is brought up so alt-tabbed to the video to see why. Carol has a photo from the Shackleton expedition to the south pole on her wall. In 2000, I saw a documentary movie in the theater called The Endurance, a 90 minute documentary on the Shackleton expedition. It was narrated by actor Liam Neeson and almost all of it was of the actual still and motion picture footage taken on the expedition which started in 1914. It was the single most amazing true adventure story I'd ever heard of or seen. On their expedition to Antarctica, the boat with 28 men aboard gets stuck in the ice. The ship eventually is crushed and sinks, and how they all survived and made it home is nearly beyond comprehension.

In the Channel 9 video, Carol mentions that Shackleton gave up his goal of reaching the south pole to save the men of his crew. How Shackleton did that is that he made it is goal to keep them all alive. So it wasn't a sacrifice, it just became his goal and consumed him, and he did it using his leadership skills that he had learned and observed from his past experiences. I ended up adding the three DVDs below to my movie library. The A&E movie Shackleton is a great non-Hollywood re-enactment of the adventure, and the IMAX of both recreation and actual footage. All three DVDs have interested extra features.

The Endurance Narrated by actor Liam Neeson. In 1914, Sir Ernest Shackleton set sail on the Expedition with 27 men aboard, aiming to cross Antarctica. But when the vessel became stranded in frigid, deep waters, the crew began a battle of the human spirit, testing the limits of endurance as they strove to overcome the debilitating setback. Miraculously, they succeeded, even capturing the experience in pictures and on film. The Endurance celebrates the survivors of this wayward adventure. (95 minutes)
Shackleton Ernest Shackleton (Kenneth Branagh) was one of 20th century's greatest explorers. Bound for Antarctica in 1915, Shackleton's ship, the Endurance, became trapped in the Weddell Sea ice pack. The ship sank, stranding Shackleton and his crew in hostile environments. Based on diaries and first-person accounts of expedition members, this film recounts their ordeal. This film spans two discs. (3 hours)
Shackleton's Antarctic Adventure: IMAX
Narrated by actor Kevin Spacey. One of the greatest survival stories of all time comes to life in this extraordinary true story of polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton's 1914-1916 British Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, a testament to heroism and human endurance. All 28 men survived nearly 2 years in the barren, frigid Antarctic when their ship was caught in pack ice and eventually crushed. Features stunning photography and 35mm motion picture footage. (40 minutes)

Comments

• Anonymous
  April 11, 2006
  If you have a yen for travel, it's possible to retrace Shackleton's steps yourself.  Lindblad Expeditions runs an extended photography tour about once a year (see: http://tinyurl.com/9xadr) on the polar explorer ship "Endeavor" that usually includes stops at South Georgia Island and at Point Wild on Elephant Island.  In the few days at sea without landings, the Lindblad staff dig into the Shackleton story in amazing detail. There's nothing quite like actually being there.
  http://tinyurl.com/loggf