French director Thierry Donard, ‘the Fellini of adventure film-making’, shoots four sets of daredevils throwing themselves headlong into intense experience
Here’s an extreme sports documentary from Thierry Donard, who on account of his stunning photography has apparently been dubbed “the Fellini of adventure film-making”. True to his reputation, Reset combines some astonishingly beautiful images with guts-in-your-mouth thrilling sequences – though a bit more explanation would be helpful for viewers unfamiliar with the four sports featured.
Take speedflying, which looks a like super-fast, super-dangerous form of paragliding. The film follows a pair of shaggy-haired barefoot dudes, Jamie Lee and Malachi Templeton from
New Zealand, as they take a running jump off Mont Blanc strapped to tiny paragliders which, to the untrained eye, look like glorified umbrellas. The pair hurtle down the mountain, inches above the rocks, whooping with the intoxicating, hedonistic thrill of it. Afterwards, Lee shrugs off the risk of death with a zen smile: “If that’s the way my body leaves this vessel …”