Running 4,500 miles is something most of us will never do, so how lucky we are to have a film that shows three men and a small support crew doing exactly this.
The documentary's biggest strength is its realistic account of ways that team members dealt with the inevitable struggles among them and with the doubts in each one's minds about the constant challenges, mental and physical. At the end one of the runners comments that we are all limited by the goals we set for ourselves. Words to live by! Anyone who sees this film is likely to consider expanding his or her personal goals.
Given the impossible terrain--with sandstorms, heat, and access to virtually no local technology--the cinematography is outstanding, capturing the unimaginable beauty of the desert and handsomeness of the lonely, unfamiliar places the runners encountered.
At a few points when the team's mood was low, the film sank into an uncomfortable, bitchy reality TV format. Regrettably also, the coverage of the diversity of cultures and geography they ran past was necessarily cursory (note pun opportunity here). But the reward for enduring these shortcomings is an unparalleled opportunity to experience untold human strength.
