Release Date: February 22, 2011
Rating: Not Rated
Running Time: 98. mins. + extras

On Friday the 13th of October 1972, a plane carrying 45 rugby team members crashed in the Andes Mountains. For 72 days, the world thought they were dead. But what 16 survivors endured was far worse than death, driven to what would become headline-making acts of cannibalism in their struggle for life.

I AM ALIVE: SURVIVING THE ANDES PLANE CRASH presents one of the most remarkable human survival stories of all time as it has never been told before: through the first person, on-camera account of survivor Nando Parrado, the best-selling author of Miracle in the Andes. His powerful account is accompanied by new, high-resolution imagery of photos shot by the survivors throughout their ordeal, rarely seen footage of the crash site, and re-creations of the crash and their struggle for survival.

Nando’s simple yet powerfully evocative storytelling allows viewers to experience the 72 days of heroism and tragedy through the eyes and memories of a man who lived it.

I Am Alive is one of the most captivating personal accounts of survival. What was supposed to be a four day trip for 45 passengers ended up becoming a 75 day fight for survival for the 16 passengers who survived one of the most horrific plane crashes in history. The survivors sit down to give their personal accounts of their harrowing journey while also sharing photos from the crash site and even part of a seat found years later from the crash site.

The documentary give detailed images of the breakdown of the engines and maps with arrows showing the travel route. Special effects show the airplane’s point of impact. It’s hard to watch knowing that this really happened. The journey is re-enacted by professional actors who are actually very good actors and help enhance the emotional tone of the story. Also to help tell the story are transcripts and audio of the actual conversations amongst the pilots leading up to the crash.

As viewers will find out, 12 passengers were immediately killed, leaving 33 survivors. In just the first night in the mountains, 5 more passengers died as temperatures reached below 30 degrees. By day 10, 27 survivors remained just as very little hope remained. With food only lasting for 3 days, a survival expert details the body as its starving while the survivors tell of the disturbing and yet life saving decision to eat the dead passengers. It gets worse as an avalanche buries the survivors, killing a number of the survivors. After 2 months, just 16 survivors remained under “the most appalling conditions” and you’ll have to watch to find out more about how this story ends. What an incredible ending it is. What a well crafted documentary this is. I Am Alive is worth watching, even if you already know the story about the crash.

Aside from a number of the survivors and their family members, the Commercial Airline Captain, Uruguayan Air Force Pilot, Author, Piers Paul Read, and Coach, Carlos Tito Vergunella are among a few others that also appear in this documentary.

Bonus Features:
Journey to the Valley of Tears (5:40 minutes) – Professional Mountaineer, Ricardo Pena details what goes on during the yearly expeditions to the crash site. I was intrigued right away, just finding out that there are yearly expeditions to the crash site. So this feature was probably my favorite of the bunch even though this feature does not last for long.

The Parrado Family Business (3:50 minutes) – Somewhat of a tour of La Casa del Tornillo is given, though it has nothing to do with the plane crash.

Traces of Tragedy (7:36 minutes) – In this feature, Professional Mountaineer, Ricardo Pena shares about 10 pieces from the crash site including a plastic knife, part of a seat from the plane, a red light, the edge of a window, and part of the exterior of the fuse lodge. These items are hoping to make it into an historical museum in the near future. Clothes of survivor, Roberto Canessa are also shared by his wife (then Girlfriend), Laura. This is my second favorite feature because it really puts things into perspective as to what went on during and after the crash. These artifacts will forever be ingrained in my head representing the fight for survival.

Behind the Scenes of I Am Alive (5:51 minutes) – In this feature, the actors introduce themselves and talk about who they are playing on location in Mexico & Colorado as well as the producers, makeup artists, cinematographer, and a dozen other crew members. The most interesting bit seemed to be the closeups on the actors after the makeup artist finished their work. Other than that, there isn’t a whole lot that is fascinating about this feature.

Bonus Interviews (9:03 minutes) – Extended interviews with Roberto & Laura Canessa, Graciela Parrado, Jose Luis Nicola, and Brother Eamon O’Donnell are available to watch and worth the watch if you can take anymore of this journey after watching the heartbreaking documentary.

Original Photo Slideshows (6:50 minutes total) – “The Andes Tragedy” album contains 15 photos the survivors took while abandoned and 15 photos from both before the crash and after being saved. The “Production of I Am Alive” has about 45 behind the scenes photos. Both slide shows are accompanied with somber music and the photos slide at a steady pace.

Own I Am Alive on DVD today.