Champion Ice Climber Rates 9 Ice-Climbing Scenes In Movies And TV | How Real Is It? | Insider

Professional ice climber Will Gadd rates nine ice-climbing scenes in movies and television shows for realism.
He discusses the accuracy of ice-climbing techniques in "Game of Thrones" (2013), featuring v and Kristofer Hivju; mountain climbing in "K2" (1991); and mixed climbing in "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" (2022), starring Morfydd Clark. He also comments on the ice axes, crampons, rope, and other climbing gear in "The King's Man" (2021), with Ralph Fiennes; "Vertical Limit" (2000); and "Jumanji: The Next Level" (2019), starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Karen Gillan. Gadd analyzes the realism of the ice and rock climbing displayed in "Alien vs. Predator" (2004), "Shivaay" (2016), and "The Climb" (2017).
Will Gadd is a professional Red Bull athlete, a speaker, and a guide. He has won three gold medals at the X Games and won gold at the Ice Climbing World Cup, and he is a four-time champion of the Canadian national sport-climbing championships. He was the first to ice climb Niagara Falls as well as the first to complete a one-day ascent of the tallest mountain in the Canadian Rockies, Mount Robson.
You can find him on social media at:
realwillgadd
gilwad
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Champion Ice Climber Rates 9 Ice-Climbing Scenes In Movies And TV | How Real Is It? | Insider

[@TheRedWon]

For those that are unfamiliar, Will Gadd is like the Roger Federer of ice climbing. He's an absolute legend.

[@Jackkenway]

Thanks! I didn't know him before, now I do, and how great he is.

[@user-tz9jh6pv2j]

Kinda figured when they showed the scene at 4:20 of the movie character jumping from one cliff to another and he casually just goes like "oh yeah I've done stuff like that"

[@martintomasek6097]

Is Roger Federer somebody like Will Gadd just not in ice climbing?

[@Dayvit78]

I don't know who Roger is except that his name is half R's

[@Jackkenway]

@@Dayvit78 He's one of the top tennis players in the world, you probably saw him on TV and didn't know who he was.

[@aggonzalezdc]

"it's ok. It's pretty good... 3\10" I love this man. Brutal. He's fun, he knows his stuff, and has no mercy lol.

[@alpha51omega38]

Yeah, none deserved anywhere near a 5' on his scale.

[@srbaran]

Well, he certainly wants to nip misconceptions of climbing in the bud; shit's dangerous.

[@ZX235w3]

I think he misheard that he was spposed to rate on a scale of 10, not a scale of 5...

[@jans.5559]

Will is truly great. On a technical note the animator confused the technical axes and the mountaineering axe. Probably because they did not have a Nomic in the movie but an older style of axe.

[@michalmalicki9613]

Yeah haha i noticed that

[@markvincent522]

Was one of the older ones a Stubai hammer?

[@jsullivan2112]

Animator?

[@discgolfkosmo]

Animator in this case means: the person who put the arrow indicators on the screen.

[@greenman6141]

A very witty and humourous fellow. Please, more of him. My favourite: "You'd see 2 arms hanging"

[@User-54631]

“She seems really nice, but she is going to die” had my dying. My fav mountain climbing movie K2 👍

[@CorporateCornholio]

"Look at all that metal she is wearing", Um yeah her plot armor is showing, wardrobe should have done a better job hiding it. 😆

[@JuvianTV]

Me too 💀💀💀

[@CheapFlashyLoris]

Someone forgot to tell Will that elves are immortal

[@MrGuideElk]

You guys do a great job at getting people with the proper information and conveying it so well.

[@hikingleigh]

More Will Gadd please! Absolute legend

[@eslp7627]

And less Red Bull please!!!

[@mrtriathlondude]

At 11:33 the video editors got the shots of the ice tool mixed up with the general mountaineering axe. The explanation is great, so just know that the pink axe is the general mountaineering axe (it has an adze, which is like a small shovel), and the beige ice tool (with hammer). The stock photos of the tools are correctly matched up though, so that's nice.

[@lik3OMJ]

Noticed this and went to the comments to ensure I wasn't the only one hahaha.

[@CanyoneeringUSA]

except that the "Ice Tool" is from like the 60's (1960's at least) so laughable as a real tool these days.

[@Thrusthamster]

@@CanyoneeringUSA More like the 80s/90s.

[@Vollce]

What a guy. I've always had my reservations with such scenes based on physics and human body resilience alone but it's great to hear someone experienced spit the facts. Thanks!

[@isidornimages]

You've really nailed it with the experts lately. Keep up the good work!

[@willthethe]

The editors confidently mis-labeling the tools when Will Gadd is describing the difference between technical tools and glacier axes at 11:20 is peak irony

[@m.topfer]

It is great how he can find important concepts and situations from real ice climbing in the very unrealistic scenes.

[@shannondouglass3044]

This guy is incredible! Y'all do such an awesome job finding experts for these videos. Like y'all really do your research. When I watch these on things i know nothing about (much like this) I'm always enthralled. Kudos! Will, you're awesome!

[@kiasax2]

A very long time ago, when I hadn't used up my body entirely. I loved mountaineering. I ice climbed for fun. It wasn’t anywhere near as evolved as it is now. Every now and again, when I'm feeling nostalgic I’ll dig out a picture of me ice climbing. Typically they’re distant photos of me in a yellow jacket, or a red one, with my crampons dug in, and an ice axe in each hand, a sling of ice screws, a 60 meter wet/dry rope threading down, and a pair of Bausch and Laumb glacier glasses shoved on my face. And the best part? I have this huge smile on my face becauseI'm truly happy! I'm not thinking about a d@mned thing but ice climbing. Not bills, changing my oil, or anything else, just ice climbing. Ice climbing and parachuting worked the same for me. If I was doing either activity, that's the only thing I thought about. Not one other thing. Anyway, thanks, Will Gadd, you also brought up my favorite climbing movie of all time, K2!!!! I love that movie! I even took my daughters to see it at the theater. One reason for that was K2 was my dream climb. But K2 the movie is great, starring Michael Biehn said Matt Craven. Thanks again, Will Gadd. Great video, I've had a lot of fun. And Will, be safe, be well, and be happy!

[@silver07bolt]

Probably one of my favorite series on KZbin, love these

[@coletravis1057]

Dude’s knowledge paired with his wit and earnest/ easy going demeanor made this such a fun watch. I belly laughed at his response to the GOT scene “that rope would’ve cut him in half” 😂

[@LandonDoesStupidShit]

Super ironic that at 11:27 Will tries so hard to explain the difference between a ice tool and a mountaineering axe and Insider still fucked up the diagram😂. The first shown was a straight shaft axe and the second was a ice tool.

[@alpha51omega38]

Agree. the arrow was pointing to the opposite tool as he was describing the difference.

[@walterwadlow9438]

Will Gadd-the absolute best-obviously as a climber, but also as an analyst.

[@alpinmack]

Will is no joke! I got to climb with both him and Barry Blanchard at Mountainfest 2003 in the Adirondacks. I watched Will climb 90' of ice with only no ice tools, only wool mittens! Frickin Legend! 💪🏽

[@JBailey889]

Would love to see him discuss "The Eiger Sanction" starring Clint Eastwood. There is some mad ice climbing stuff in there.

[@CanyoneeringUSA]

So fun! Thanks Will. And Insider - excellent choice of talent!

[@kelvpoon]

U know you made it in your field when u can go on insider to rate movies

[@sarakajira]

This dude is so much fun with his personality, haha I could watch him talk and laugh about stuff all day hahaha

[@JustGrowingUp84]

I love his comments: harsh and educational!

[@voster77hh]

BS people don't live long in ice climbing. That's the people who got bored of rock climbing and survived.

[@user-mj7fy2rt9f]

@@voster77hh Well, he's been doing it for 40 years, and is one of the best. I've been doing it for over 40 years (but I'm no Will Gadd). I ain't dead yet.

[@GarettMacLaren]

Love Will, super knowledgable and funny at the same time.

[@pavelkrocak4980]

2:29 I never thought anyone would have so much fun giving a rating, especially a low one. This is a priceless moment right there.

[@kiracattan4624]

I love Shivaaya. The whole movie was cool... I know it's impossivle for that mountain descent to happen, but it's a really entertaining to watch. The storyline isn't half bad either.

[@annachi_worldwide]

"She seems very nice but she is gonna die" one of the greatest lines of all time

[@bishop1412]

my dad has done a fair bit of ice climbing in his younger days, and I admire and respect him more than any other person I know, and I also think people who ice climb are completely insane

[@tomas_mountains]

At 2:42 As a mountaineer myself I've been taught to never dig your toes in if you're wearing crampons as that's a fantastic way to break your ankles and flip over, pushing your knees into the snow instead. I suppose if you're not wearing crampons it's fine but I definitely wouldn't do it with them.

[@freddydorling9548]

Yep I was taught the same thing, that had me confused too. He also called out the axes in alien v predator, they are Grivel alpwings, i have used them for ages and they are great, not sure what his point was😂

[@Devoted96]

@@freddydorling9548 That's correct if you're glissading down or falling on softer snow. Generally speaking you can raise your feet trying to touch your butt so your front points dont catch, but if you're falling on Neve or worse, ice, you'd rather have the broken ankles than be dead.

[@Devoted96]

That's correct if you're glissading down or falling on softer snow. Generally speaking you can raise your feet trying to touch your butt so your front points dont catch, but if you're falling on Neve or worse, ice, you'd rather have the broken ankles than be dead.

[@freddydorling9548]

@@Devoted96 Correct me if i'm wrong, but if you dig your tips in and flip onto your back, aren't you even less likely to stop. I personally think we are taught self arresting because it is the best way to stop a fall. In a situation with mature neve or ice, where there is any risk of falling, or it is particularly exposed, I would hope most would rope up up and climb the difficulty as a pitch. I could well be wrong, and I would love to be corrected, as it may save my life next time!

[@tomas_mountains]

@@Devoted96 I agree, in the worst case you do what you can to survive, however I can imagine that it is near impossible to keep yourself upright when braking with your toes at higher speeds so the danger of flipping is still there. I've never tried it though, and I really hope I don't have to😅

[@Toopa88]

1:30 LOL, recently I watched a lot of climbing videos related to this topic and already knew what he was about to say 😂

[@TyrannosavageRekt]

Wow! I can't be the only one that thinks Will looks a bit like Owen Wilson, right?

[@carrotsgirl1D]

I was scrolling looking for this comment!!

[@TyrannosavageRekt]

@@carrotsgirl1D Not all the time, but certain angles... it helps that he's wearing a hat. His hairstyle could totally change my perception.

[@jeff7086]

15:48 His Harness is on backwards! hahahhahhaha!!!

[@voster77hh]

It doesn't have straps either. He had a ballet session in front of the greenscreen

[@hikingleigh]

🤣🤣

[@batman_2004]

😆😆

[@mrbeans2425]

One of the most fun things I have ever done was when I was up in the North Cascades on the PCT, we did a little Avalanche class and man was it a BLAST flying down those glaciers practicing Self Arrests!

[@barisisler716]

He is bitterly critical yet also really fun.

[@alpha51omega38]

In ice climbing, you HAVE to be brutally critical. It truly is a 'do not fall' kind of sport. The rope may save you, but your tools and falling ice and ledges below to snap an ankle will do you in really fast.

[@THX5000]

"She's got chain mail on her head... She's gonna get frostbite" hahahaha

[@DioneN]

Every time I watch anything about mountain climbing, ice climbing, caving, scuba diving etc I just think but why??? 😣😳 but hey power to those brave enough to do those things for fun! And I will just watch from the safety of my couch and freak out haha.

[@Moose92411]

This is one of those categories that illustrates the enormous chasm between Hollywood and reality. It’s so hard to make something as technical and plodding as ice climbing into something cinematically compelling without leaving reality behind.

[@subhrabag1932]

Loved this guy ❤ couldn't stop laughing.... Fell of my chair when he said i climed ice with steak knife

[@farahin28]

Wow, 40 years of ice climbing ?! That’s so cool ! And at 05:15 - 05:20 thats cute 😂

[@wraith8323]

4:15 came to mind before I even saw the video, hilarious take did not disappoint 😂👏🤣👌

[@tylerchan7641]

Great video! Super entertaining and Will was a pleasure

[@voster77hh]

I once had a friend chop a small car size block lose in Rjukan Norway. His ice tool stuck in the block was leashed to his wrist. He pressed his head with his helmet against it to keep it in place. He totally cool grabbed an ice screw from his harness and drilled it into the ice to secure himself. Then he yanked the tool free and let that ice block go. It fell for like 60 feet down where I was belaying him on the rope an crashed into a thousand melon sized chunks flying really fast. I was dived for cover behind a table sized ledge. Qute a few chunks hit the top of my helmet hard while I was securing my buddy. You basically never get any good ice climbing scenes on video or GoPro. This happens mostly off camera. So ice climbing is kind of a mystery sport. Only a very few people ever do it and the utterly logistics are insane to be in the right place at the right time for a freeze-melt-cycle. Training in gyms on wood is feasible but to really git gud you need to live near some apline scale mountains with a deep winter. So it isn't really an accessible sport in any way.

[@TerjeMathisen]

Rjukan is how you spell it, but if you had been hearing it pronounced by locals I can totally understand why you would add that 'y' since the sound isn't that far off. (My family lived there for 8 years and we've had several different mountain cabins in the area since 1967.)

[@voster77hh]

@@TerjeMathisen Made the effort to correct it out of respect. It was 12 years ago. However, I have seen different spellings for it - the origin from Old Norse has been transcribed differently to German and English and other languages if I remember correctly. At least with a y or j. It would be quite hard to pronounce correctly. I can only recommend a visit and the friendly locals.

[@TerjeMathisen]

@@voster77hh when we drove down the road to Rjukan last Sunday there were ice climbers belaying on the roadside railing several places as they were finishing their climbs out of the gorge. :-)

[@t0ky0balling57]

I only clicked to see if y’all actually made him put on all his ice climbing gear for this video 😂

[@kathrynmcewen2583]

Hi Will! I could never watch these scenes lol! Causes too much anxiety. I miss Canmore. Keep well it was nice to see you here. It brought me some good laughs sitting here by myself.😂

[@natasha6867]

this guy is absolutely nuts. love him

[@andyw246]

Was kinda hoping to see a Touching the Void reaction video. More of a documentary movie but always enjoyed it.

[@kermitttt]

I dont give a fu bout climbing, but its real pleasure to hear that guy

[@michaelhanford8139]

7:40 Jim West (''wild wild west'' 70s TV show) lent him his knife-boots😂

[@longdongsilver3267]

Nothing really to say, but I enjoyed this video. Thanks for making and sharing it.

[@shellbacksclub]

Dude could be Owen Wilson's stunt double in a future ice climbing movie!

[@hibiscuscola3169]

me watching a movie: oh I know that Actor. this dude watching a movie: Hey look, that's my friend there. LOL

[@ivanqueirolo842]

So glad linus tech tips got into ice climbing, seems pretty interesting

[@sparrow420500]

That Lord of the Rings ice climbing scene is a real place . . . Inside a computer.

[@Jan_ne]

They actually built that wall. It's a real set

[@fonzdot]

This is epic Will!

[@boneshakerjake]

I live like an hours from calgary and two from canmore how have I not heard of this guy?

[@stunwin]

i have been waiting for this video to happen ever since that game of thrones scene lol

[@SaraNWong-cw2hj]

I learned so much about ice climbing from this video.

[@DJNHmusic]

Awesome video, just one small correction. You do not want to be putting your toes into the ground when self-arresting with crampons (until you slow down). You will get flipped backwards and absolutely destroy your Achilles' tendons.

[@michaelhanford8139]

4:40 ikr. as far as he fell, if the ice tool were tied to his wrists, would his arms tear off?

[@voster77hh]

Depends on what breaks first, the tie strap or the tendons. Survivability basically zero. Generally speaking tendons or straps have very little bungee effect. Means fall of 2 or 3 feet is good enough to rip ones arm out of the shoulders and off. The only option is you already hand on that single tool with 1 tool and 2 feet coming off. once you accelerate only a dynmaic climbing rope can bungee cord you. On your great-grandparents hemp rope anything more than 2 to 5 feet snags either the rope or breaks body parts. it would only catch a short slip and slide. If you see olympic artists swing on bars then the bars do flex a lot and absorb most of the energy and help convert it into rotation. Crash landing with a braking distance close to zero isn't a very healthy idea. Even if you don't rip your arms out, your climbing day is immediately over. Probably your climbing days for life. Plus your troubles only start there. Shock, dehydration, hypothermia... You need to be heli rescued out or carried / rappled out on a stretcher. You move absolutely nowhere on your own anymore in vertical territory totally hostile to human life. Rope rescue on a vertical face of thousands of feet is a multi-people ardous time consuming effort.

[@Maazzzo]

I love this series.

[@rehanali7294]

14:40 Shivaay ... that's a Bollywood movie...

[@borntoclimb7116]

Love it, realism. Those movies are nice entertainment but nothing another, just entertainment.

[@theopinson3851]

“She seems nice, but…she’s gonna die.” 😂😂

[@The.Half.Blood.Prince]

Seeing shivay on the list threw me off😂😂

[@billwhelpley6825]

Where's the granddaddy, Eiger Sanction? Not exactly prolific ice climbing per se but definitely worth looking at in the context of some of these other (mostly silly) more recent excerpts.

[@alpha51omega38]

I'd say it was really the first true full movie that used very accurate gear and climbing technique,, besides being almost a perfect account of what happened on the Eiger North Face back in the late 30's and has been written about in many books.

[@dr.badass702]

They had Alex Honnold do the Eiger Sanction in another one of these videos. He gave it a pretty good rating for showing accurate climbing techniques for the time period (early 70s?)

[@613lcd]

Vertical Limit...is definitely a guilty pleasure of mine

[@keenanlarsen1639]

Next vid: Professional Ice Climber Rates IC Combos in Smash Bros Melee

[@nicholascrow8133]

I feel if you're flying laterally mid air and try to stick a knife into ice, newton's laws means you're more likely to just throw yourself backwards into thin air than plant the knife in solid right?

[@Jingoa]

A bit--a small of the force will be absorbed by the ice and even more if you actually get it to go in, but because it's a knife, you're likely to just bounce right out of the hole the knife made. That's why real tools are little jagged scythes. Taking them out requires lifting and turning--they go down and into the surface in a curved way.

[@nicholascrow8133]

@@Jingoa A small amount of force will be exerted in the ice sure, but most of the energy would be pushing you away from the ice as there is very little resistance holding you in place.

[@KingOftTheArsenal]

You shoulda added as an honorable mention the mw2 ice climbing scene

[@Mrwhomeyou]

Movie does somethings crazy for plot: Gadd, "that happened to me"

[@waywardmind]

Oh hey, d'ere! It's Mike, from Canmore!

[@maxwellkafka]

Will’s brother Toby was my high school English teacher 20 years ago near Prescott, AZ

[@alpha51omega38]

Hey Will, this is Woodchuck from the silo ice tower in IL.. Glad to see these silly films get 'graded' near the bottom for realism and accuracy from someone who knows what the sport is all about. I'd go back to review the very well done 'Eiger Sanction' with Clint Eastwood from 1985 to find it not only very accurate mountaineering shown, but almost a near documentation of the 30's climbing disaster on the North face, as covered in 'Nordwand' film a decade ago.. And for the totally IMPOSSIBLE on belaying on rock, nothing compares to 'The Mountain' with Spencer Tracy and a still wet behind the ears young Robert Wagner. The greatest BAD climbing scenes of all times, from about 1955 I think.

[@Jackkenway]

Such an amazing guy, love his personality, he kinda reminds me of Owen Wilson.

[@kellywilson7585]

Great interview Will! Just thought I would make a quick comment here...I'm sure Kevin will also at some point ;)

[@anilachar323]

Alex Honnold has these thick fingers, as all free solo rock climbers do. Will Gadd's come a close second.

[@MissMiaAfroGoddess]

Love this guy’s perspective

[@pierrez8570]

I came to see whether game of thrones and shivaay had made the list, and it didn't disappoint!

[@Tikimohn]

A section of K2 is actually a near vertical climb up a wall of mixed rock/ice/snow.

[@frikadeoliver9946]

This guy is só CHILL! HA!

[@alpha51omega38]

To meet and ice climb with him was a great honor and an opportunity I'll never forget. A very chill dude and lots of fun

[@micheal2458]

One of the few to actually give ratings that match with his commentary! Love it!

[@stef11488]

talking about simul climbing and an ancient pic of mountaineers short roping flashes on the screen. Way to confuse everyone even more haha

[@nathanparks9434]

Not to nitpick, but when he was talking about self arresting during the clips of Vertical Limit, you DO NOT want to dig your toes in. You’re meant to firmly grab your ice tool with both hands and put as much weight over that point of contact as you can. If you dig your feet into the ice you risk your momentum flipping you over your feet and going from being on your stomach to your back….

[@JJDBaca]

4:15 - I wanted to do a comedy parody of this scene, back when the movie was fresh, but never got around to it. Was going to film angles that suggest a far jump, but after the character makes it to the other side, his friend steps over the (only) 1' gap and walks right past him.

[@ScarlettM]

5:25 - from your mouth to Valar's ears!

[@timolheiser7874]

When I seen the movie, Vertical Limit, I thought someone seen Alpine Club Accident report, and made a movie from the worst of the worst accidents.

[@nailfelagund7508]

Great breakdown!

[@scrollop]

More of these, please. Entertaining, informative, funny, you're onto a great thing. Have a few drinks and brain storm more topics and see what sticks to the wall.

[@seangerst6561]

I Love how he is saying ,,this is the biggest hazard in iceclimbing" everytime a new scene comes up.😅😎

[@justlea666]

Really cool and interesting person, great video!

[@poopie4379]

Awweeeee. I was looking forward to seeing Cliffhanger.

[@xMordax]

What about the movie Broad Peak?

[@RoyalZarak]

Damn I love This channel. Binge watching it all

[@markobrien5352]

I've seen Will climb a few times in Ouray and Telluride. He's the real deal and comes across exactly like this video.

[@toddc3988]

This guy is freaking hilarious... 😅

[@alpha51omega38]

It's great to see his lighter side. 'On the job', when instructing or doing his own climbing, he's all business.

[@wyskass861]

Wonder why Touching the Void wasn't included. It's the best mountaineering movie ever, though more a recreated documentary.

[@13thravenpurple94]

Great video Thank you

[@otteotte7698]

As soon as I saw that Bollywood action movie at the end, I started rubbing my hands with glee.

[@chrisrootnick4438]

To be fair. Dr Smolder Bravestone would have no trouble getting the axe out again. He'd look at the ice and it would melt..