An amputation scene in 127 Hours, Danny Boyle’s latest offering, is so shocking that three people fainted and one person had a seizure when it was screened at the Toronto Film Festival.
127 Hours tells the real-life story of climber Aron Ralston who had to amputate his own arm with a penkinife after it was trapped by a boulder in a Utah canyon.
Danny Boyle’s recreation of the amputation for 127 Hours, starring James Franco, was so realistic that many members of the audience had to leave the theatre, three people fainted and one had a seizure.
127 Hours has been called the most shocking film since The Exorcist.
Kaleem Aftab from The Independent wrote of the arm amputation scene:
“He uses a blunt knife, which Boyle shows picking at the ligaments that still attach his arm to his body.”
“Computer-generated shots take us under the skin, where we see the blade knocking against the bone as it saws through his muscle and fat.”
Hollywood website, The Wrap’s, movie critic John Foote said that the audience was shocked by 127 Hours.
“I cannot remember a reaction to a film like this in a very long time, perhaps not since The Exorcist sent audiences scurrying for the doors,” he wrote.
“At the screening, once again there were several mad dashes to the door when these scenes came on, and more than a few moviegoers were looking anywhere but at the screen.
“You could clearly see people in shock, struggling to stay in their seats, working to get past the intensity of what was going on in front of them.”
127 Hours tells the story of Aron Ralston who feared he would die in a Utah canyon if he could not free his arm and resorted to cutting it off with a penknife. Ralston survived and has since written a book called Between a Rock and a Hard Place and gone on to be a motivational speaker.
Despite the reaction from the audience, both Boyle and Franco received a standing ovation after the screening and critics have praised the film.
