Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

The Dawn Wall

Play trailer 2:29 Poster for The Dawn Wall 2018 1h 40m Documentary Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
100% Tomatometer 18 Reviews 96% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
Legendary free climber Tommy Caldwell tries to get over heartbreak by scaling the Dawn Wall of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park.

Critics Reviews

View More
Michael Rechtshaffen Los Angeles Times 09/13/2018
"The Dawn Wall" transcends initial conventional sports documentary trappings, emerging as an affecting portrait of conquering personal limitations. Go to Full Review
John DeFore The Hollywood Reporter 09/13/2018
Stuffed with drama, both climbing-related and not. Go to Full Review
Owen Gleiberman Variety 03/20/2018
A riveting and spectacular documentary ... Go to Full Review
Bianca Garner Filmotomy 10/11/2024
The Dawn Wall is a very strong documentary; when we are up there on the wall with the two climbers, but it does take a while to find its footing. Go to Full Review
Brett Michael Dykes Uproxx 12/29/2021
The two men attempt to scale the impossible 3000ft Dawn Wall of El Capitan, the Everest for free climbers, and if you can stomach over an hour of near-fatal slips, trips, and falls, this is the doc for you. Go to Full Review
Craig Schroeder Battleship Pretension 01/07/2021
The Dawn Wall moves with incredible fluidity. Framing the film around Caldwell and Jorgensen's ascent, the film floats effortlessly between past and present... Go to Full Review
Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View More
Rob H 10/28/2022 Riveting, a must see documentary.. Must see also ‘The Alpinist' See more 04/12/2021 An inspiring story Went into it not know what to expect and blown away. Didn't think much about the film making and craft as the story was so compelling See more 03/17/2021 Gripping (pun *sigh* intended) from its very first moments, The Dawn Wall is a triumphant and fun climbing documentary. While this came out slightly before the death defying Free Solo, it remains impossible for me to not compare the two. Free Solo being the masterpiece it is, The Dawn Wall can suffer a bit in comparison in terms of the stakes at hand, but it does well to create a connection to its characters, the goal, and ultimately the satisfaction of a happy ending. For anyone who remotely enjoys the outdoors, this is a great watch filled with adventure, friendship, and amazing views. See more 03/12/2021 Amazing story and fantastic success. Sometimes nice guys do finish first. See more 12/26/2020 Not up to the level of Free Solo but still an impressive feat and a very watchable film See more 11/05/2020 Wow. Probably the best documentary I have ever watched. I was rivited to the screen for the entire movie. I was on the edge of my seat. I absolutely recommend watching this to anyone who is a fan of climbing or extreme sports. Absolutely phenomenal! See more Read all reviews
The Dawn Wall

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW
Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent 84% 67% Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent Watchlist TRAILER for Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent Free Solo 97% 93% Free Solo Watchlist TRAILER for Free Solo Hillbilly 91% 56% Hillbilly Watchlist Dirtbag: The Legend of Fred Beckey 100% 96% Dirtbag: The Legend of Fred Beckey Watchlist Meeting Gorbachev 86% 68% Meeting Gorbachev Watchlist TRAILER for Meeting Gorbachev Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis Legendary free climber Tommy Caldwell tries to get over heartbreak by scaling the Dawn Wall of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park.
Director
Josh Lowell, Peter Mortimer
Producer
Josh Lowell, Philipp Manderla, Peter Mortimer
Distributor
The Orchard
Production Co
Red Bull Media House, The Orchard
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 14, 2018, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 22, 2018
Box Office (Gross USA)
$784.0K
Runtime
1h 40m