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"Long Way Down" DVD Review
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Date: 2008/10/26 14:07
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By: Jim_Cowgill
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Status: User
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Karma: 2
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Platinum Boarder
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“Long Way Down” DVD Review
by Jim Cowgill
Awhile back, movie actors Ewan McGregor and Charlie Boorman rode BMW motorcycles (1150 cc) around the world, from west to east, leaving London and arriving in New York. The DVD, “Long Way Round” (review posted on this forum), documented this epic trek.
With the DVD, “Long Way Down,” they’re at it again—this time, riding BMW motorcycles (1200 cc) from the northern tip of Scotland to the southern tip of Africa. Augmented with helmet cameras and microphones, the riders provide some real-time narrative accompanying the images.
Six documentary programs, originally broadcast by the BBC, appear on a two-disk DVD set, chronicling the more recent ride, along with extra footage beyond the broadcasts.
Each broadcast segment repeats the statistics, “15,000 miles, 18 countries.” More statistics gleaned: the party includes the two principal riders, plus a motorcycle-borne cameraman; two Nissan four-wheel-drive SUV’s carrying a couple of director/producers, a cameraman, a dual-duty cameraman-security officer, and . . . a medical doctor and his “kit.”
Temporary help included, for each country, a “fixer,” attending to passport/visa/customs paperwork. In all, eight permanent-party travelers made the entire journey (except for the American director/producer, who had to skip Libya only, whose policy denies visas for Yanks, but admits Brits).
In London, the expedition employed researchers, poring over maps at the National Geographic Society, choosing the best routes. Also, a pair of young women worked full-time obtaining the necessary visas and travel documents; succeeding completely, except for Libya’s rejection of a visa request for a US passport.
Training for the trip, Ewan and Charlie attended an off-road motorcycle riding course. From the video, their riding skills seemed much improved to me, compared to their level of competence in ‘Long Way Round.” Maybe 20,000 or so miles in the saddle honed the riders’ competence some. Charlie, for example, learned rudimentary wheelies, not an unmixed blessing, as his companions informed him (stunting on a crowded city street, in some territories chosen for the journey, might not attract the kind of attention preferred).
Also, the riders enrolled in a “survival” school, learning to build shelters, etc., perhaps in case the travelers became separated from their on-board tents and equipment, and their support staff.
Further, the pair took a “Hazardous Situations” course, where they were counseled and trained on how to behave when attacked, hi-jacked, or kidnapped by mercenary bandits, or extremist terrorists, in the bush. Interesting curriculum, including practical exercises, involving rousting from a vehicle by AK-47-toting simulated thugs. No, Charlie; you don’t “escape,” leaving your friends to be shot dead by their captors!
The “Hazardous Situations” course seems a prudent precaution—the “Long Way Down” route passed through regions less than the safest and most friendly: For example, Libya, Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, and Ethiopia, the last where five British tourists had been kidnapped, just prior to the “Long Way Down” launch. This year’s Dakar Rally, previously run near this trip’s route, was cancelled for security reasons. The “Long Way Down” entourage included some high-value hostage prospects.
When tourists ask for African continent “Travelers’ Advisories,” our State Department might just give ‘em a copy of “Long Way Down!”
Nissan provided some rough-terrain four-wheeling instruction, in hopes of keeping the shiny sides of the 4X4 SUVs up, traversing the “Dark Continent.” Tricked-out beyond “soccer mom” configuration, with oversize fuel tanks, snorkels, etc., these vehicles seemed effective in their support function throughout the trip.
As in “best-laid” plans, Ewan broke his leg road-riding weeks before the trip, but—healed in time to make the scene.
As a shakedown for the trip, the bikes were shipped to the northernmost point of Scotland, joined there by the riders who flew in, and by the Nissan SUV’s, driven up. Then, the entourage motored the 800 miles back to the London workshop where the expedition originally formed, for adjustments prior to “Chunneling” over to Europe.
The venture schedule became seriously threatened, when Charlie, dissatisfied with the Gatwick Airport staff’s performance, uttered the “B” word (as in, “bomb,” I think) in line. The police detained and interviewed him for a while, but pressed no charges. “Do not try this at home,” I think.
Early on, the party met a Swiss couple in Italy, camping in a pickup-bed camper or travel trailer. While sharing some pasta, this pair disclosed they had THEMSELVES motorcycled to Cape Town! Ironically, they made the trip without the assistance of the army of gophers, assistants, consultants, sponsors, etc., the “Long Way Down” crew enjoyed.
The Swiss couple gave the party some GPS coordinates for camp sites in Malawi, or some exotic, primitive, and remote African country.
So, what’s to like about “Long Way Down?”
The “Grand Idea” alone, of riding a motorcycle from John o’Groats, Scotland, to the Cape of Good Hope, Africa, remains seductive enough to some of us.
Some great scenery appears in the flick; Roman ruins, motorcycles among the Pyramids, for example; cruising, even whitewater rafting on the Nile; Victoria Falls, seen briefly amid bungee-jumping scenarios. Some camels, elephants, baboons, ostriches, rhinos, gorillas, zebras, etc. I’d hoped for more scenery around Cape Town, among the most beautiful spots on earth; but, maybe available time and the shooting budget were depleted at the final destination.
And, for those already fans of Ewan McGregor and/or Charlie Boorman, or for those who become sympathetic with one or both of these characters from the DVD, viewing provides a vicarious sensation of ‘hanging” with this pair. However, if these guys ain’t your cup of tea, there’s an AWFUL lot of “face time” with the personalities themselves, at the expense of riding footage and “travelogue” stuff.
While the principals mug for the camera a lot, fact-of-life: They ARE celebrities! Ordinary Joe Six-Pack bikers would not receive the sponsorship (by the way, MAC Tools replaced Snap-On, this journey!), the financial backing, or the promotion for the adventure. These movie stars could have made a feature film in the three months spent riding across Africa; money makes the world go ‘round, and one can’t begrudge these guys’ efforts at making a buck on TV syndication, DVD sales, book sales, travel tours, T-shirts, etc.
Is the DVD production somewhat like, ‘Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous?” Maybe, if you consider awaiting fitting of bespoken riding jackets, special waterproof toilet paper carriers, all that sort of thing!
More than fluff: The party (Ewan, Charlie, and their two director/producers) visited Rwanda’s President Kagame in his home, receiving a gracious welcome. Then, the party took a somber tour of a genocide museum, where the skulls, bones, and clothing of many of the 5,000 genocide victims, slain at that very location some ten years ago, repose. (US President George W. Bush visited President Kagame and this same museum during his February, 2008, African tour.)
Asked whether she was of the Tutsi, or of the Hutu, tribe (warring factions in the genocide), the museum guide tellingly said, “At the time, I was Tutsi; but now, I am RWANDAN!”
As in “Long Way Round,” Ewan and Charlie visited a UNICEF children’s facility (this one in Uganda, rehabilitating rescued child-soldiers) and a bush health clinic. The product manager of their previous US DVD distributor told me the gents are generously philanthropic; and, I think, Ewan and his wife, Eve (who joined the trip for a week on her own bike), actually adopted an orphan from overseas.
The Kenya (a country whose unrest appears currently in the news) transit showed how closely the route approached regions of turmoil. Accompanied by an armed escort, the travelers visited a children’s school, the site of a recent massacre of dozens of younger students.
Comparison might be odious, but I didn’t detect as much interesting riding footage, per hour of viewing, as in “Long Way Round.” Some “tough-sledding” surfaced, muddy and suspenseful, finger-crossing river fordings, and some sandy (think of snuff, about three feet deep) trails and deserts, but the struggles didn’t appear as persistent and intense as in the northern-hemisphere trip. Maybe, the African route didn’t include as much inhospitable, neo-impassable trail as the previous trek offered.
The pace of the documentary seemed driven, considerably, by the thrust of time pressure. Gotta get to the Moto Guzzi factory before it closes for the weekend. Gotta get to the dock before the ferry leaves; won’t be another for a week. And so on. More time to visit the land and its peoples, rather than meeting journey deadlines, might have offered more entertainment value.
Dissension? The path to true, trans-Africa motorcycling doesn’t always run smoothly. The image of 400 ants floating down the river on a log comes to mind, with each ant thinking HE is steering the log. The mixture of strong, judgmental, aggressive male personalities produced some friction, but all ironed and smoothed out, notably during a “conference” in Ethiopia.
No serious injuries, or long-term equipment malfunctions (Ewan’s bike required evacuation once by “lorry” for suspension repairs) blighted the trip. Near the end of the journey, about 14,900 miles into the 15,000-mile trek, Charlie got a little cute on the road, braking hard in front of his motorcycle cameraman. The result: bashed-up bike; bunged-up cameraman; but—always prepared, the ride-along doctor had sufficient pain-killer immediately available. With both rider and bike patched up, the triumphant party rode on to the southern tip of Africa.
Returning to Cape Town, a huge cavalcade of local bikers joined the parade for a festive conclusion to the “Long Way Down.”
So, what’s next? A motorcycle ride, from Tierra del Fuego, at the southern tip of South America, to Point Barrow, Alaska? (Yeah; I know; you can't actually RIDE a motorcycle all the way to Point Barrow at this time, but--don't underestimate these guys!)
“Long Way Up?”
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For DVD, book, merchandise availability, contact: www.longwaydown.com
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Re:"Long Way Down" DVD Review
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Date: 2008/12/23 07:13
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By: Jim_Cowgill
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Status: User
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Karma: 2
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Platinum Boarder
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Here's an account of some non-movie stars, and their ride along much of "Long Way Down's" route. No chase vehicles, no ride-along doctor, no "fixers" at each border crossing, but--looks like they made it, and had lots of fun:
http://www.tysonbrust.com/
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