The Fatal Game (1997)

Every climbing season hundreds of mountaineers steel themselves to ascend Mt Everest knowing they might not return. Australian Mike Rheinberger, 52, had tried six times to reach the summit and failed. The seventh time he would not give up. With New Zealand cameraman, Mark Whetu, to record the great moment of his life, he summitted.

Perhaps he should have been more concerned that it was so late in the day and their hopes of descending to camp 6 were disappearing in the sunset, but Mike was possessed by a dream that would soon become a nightmare. Mark had wanted to turn back but would not desert Mike. As night fell they realised they could not return to camp. They decided to bivouac on a ridge just below the summit. All night they huddled together in the freezing cold. They knew they were gambling with their lives. The next morning Mike was suffering altitude sickness and could descend only with extreme effort. By midday he had suffered cerebral oedema and could not keep going. The position for Mark Whetu was also critical. His feet were badly frostbitten and it was not likely he would survive another night on the summit, but he refused to leave his comrade. All day, Mark struggled in vain to bring Mike to safety. It was only after continuous pleading on the radio from the expedition leader that late in the day Mark was persuaded to save his own life and return to the base where his rescuers waited. Mark was to make it back to safety, but the body of Mike Rheinberger remains preserved on the frozen summit that he so dearly wanted to climb. Back in Marks hometown, Queenstown, Mark spent two years recovering from an operation to remove all of his toes. He went into a deep depression and could not forget the loss of his friend. But his friends in Queenstown made it something of a crusade to take Mark Whetu back to the Himalayas in the hope that he could rest the spirit of Reinburger and restore his confidence as a mountain guide. They return to Tibet and climb the sixth highest mountain in the world, ChoOyu. From the summit they get a perfect view of Mount Everest and celebrate the return of Mark Whetu, mountain guide.