Shackleton - dvd

In 1914 Shackleton did just that. He and 27 men embarked on a journey to the South Pole, in an effort to be the first to walk across the Antarctic. Though his ship, the Endurance, came within a couple of hundred kilometres of the Antarctic mainland, the powerful grip of the ice floes trapped the ship, which eventually sank deep into the icy water. The crew's survival represents one of the most amazing adventures in history. After the ship was destroyed, the men spent nearly six months on an ice floe. They travelled for six days in three lifeboats to Elephant Island. Then Shackleton and five others travelled 870 miles, over 17 days and rough waters, in one boat to South Georgia Island. After that, Shackleton and two men walked for 36 hours across the mountainous island to reach a whaling station. Next, Shackleton spent three months trying to return to Elephant Island to rescue the men. The saga, which was overshadowed at the time by World War I, has emerged recently as a story of deft management under dire circumstances. “My job now is to make sure you all live….I will not fail” The most expensive and ambitious television drama ever made, Longitude director Charles Sturridge's two part film is not merely a recreation of Sir Ernest Shackleton's ill-fated journey to the South Pole in 1914. Starring Kenneth Branagh as Shackleton, it's a modern drama about a contradictory hero whose idiosyncratic leadership triumphs in the face of unbelievable adversity. I love the fight, and when things are easy, I hate it. - Sir Ernest Shackleton For speed and efficiency of travel, give me Amundsen. For scientific discovery, give me Scott. But when disaster strikes and all hope is gone, get down on your knees and pray for Shackleton. Sir Raymond Priestly, Antarctic Explorer