The Barkley Marathons: The Race That Eats Its Young (2014) Reviews

• In twenty-five years, only ten people completed the race

  theepurplepanda2016-02-07

  The Barkley Marathons is about a race based on a prison escape that only ten people have finished in the last twenty-five years. This is a documentary where the mere concept of it excites you and believe me, it delivers. It's crazy how something as weird and obscure as this has been going on for so long and people just began to hear about it. It has some nice looking shots which some documentaries don't have at all. It's informational and entertaining at the same time which is a plus. My only flaw with it was how hard it was to remember who was who while watching. With fifty different racers it's hard to keep track and I feel like a better job could've been done. 8/10 -- Great. Please give this film a watch. It hurts me to see movies like this get no attention whatsoever. You can buy it on Amazon, Vudu, Google Play, and iTunes for like five dollars digitally and on their website, you can but it for twenty-five bucks on Blu-Ray. I wouldn't recommend torrenting it because a film like this needs all the attention it can get.

• Great look beyond limits

  sdm-107712016-02-09

  Though I may never get or take the chance to experience the challenge that is the Barkley Marathons, I got a taste of the insanity by watching this film. The interviews with the race directors and participants give a glimpse into what truly must be the toughest race on earth. Although I was already familiar with the results from having read Ed Furtaw's book, "Tales from Out There," Seeing the course and the eyes of the competitor's deepened my understanding of the term pushed to the limit. Highly recommend this film to all those who like to go further or appreciate extreme effort.

• This is a wry documentary of a "gruelling race against the clock and nature"

  scihde2016-08-12

  Tennessee is the location, the backwoods are the course, and time is the enemy. Footage is a fantastic documentary of what people can or cannot endure. The organizer is hilariously wry, the camera work is great, and there is no aspect that suggests this to be staged" like so much reality survival footage. The film includes background re. how and why the race began, its history, and personal asides The modicum of foul language further clarifies this as a true presentation. I would love to be chosen for such a race yet know that if I even made it through the first five miles, I would have to buck up to walk five miles to to get back the where I started: even that would be victory for me. Hats off and Hurrahs for all involved in this film.

• A great 'quirky humanity' documentary.

  christopher_langer2018-07-13

  A fun, warm look at the weirdos and Weirdo In Chief orbiting the enigmatic Barkley Marathon. Well worth the watch, especially if you're looking for something that has nuance and psychology but is also not a hard watch.

• kinda makes a really cool event seem boring.

  witster182016-04-01

  The organizer of the race is fairly clear that this film has little to nothing to do with a prison escape. And the rest of the film is a bit too dull to do this brutal race justice. A bit more interaction/background with the participants, or a bit of style whatsoever would have helped. THere's not doubt this is a grueling race, and if the film accomplishes something - it's showing us that. Albeit, in a very rudimentary fashion. A bit more about the area, or the participants, or the creator... something! Instead, it's about as basic as a documentary can get, and here it really hurts the overall "film". And I put "film" in parenthesis because it's barely a film. Of course, when he's charging a flannel-shirt or $1.62 for applications to enter the race - you can see where he didn't have the funds to put into a documentary about his great race. It's not completely incompetent. At least it gives us a decent description of the race itself. The event seems very interesting. It's amazing to me that such an amazing, brutal event can be portrayed in such a drab, inconsequential manner. It deserves better. If the race isn't about a prison escape, then why bring it up, and if it is, how about a neat back-story, but no. ANd style wise, it leaves a lot to be desired. As an event - it's a "10". As a documentary film, a "5".