A poor kid from the canal who conquered mountains no one thought possible.
Guido Magnone's incredible adventure begins strangely on the banks of the Ourcq canal among a group of kids who dream of swimming. Guido, the solitary son of "rital", dives to get noticed, succeeds, takes a liking to it, breaks his first record, collects medals. At the same time, he draws, attends the Beaux-Arts, is accepted with open arms and befriends the sculptors César and Féraud. At the end of the war, during a health stay in Chamonix, it is love at first sight for the mountains, climbing. Guido's ascent is now dizzying. He stormed the west face of the Drus, then the Fitzroy and the Tour de Mustagh, summits reputed to be impossible. He rubs shoulders with the greatest, Lionel Terray, Maurice Herzog, and participates in the Makalu expedition, camera in hand, or those of Jannu and Chacraraju. Later, in his fifties, Guido hangs up the carabiners and participates in the foundation of the UCPA
Cinematography
His own footage from 1950s Makalu expedition—insane.
Production
Archival access to Herzog, Terray, and the golden age.
Director
Jean-Michel Rodrigo
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Magnone shot the 1955 Makalu footage himself—some of the earliest high-altitude cinematography by a climber, not a hired crew.
The 'Rital' slur he reclaimed was brutal postwar shorthand for Italian immigrants—his arc from canal kid to national hero tracks France's own guilt and romance with outsiders.
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