Rotpunkt

Alex Megos was the first person to onsight 9a, and for years he treated projecting as an admission of weakness. Rotpunkt is Patagonia's portrait of what happens when the fastest climber in the world finally finds routes that refuse to go quickly, and it doubles as a history lesson: Kurt Albert's original rotpunkt, the red circle painted at the base of a Frankenjura route, is where the entire idea of the redpoint was born.

The film follows Megos from his home crags in Germany to Siurana, where Estado Critico shuts him down day after day. Watching a talent this outrageous learn to fail, and to care about something enough to keep failing, is the real story. The climbing footage is superb, but the film's best moments are quiet ones: Megos and his mentors talking about what a single ascent is actually worth.