Vertical - The Film The question posed is: Why do men risk their lives to climb a mountain they don't need to climb? To test oneself - as in war. To see what psychological strength one has. It is the very interesting question, what will happen to oneself when enough pressure is exerted. This pressure could be social, emotional, financial, intellectual, or physical. Ultimately it is all about facing terror. The terror of a community turned against you, or the pain of self-acknowledged failure, or the terror of death. In the mountains, they stand alone against whatever will happen. For the several days they live in nature, they can rely only on themselves and each other. Elsewhere, there is always a fallback - here one is without a safety. This in itself can bring some to terror - the terror of having to rely on yourself - your own judgment, wits and fortitude. This is also the most incredible feeling of strength and independence. Knowing there is no safety means having to be one's own safety. A child fears the darkness, and in his mind convinces himself that his father would always save him if anything occurred. He grows into youth and finds the strength to face the dark on his own resources. If something should be lurking there, he tells himself, he will have to face it with his own mind and body. The mountains are the darkness. Being away from everyone. Faced with the immense - the eternal and the overpowering. Overcoming the immense - the perilous crags and sharp ridges - like ants crawling on a tree. Yet that gives us the sense that we can achieve anything. In times of war these men would be heroes. In times of peace - unable to find an outlet for their power, they turn to the mountains. The mountains also provide a purer, simpler and more peaceful challenge than they could find in society. There are tremendous unscaled summits in politics, in business, and in culture. However, in these matters most is decided by society - rather than brute nature. In politics, academia, etc, often the best man does not attain the summit because of factions, gossip, etc.

影片根据真实事件改编。 苏联货船“涅任号”（注：Нежин，苏联切尔尼戈夫州城市）满载货物返航回国，船舱里装载着一种特殊物品——鸦片，它是为苏联医药工厂采购的生产原料。众所周知，鸦片也可以被当作毒品来使用，因此在海上长途运输这批价值昂贵的货物是冒着很大风险的。 “涅任号”在公海航行... 一天，值班水手发现前方不远处海面上漂着一个人，大家赶忙把他搭救上船。谁也没有料想到，可怜的“海难幸存者”竟是一名海盗。原来，贩毒集团盯上了“涅任号”运载的货物，因此花大价钱雇了一伙现代海盗来劫船，而这个所谓的“落水者”就是海盗们派出来的先锋。“落水者”利用苏联船员的善良骗取了信任，然后开始一步步实施他的罪恶计划：破坏船上机械设施，使“涅任号”失去动力和战斗力，接着发出信号让海盗船前来洗劫... 海盗的阴谋得逞了，涅任号及其装载的鸦片被匪徒们控制，苏联船员沦为阶下囚。不仅如此，为杜绝后患，毫无怜悯之心的匪徒们打算把全体苏联船员杀掉灭口... 在苍茫的大海上，势单力薄的苏联船员与20世纪的海盗们展开了殊死的战斗... 参加影片演出的有若干空手道高手。