The film documents the 1954 Italian expedition to K2, led by Ardito Desio, which saw the conquest of the K2 summit for the first time by Achille Compagnoni and Lino Lacedelli.
[1] The film is divided into three parts: the preparation of the expedition in Italy, the approach to the K2 base camp in Pakistan, and the climb to the summit.
[2][3] According to Morandini,[2] the film shows images of a touching sobriety , which contrast with the emphasis of the commentary, which followed the general tone of INCOM newsreels typical of the fifties.
The film was previewed on 25 March 1955 in the presence of president Luigi Einaudi and was a good success with the public, grossing 360 million lire.
The new edition includes only the sequences created by Fantin; the original music was preserved, while both the part relating to the preparations in Italy and the rhetorical commentary of the time were eliminated, replaced by captions based on Fantin's notes.