One of the most high profile films to grace Austin Film Festival’s lineup this year was Danny Boyle’s “127 Hours.”

Set in 2003, the film tells the true story of Aron Ralston (portrayed by James Franco), an adventurer and outdoorsmen who gets stranded for five days in a remote Utah canyon after his arm gets trapped under an 800 lb. boulder.

It certainly isn’t the first film to be shot within a confined space. Rodrigo Cortez’s “Buried,” released last month, features 95 full minutes of Ryan Reynolds trapped in a coffin, and in 2002’s “Phone Booth” Colin Farrell barely budges from the now-antiquated pay phone station.

Perhaps the greatest pioneer of this claustrophobic, suspenseful style would be Alfred Hitchcock, who made films like “Rear Window” on single sets.

About 80 percent of “127 Hours” takes place in the narrow canyon.

Beautiful time lapses and sweeping shots of the expansive, red Utah dessert coupled with brief, hazy, dehydration-induced flashbacks serve to break up the shots of Franco trapped beneath the bolder.

These sequences are shot exquisitely and certainly add to the film. However, most importantly, their brevity keeps the focus on Franco’s impressive performance, which perfectly captures the mood of immobilization and desperation, though peppered with surprising moments of humor.

To bring the real life story to the screen, Boyle once again collaborated with “Slumdog Millionaire” screenwriter Simon Beaufoy.

The extreme camera angles are classic Boyle, while the vivid colors, exotic landscape and energetic editing are definitely more in the vein of “Slumdog” than early Boyle films like “Trainspotting” and “Shallow Grave.”

Buzz on the film has tended to center on one particularly gory scene (which we won’t spoil here in case you, too, have been living under a rock), and the scene definitely lives up to its grizzly reputation.

But particularly squeamish moviegoers should not shy away–the payoff from this impressive film definitely outweighs a few moments of discomfort.