‘The Dark Wizard’ profiles a late legend

Most people will never try rock climbing, much less big wall climbs like El Capitan, and especially not speed climbing that greatly reduces safety margins.

Fewer still would ever consider free soloing, which means climbing without a rope, or walking a tightrope over a steep chasm without a tether, an activity known as slacklining.

Skydiving, illegal BASE jumping and outrageously dangerous wingsuit flying are completely out of the question for all but a few.

Dean Potter did all these things for years until his death in 2015, but he was far more than a reckless daredevil. The new HBO series “The Dark Wizard” tells his complex story.

Potter moved to Yosemite in the 1990s and quickly earned a reputation for fast and bold climbing. He ascended Half Dome’s most classic route, the Regular Northwest Face, alone in four hours and 17 minutes, shaving 16 hours off the previously fastest solo.

Climbing with partners on El Capitan’s The Nose, he broke formidable speed records three times, teaming up with Sean Leary to ascend the granite mountain in just two hours and 36 minutes.

“I love the action of speed climbing, just galloping up the rock,” Potter said.

But interviews with friends revealed a more complicated personality.

“Dean definitely was driven by his ego, but who he wanted to be was not that super-competitive sports bro kind of guy,” said Dean Fidelman, Potter’s friend and a photographer who recorded his exploits for years. “He was searching for a deeper connection. He wanted to be part of nature. He identified with animals, especially with ravens.”

Potter’s affinity for ravens showed in his personal journals, which the film shares, and in his increasingly dangerous pursuits which eventually included “human flight.”

The series details Potter’s escalation from speed climbing to free solo climbing to BASE (Building, Antennae, Span and Earth) jumping. He invented the concept he called “free BASE,” which means free solo climbing with a parachute for a last-resort possibility of preventing a fatal fall.

“The Dark Wizard” teems with riveting footage of Potter not just climbing, but free soloing, free BASE climbing (including falls with parachute-aided landings), slacklining, skydiving and BASE jumping.

He eventually graduated to wingsuit flying. That pursuit involves jumping off a high point like a steep cliff or mountaintop with an aerodynamic nylon suit that allows participants to control and direct their fall for a few moments before deploying a parachute to land. This extreme sport has a notoriously high fatality rate.

“My most fundamental principle is just being free,” Potter said.

That belief brought Potter into frequent conflict with the National Park Service. While climbing and even free soloing are legal in Yosemite, skydiving and wingsuit flying are not. The film shows how Potter and other extreme athletes adapt to evade rangers and prosecution.

An astonishing trove of action footage makes the film a thrilling watch. Potter, who was a sponsored athlete, had professional photographers and videographers following for years. Most of this footage was never before published.

But the series is much more than an action festival, revealing beautiful and broken friendships, rivalries with fellow climbers Hans Florine and Alex Honnold, a marriage that didn’t last and key figures in the last days of his life.

These include his dog Whisper, his wingsuit flying buddy Graham Hunt and girlfriend Jennifer Rapp.

Yosemite provides the setting for much of Potter’s life and the film, though it also includes his evolution and controversial activities in places like Utah, China and Switzerland.

Potter’s mental health struggles and rocky personal relationships make this a complicated portrait of a physically talented yet troubled soul.

Directed by Peter Mortimer and Nick Rosen, “The Dark Wizard” will entertain and fascinate more than just climbers, skydivers and Yosemite aficionados. It’s easily worth $11 for a month of HBO.

Matt Johanson enjoys hiking, climbing, skiing and writing about the outdoors. His books include “Yosemite Epics,” “Yosemite Adventures” and “California Summits.” He can be reached at matt.johanson@sbcglobal.net.