Avalanche (or also known as Escape from Alaska) is a 1999 disaster film. (For the record, I believe the title Avalanche is much more fitting). The film stars Thomas Ian Griffith (known for films such as The Karate Kid III and Crackerjack). Other notable actors in this film include C. Thomas Howell (Red Dawn and The Outsiders), John Ashton (The Tommyknockers and Beverly Hills Cop), and R. Lee Ermy (Full Metal Jacket and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake). I watched this film a few years before (when I was not well educated in film) and it was just more of a meh movie. Years later, I think of this film as one of the worst movies I have ever seen.
The film follows pilot Neil. His best friend Jack and Jack's wife, Lia, are tagging foxes. An explosion occurs and causes an avalanche that kills Jack. Neil saves Lia after the rescue team calls here a lost cause. Years later, Neil is still in Alaska but Lia is in San Francisco working for this oil company that is making this pipeline in Alaska. There are concerns about this pipeline and how it could cause a huge avalanche that could bury the whole city. The rest of the film follows Neil and Lia as they try to rebuild their relationship and also try to prevent the company from turning on this oil pipe.
This film is sooooooo bad. First of all, the acting is god awful. In the first few minutes of the film, we witness how bad it is. And this is something that is throughout the whole film. Which is a shame because we have actors like R. Lee Ermy who is a fine actor but even he cannot give a good performance. I should note that on one end of the R. Lee Ermy spectrum you have his Full Metal Jacket performance. On the other, Avalanche. The actors and actresses are supposed to make me feel something for these characters and I honestly feel nothing for these characters at all. I could care less if they got buried by an avalanche. There is also so weird one liners that Thomas Ian Griffith (who plays Neil) gives. It is really bizarre actually. With any great disaster film, there are good effects. And as you already know, this is not a good disaster film so the effects are really crappy. Sure, they use stock footage for the avalanche but put the avalanche in footage with people via greenscreen or something. They try to use miniatures for certain scenes but they are very unconvincing. The film has a total of three avalanches. One in the beginning, one in the middle, and one towards the end. The big one is in the end and well, whatever. I could care less. I have to watch through all of this nonsense involving this relationship between Neil and Lia before I even get to it and by the time we do, I am not even interested. The music is something that I almost was sold with but the more I think about it, where is the intense music that acompanies the disaster? Nowhere. There is a plot twist and honestly it is so dumb that had it not happened at all, this film might have been I little better. But that would not be saying a whole lot.
Avalanche is a poorly made disaster film. Nothing is redeemable about this film. It is best to stay away from this film.
The film follows pilot Neil. His best friend Jack and Jack's wife, Lia, are tagging foxes. An explosion occurs and causes an avalanche that kills Jack. Neil saves Lia after the rescue team calls here a lost cause. Years later, Neil is still in Alaska but Lia is in San Francisco working for this oil company that is making this pipeline in Alaska. There are concerns about this pipeline and how it could cause a huge avalanche that could bury the whole city. The rest of the film follows Neil and Lia as they try to rebuild their relationship and also try to prevent the company from turning on this oil pipe.
This film is sooooooo bad. First of all, the acting is god awful. In the first few minutes of the film, we witness how bad it is. And this is something that is throughout the whole film. Which is a shame because we have actors like R. Lee Ermy who is a fine actor but even he cannot give a good performance. I should note that on one end of the R. Lee Ermy spectrum you have his Full Metal Jacket performance. On the other, Avalanche. The actors and actresses are supposed to make me feel something for these characters and I honestly feel nothing for these characters at all. I could care less if they got buried by an avalanche. There is also so weird one liners that Thomas Ian Griffith (who plays Neil) gives. It is really bizarre actually. With any great disaster film, there are good effects. And as you already know, this is not a good disaster film so the effects are really crappy. Sure, they use stock footage for the avalanche but put the avalanche in footage with people via greenscreen or something. They try to use miniatures for certain scenes but they are very unconvincing. The film has a total of three avalanches. One in the beginning, one in the middle, and one towards the end. The big one is in the end and well, whatever. I could care less. I have to watch through all of this nonsense involving this relationship between Neil and Lia before I even get to it and by the time we do, I am not even interested. The music is something that I almost was sold with but the more I think about it, where is the intense music that acompanies the disaster? Nowhere. There is a plot twist and honestly it is so dumb that had it not happened at all, this film might have been I little better. But that would not be saying a whole lot.
Avalanche is a poorly made disaster film. Nothing is redeemable about this film. It is best to stay away from this film.