Bear Island (1979)

Director:

Don Sharp

Writers:

Alistair MacLean (novel)
Murray Smith (additional material) ...

Release Date:

August 1980 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Thriller

Tagline:

Below freezing and beyond fear... Will anyone survive its terror?

Plot:

A group of people converge on a barren Arctic island. They have their reasons for being there but when...

Plot Keywords:

Isolation | Arctic | Cold | Gold | Ice

Cast

Donald Sutherland	...	Frank Lansing
Vanessa Redgrave	...	Heddi Lindquist
Richard Widmark	...	Otto Gerran
Christopher Lee	...	Lechinski
Barbara Parkins	...	Judith Rubin
Lloyd Bridges	...	Smithy
Lawrence Dane	...	Paul Hartman
Patricia Collins	...	Inge Van Zipper
Michael J. Reynolds	...	Heyter
Nicholas Cortland	...	Jungbeck
August Schellenberg	...	Marine Technician
Candace O'Connor	...	Laboratory Assistant
Joseph Golland	...	Meteorological Assistant
Bruce Greenwood	...	Technician (Tommy)
Richard Wren	...	Radio Operator

Also Known As:

Alistair MacLean's Bear Island (UK) (complete title)

Runtime:

118 min | Canada:110 min

Country:

UK | Canada

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Norway:16 (original rating) | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | USA:PG | Iceland:12

Filming Locations:

Glacier Bay National Park, Gustavus, Alaska, USA

Company:

Bear Island

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When everyone is outside after the generator explosion it is blowing a blizzard, but the flames are rising vertically with minimal wind disturbance rather than being virtually horizontal, revealing that wind machines are being used just on the area where the actors are.

Great film

I was 12 years old when I went to see this film in our local cinema on a Saturday afternoon. I went to see it because what I saw in the trailer really appealed to me and the film lived up to my expectations completely. I was the only person in the whole theatre so it's pretty obvious that the film wasn't popular, but I don't know why this should be.

The film has a lot going for it. The actors and acting are brilliant, how did they get so many stars in one film. the production is spot on creating moods of isolation, claustrophobia and a great sense of realism (just look at the abandoned U-Boat pen). The action sequences range from good to spectacular (have you ever seen a longer cliff fall than the one in this film). And of course the story is excellent, coming as it does from Alistair McLean's novel.

The film is not perfect of course, but then what is. It did seem a bit long and a bit plodding at times (but don't forget I was 12, with the attention span of a goldfish).

All in all this is an intelligent action thriller and I wish someone would release it on DVD. Even the VHS versions are rare.