Bear Island (1979)

On the remote Norwegian Bear Island, used as a submarine base by the Germans during WW2, U.N. scientist Larsen sends a distress signal using an emergency NATO frequency and is received by scientific vessel Morning Rose.

Director:

Don Sharp

Writers:

David Butler (screenplay), Don Sharp (screenplay)

Stars:

Donald Sutherland, Vanessa Redgrave, Richard Widmark

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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

Storyline

A group of people converge on a barren Arctic island. They have their reasons for being there but when a series of mysterious accidents and murders take place, a whole lot of darker motives become apparent. Could the fortune in buried Nazi gold be the key to the mystery? Donald Sutherland and Vanessa Redgrave investigate.

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Plot Keywords:

island | submarine base | submarine | german | norwegian | 

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Taglines:

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

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

Canada UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

August 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Alistair MacLean's Bear Island

Filming Locations:

Glacier Bay National Park, Gustavus, Alaska, USA

Box Office

Budget:

CAD 12,100,000 (estimated)

Gross:

SEK 5,261,704 (Sweden)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures, Selkirk Films, Canadian Film Development Corporation (CFDC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A fatal accident occurred on location at Stewart, British Columbia, killing a helicopter pilot who missed his landing on top of a mountain.

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Goofs

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.

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Crazy Credits

"Coming soon: Alistair MacLean's Goodbye California"

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Connections

Referenced in From Stereo to Video (2014)

User Reviews

Icebound thriller gets frosty reception

The UK-Canada co-production treaty of the late Seventies produced a lot of dross. "Bear Island" is better than some of its companions but still no classic.

Alistair MacLean's novel was a turgid affair, written at the start of his long decline as a writer. The film-makers wisely ditch most of his plot but the story they substitute, about an icy hunt for wartime Nazi gold, is no masterpiece of originality. Vanessa Redgrave's Norwegian accent comes and goes (at times, she sounds like the Swedish chef from "The Muppets") and Donald Sutherland tries for depth by speaking - very - very - slowly. Anybody who has seen a few of these films won't take long to guess the identity of the "mystery" villain.

On the credit side, the locations are spectacular and Robert Farnon's music score is appropriately portentous. Don Sharp knows how to direct action (he had been brought in a few years earlier to ginger up another MacLean adaptation, "Pupper On a Chain") and the fights are well-staged.