Green Ice (1981)

Director:

Ernest Day

Writers:

Edward Anhalt (writer)
Gerald A. Browne (novel)

Release Date:

1981 (UK)

Genre:

Adventure | Romance

Tagline:

He wanted adventure...She craved revenge...Emeralds held the answer.

Plot Keywords:

Vengeance | Chase | Coffee | Cartel | Prospecting

Cast

Ryan O'Neal	...	Joseph Wiley
Anne Archer	...	Holbrook
Omar Sharif	...	Meno Argenti
Domingo Ambriz	...	Miguel
John Larroquette	...	Claude
Philip Stone	...	Jochim Kellerman
Michael Sheard	...	Jaap
Enrique Lucero	...	Lucho the Coffee Grower
Manuel Ojeda	...	Lt. Costas
Tara Fellner	...	Kerry, Holbrook's Sister
Sandra Kerns	...	Woman at Bar
Raúl Martínez	...	General Martinez
Enrique Novi	...	Naval Officer
Miguel Ángel Fuentes	...	Herado, Argenti's Bodyguard
Delroy White	...	Prentis

Runtime:

116 min | Germany:98 min | USA:110 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Finland:K-15 (uncut) (2002) | Finland:K-16 (cut) (1981) | Australia:M | USA:PG | West Germany:16 | UK:AA (original rating) | UK:15 (video rating)

Filming Locations:

Mexico

Company:

Incorporated Television Company (ITC)

Trivia:

Ryan O'Neal was sixth choice

Soundtrack:

Si Si

A Memory from a Bygone Era

I kid you not, the last time I saw this movie, I could not have been older than eight years old. It still sticks with me, probably because it was one of the first heist/thriller movies I ever saw.

Omar Sharif was all over the place in the movies of that era, most notably (in mind) in "Oh Heavenly Dog!" with Chevy Chase and Jane Seymour. He was a bad guy in that one, too, and I often think of the two movies with a similar nostalgia. This was certainly my first exposure to the beautiful Anne Archer and the underrated Ryan O'Neal. "Green Ice" also gave us a glimpse of John Larroquette before his face and name became widely known.

This is truly a movie which does not deserve to be forgotten. The music is memorably flaky, but not any cheesier than the "Tootsie" soundtrack or any others from that era. A precursor to "Romancing the Stone", "Green Ice" shows off lots of gems, has lots of suspense and thrills, and a truly despicable, yet dimensional villain. And then there's the action. It is not easy to land a hot air balloon on a high rise, let alone break into said high rise without setting off all kinds of alarms. Using a holographic imager to crack the vault was just the coolest of all techno-geek ideas.

To conclude, I have never seen any film made before or after this one (although "Rough Cut" was close) that brings the romance, action, tension, and characters to the audience like "Green Ice" did.