Survival Quest (1989)

Director:

Don Coscarelli

Writer (WGA):

Don Coscarelli (written by)

Release Date:

10 November 1989 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Thriller

Tagline:

In the wilderness you can't dial 911

Plot:

A bunch of city slickers from different backgrounds go into the wild mountains to be one with nature...

Plot Keywords:

Survival | Mountain | California | Wilderness | Rifle

Cast

Lance Henriksen	...	Hank
Mark Rolston	...	Jake
Steve Antin	...	Raider
Michael Allen Ryder	...	Harper
Paul Provenza	...	Joey
Ben Hammer	...	Hal
Dominic Hoffman	...	Jeff
Traci Lind	...	Olivia (as Traci Lin)
Dermot Mulroney	...	Gray
Catherine Keener	...	Cheryl
Ken Daly	...	Checker
Reggie Bannister	...	Pilot
Ken Smolka	...	Olivia's Father
Brooke Bundy	...	Olivia's Mother
Dean Scofield	...	Olivia's Fiancé

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Ultra Stereo

Certification:

Norway:15 | USA:R (certificate no. 30000) | Iceland:16 | Belgium:16 (video rating)

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Company:

Starway International Inc.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Jake: Take a good look around you. Because when you come back from this trip, nothing will look the same to you again.

An exciting and involving thriller from Don Coscarelli.

Sandwiched among his "Phantasm" series as well as "The Beastmaster", Don Coscarelli crafted this nice little surprise that's worthy of either discovery or re-discovery.

Six disparate people, either trying to better themselves or prove something to themselves, have signed up for a wilderness survival course taught by Hank (Lance Henriksen, in a truly wonderful performance). At the same time, however, a different sort of survival school - leaning in a more militant direction - is underway, taught by gung-ho Jake (Henriksens' "Aliens" co-star Mark Rolston, well cast in his role and convincing).

As Hanks' students, including well-off bride-to-be Olivia (Traci Lin), macho Jeff (Dominic Hoffman), middle-aged Hal (Ben Hammer), divorcée Cheryl (Catherine Keener), comic relief Joey (comedian Paul Provenza), and convict Gray (Dermot Mulroney), trudge through the forest, they learn to rely on and respect one another, as they also learn to face and conquer their fears. Ultimately, the students in the other class take things too far and Hanks' students have to face the most harrowing challenge of all.

This is a stirring, involving, and exciting movie with characters one can actually like and root for. The actors are all believable and deliver very engaging performances. (Even the antagonists in this movie are not merely one-dimensional, which I appreciated.) The movie is well directed and has some fine sequences; the scenes on the river are particularly well done. The scenery is beautiful and photographed very well, and the music by Fred Myrow and Christopher L. Stone is very effective.

The movie takes time building but at no time is it ever less than interesting. I liked it a lot and I would definitely recommend it to others.

10/10