The Edge (1997)

An intellectual billionaire and two lesser men struggle to band together and survive after getting stranded in the Alaskan wilderness with a blood-thirsty Kodiak Bear hunting them down.

Director:

Lee Tamahori

Writer:

David Mamet

Stars:

Anthony Hopkins, Alec Baldwin, Elle Macpherson

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Anthony Hopkins	...	Charles Morse
Alec Baldwin	...	Robert Green
Elle Macpherson	...	Mickey Morse
Harold Perrineau	...	Stephen
Bart the Bear	...	The Bear
L.Q. Jones	...	Styles
Kathleen Wilhoite	...	Ginny
David Lindstedt	...	James
Mark Kiely	...	Mechanic
Eli Gabay	...	Jet Pilot
Larry Musser	...	Amphibian Pilot
Brian Arnold	...	Reporter
Bob Boyd	...	Reporter
Kelsa Kinsly	...	Reporter
Gordon Tootoosis	...	Jack Hawk

Storyline

A model has her rich, much older husband come with her to a photo shoot. But when their plane crashes in the middle of nowhere, a strong mind game erupts between the clever husband and the jealous young photographer as they try to get back to civilization.

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Plot Keywords:

bear | wilderness | crash | survival tactics | billionaire | 

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Taglines:

They Were Fighting Over A Woman When The Plane Went Down. Now, Their Only Chance For Survival Is Each Other.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some adventure gore/violence

Details

Official Sites:

Fox

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 September 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Bookworm

Filming Locations:

Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$7,733,445 (USA) (26 September 1997)

Gross:

$27,779,888 (USA) (19 December 1997)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Art Linson Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The red float plane they crash in is a de Havilland Corp. DHC-2 Beaver.

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Goofs

During the bear's attack on Stephen: Bob and Morse attempt to scare the bear off with torches lit from the campfire. However, there was a major downpour in the moments before and during the bear's attack. One wonders how the campfire, which can be seen burning well, would not have been extinguished by the rain.

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Quotes

Robert Green: Yeah, Well, you have no business with that broad. You know that you don't. I mean hey... hey... hey.

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Connections

Referenced in Saturday Night Live: Alec Baldwin/Christina Aguilera (2006)

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Soundtracks

Happy Birthday
Written by Mildred J. Hill and Patty S. Hill

User Reviews

A Morality Play in an Immoral Age

A very strong performance by Anthony Hopkins, Bart the Bear, and Alec Baldwin, in that order, in a film that deals with the important subjects of virtue, wisdom, and morality. I can understand why some of the modern audience might find that to be a turn-off.

The sets and locations alone are worth a rental, especially of the DVD, the haunting Goldsmith score lingers in the memory and enhances the viewer's pleasure in the film. What a joy it is to see a film that is tautly and expertly written, that tells the salient details of the plot but leaves you guessing--through repeated viewings--of the whys, wheres and whens of the development.

If you favor serious drama--if you relish philosophy--if you don't need a film spoon fed to you or so puerile that they try to stun you with explosions--you will enjoy The Edge.

My choice of a collegiate vocabulary in this review is deliberate.