The Mountain (1956)

Selfish Chris Teller pressures his older brother, a retired climber, to accompany him on a treacherous Alpine climb to loot the bodies of plane crash victims.

Director:

Edward Dmytryk

Writers:

Henri Troyat (novel), Ranald MacDougall (screenplay)

Stars:

Spencer Tracy, Robert Wagner, Claire Trevor

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Spencer Tracy	...	Zachary Teller
Robert Wagner	...	Christopher 'Chris' Teller
Claire Trevor	...	Marie
William Demarest	...	Father Belacchi
Barbara Darrow	...	Simone
Richard Arlen	...	C.W. Rivial
E.G. Marshall	...	Solange
Anna Kashfi	...	Hindu Girl
Richard Garrick	...	Coloz
Harry Townes	...	Joseph
Stacy Harris	...	Nicholas Servoz
Yves Brainville	...	Andre

Storyline

When a plane crashes on a mountaintop Chris wants to plunder the wreckage. His older brother Zachary has given up mountain guide work but goes along rather than letting his brother risk it alone. The only survivor is a Hindu girl who Chris wants to kill. Zachary fights him off. While Chris steals from the dead passengers, Zachary prepares a sled to take the girl down the mountain.

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Plot Keywords:

two word title | jeep | herd of sheep | family home | older man younger woman relationship | 

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Taglines:

Actually Filmed Amid the FRENCH ALPS in VISTAVISION

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was based on the 1952 novel "La neige en deuil" written by Henri Troyat. The novel itself was inspired by the Air India Flight 245 crash into Mont-Blanc, France, on November 3, 1950. The flight, a Lockheed L-749A Constellation Malabar Princess, carried forty passengers and eight crew on the Bombay-Cairo-Geneva-London route. It hit the face of the Rochers De la Tournette 4,677 meters (15,344 feet) on the French side of Mont Blanc, killing all on board. In 1966 Air India Flight 101 crashed in the same approximate area. In 2013, a climber found a cache of jewelry that is speculated to have been aboard one of these two flights.

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Goofs

When Zachary and Chris are preparing the climb, Zachary takes the best rope, saying to Chris: "you'll be on the end of my rope; if something goes wrong, I'll be on the end of your rope. Wanna change?" Yet, the day after, we always see Zachary climbing with his rope on the backpack (a plain white one, so presumably the best "silk new one"), while Chris has no rope on his backpack: this means they are climbing using Chris's rope, the "second best one".

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Quotes

Father Belacchi: They're getting up a rescue party to climb the mountain.
Zachary Teller: Why, if everybody's dead?

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Connections

Featured in The Patsy (1964)

User Reviews

A beautiful picture

Here is Spencer Tracy doing what Spencer Tracy does best; live the part. He is one of only a few actors that engage you with almost no dialogue. The story is simple; Indian plane crashes on a mountain and two brothers climb to reach the wreckage; both for very different reasons.

The movie is filled with spectacular climbing footage, and incredible vistas. (It was filmed in VISTA-VISION you know) It's a journey between two brothers and the guilt that one carries for what he perceives to be his failings in raising the younger. Robert Wagner plays the young brother who only cares for money and greed. (he has no redeeming qualities whatsoever) Spencer is the elder who embodies all that is good and just. The Mountain serves as the grand reminder of how small we really are, but also the great feats we can accomplish.

Rent it. Watch it. I guarantee you'll enjoy it.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

November 1956 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Mountain

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,119,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1