Ice Station Zebra (1968)

USN nuclear sub USS Tigerfish must rush to the North Pole to rescue the staff of Drift Ice Station Zebra weather station.

Director:

John Sturges

Writers:

Alistair MacLean (novel), Douglas Heyes (screenplay)

Stars:

Rock Hudson, Ernest Borgnine, Patrick McGoohan

Nominated for 2 Oscars.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Rock Hudson	...	Cdr. James Ferraday
Ernest Borgnine	...	Boris Vaslov
Patrick McGoohan	...	David Jones
Jim Brown	...	Capt. Leslie Anders
Tony Bill	...	Lt. Russell Walker
Lloyd Nolan	...	Admiral Garvey
Alf Kjellin	...	Col. Ostrovsky
Gerald S. O'Loughlin	...	Lt. Cdr. Bob Raeburn
Ted Hartley	...	Lt. Jonathan Hansen
Murray Rose	...	Lt. George Mills
Ron Masak	...	Paul Zabrinczski
Sherwood Price	...	Lt. Edgar Hackett
Lee Stanley	...	Lt. Mitgang
Joseph Bernard	...	Dr. Jack Benning
John Orchard	...	Survivor

Storyline

Commander James Ferraday, USN, has new orders: get David Jones, a British civilian, Captain Anders, a tough Marine with a platoon of troops, Boris Vasilov, a friendly Russian, and the crew of the nuclear sub USS Tigerfish to the North Pole to rescue the crew of Drift Ice Station Zebra, a weather station at the top of the world. The mission takes on new and dangerous twists as the crew finds out that all is not as it seems at Zebra, and that someone will stop at nothing to prevent the mission from being completed.

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Plot Keywords:

north pole | submarine | espionage | weather station | spy | 

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Taglines:

"Ice Station Zebra"... Remember The Name -- Your Life May Depend On It!

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Genres:

Adventure | Thriller

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 October 1968 (USA)

Also Known As:

Eisstation Zebra

Filming Locations:

Submarine Support Facility Ballast Point, San Diego, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$8,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Filmways Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

148 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track Mono (35 mm prints) 4-Track Stereo (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The production began with shooting the film in Ultra Panavision(2.76), but soon switched to Super Panavision(2.21)

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Goofs

When Jim Brown first enters the Submarine he is wearing his cover (his cap) U.S. Marines never wear their covers indoors.

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Quotes

Cmdr. Ferraday: I'm in command of this submarine, and I am not sticking another torpedo up that spout...

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Connections

Referenced in The West Wing: The Leadership Breakfast (2001)

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Soundtracks

Overture
(uncredited)
Written and Performed by Michel Legrand Et Son Orchestre

User Reviews

McGoohan kicks Cold War butt

I've seen my share of movies, and Patrick McGoohan's performance in this one is my favorite of all time. Rock Hudson-led American sub ventures to remote arctic weather station on what is thought to be a rescue mission. Innocent trip develops into search and struggle for film that threatens the survival of the free world. Hudson's characteristic bluster fits sub captain role to a "T", and we finally get to see McGoohan in action as a British spy in a full-length film. McGoohan's chilling explanation to Hudson of the true purpose of the mission, which comes well into the film, is the crowning moment of the cold-war/spy movie genre ("and that is when the lights began to burn in the Kremlin...."). McGoohan is awesome throughout, although Hudson nearly upstages him in the finale if such a thing is possible. Good supporting cast includes the always-welcome Jim Brown. Deserves a DVD!! 10 out of 10