Alive (1993)

A Uruguayan rugby team stranded in the snow swept Andes are forced to use desperate measures to survive after a plane crash.

Director:

Frank Marshall

Writers:

Piers Paul Read (book), John Patrick Shanley (screenplay)

Stars:

Ethan Hawke, Vincent Spano, Josh Hamilton

Nominated for 1 Primetime Emmy. Another 1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ethan Hawke	...	Nando Parrado
Vincent Spano	...	Antonio Balbi
Josh Hamilton	...	Roberto Canessa
Bruce Ramsay	...	Carlitos Páez
John Newton	...	Antonio 'Tintín' Vizintín (as John Haymes Newton)
David Kriegel	...	Gustavo Zerbino
Kevin Breznahan	...	Roy Harley
Sam Behrens	...	Javier Methol
Illeana Douglas	...	Lilliana Methol
Jack Noseworthy	...	Bobby François
Christian J. Meoli	...	Federico Aranda
Jake Carpenter	...	Alberto Artuna
Michael DeLorenzo	...	Rafael Cano (as Michael De Lorenzo)
José Zúñiga	...	Fraga, the Mechanic
Danny Nucci	...	Hugo Díaz

Storyline

In 1972, the Uruguayan rugby team is flying to Chile to play a game. However, the plane from the Uruguayan Air Force with 45 people crashes on the Andes Mountains and after the search party, they are considered dead. Two months after the crash, the sixteen survivors are finally rescued. Along the days, the starved survivors decide to eat flesh from the bodies of their comrades to survive.

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Plot Keywords:

survival | andes mountains | crash | stranded | starvation | 

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Taglines:

They survived the impossible...by doing the unthinkable.

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Genres:

Adventure | Biography | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for crash scenes too intense for unaccompanied children

Details

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 January 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

Les survivants

Filming Locations:

British Columbia, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$32,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$8,624,292, 17 January 1993, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$36,733,909

Company Credits

Production Co:

Film Andes S.A., Paramount Pictures, The Kennedy/Marshall Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A script for this story was kicking around Hollywood from 1981. The subject matter of cannibalism and a schlocky Mexican adaptation Survive! (1976) were the two main factors for keeping it off the screen until 1993.

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Goofs

The narrator (played by John Malkovich) is supposed to be an older Carlitos Paez. The narrator not only looks nothing like the guy who played the younger Carlitos (Bruce Ramsay), he also doesn't have an accent like the younger version.

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Quotes

Antonio 'Tintín' Vizintín: Alberto!
Carlitos Páez: Dead.
Alberto Artuna: I'm not dead. I've never felt worse in my life, but I'm not dead.

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Movies That Make You Feel Grateful (2016)

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Soundtracks

Ave Maria
Composed by Franz Schubert
Arranged by Linda Ronstadt & Aaron Neville
Performed by Aaron Neville
Courtesy of A&M Records, INC.

User Reviews

Not like everyone else sees it

I first saw the film "Alive" on video. I really wish I had seen it in the theater as it was probably one of the better films to come out around that time. I thought it was well shot, well acted and the fact that the real survivors were on hand as technical advisors showed me that the film was as accurate as it could be. One of the frustrations Ive come across in discussing this film is when you mention it to someone, and their immediate response is "isn't that the movie where they all eat each other?"...obviously, these people latched on to one small part of the story, and feel it is the basis for the entire movie. I found "Alive" to be more of an uplifting story. Sure, there's cannibalism involved, but in the 2 hours the film takes, cannibalism is focused on for approximately 10-15 minutes. I, instead, found myself moved by the determination of these young boys to survive. The plane crash, the avalanche, starvation, illness...all insurmountable odds stacking themselves against them, and they STILL found the strength to preserve their own lives. Alive as a movie about cannibalism? No. It is an example of the human spirit, and (I use the term again) an uplifting film with many touching moments. In closing, I borrow a line from the film..."If I die, you can eat me". :-)