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:

The triumph of the human spirit.

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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:

Alive: The Miracle of the Andes

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., Kennedy/Marshall Company, The, Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The cross shown in the end credits is not the real cross that stands at the burial place. You can see the real cross on the Wikipedia page for 1972 Andes Flight disaster. The cross and crash site are reachable in the South American summer via horseback. There are guided trips to the site. The cross is surrounded by items visitors have left in honor of the victims and the survivors - as well as parts of the wreckage of the plane.

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Goofs

In reality, the plane tail was ripped off by the torn-off right wing which had clipped a mountain peak before. In the movie, it's the tail clipping a mountain peak and then being ripped off.

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Quotes

Roberto Canessa: [Canessa notices the uninjured Fraga wearing a coat] You took this coat off a girl back there, didn't you?
Fraga, the Mechanic: No!
Rafael: Yeah, he did, Roberto! It's Susanna Parrado's coat!
Roberto Canessa: [to Rafael] Put it back on her.
[Rafael goes to give her the coat]
Roberto Canessa: [to Fraga] If you take it off her again, I'll kill you.

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Connections

Spoofed in South Park: Cartman's Mom is Still a Dirty Slut (1998)

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Soundtracks

Do You Know The Way To San Jose?
Written by Burt Bacharach & Hal David
Performed by Dionne Warwick
Courtesy of Warner Special Products

User Reviews

Gut-Wrenching Story Of Surviving The Impossible

I can remember reading the book on which this story was based many years ago when I was in High School and being engrossed by the story. The movie version is no less engrossing, the entire story being made absolutely gut-wrenching by the fact that it's true. A South American rugby team is stranded in the remote heights of the Andes after a plane crash and has to find a way to survive the freezing temperatures, their injuries and a variety of other challenges (not the least of which is a lack of food.) The acting in it is good, but the situation itself becomes the focus rather than the actors, and so I can't really say that anyone in particular stood out to me, but that doesn't come across as a weakness here. After all, the story of survival was a story of teamwork; a "star" to the movie would have detracted from that.

This is literally gut-wrenching stuff, and I'm surprised it doesn't have a higher rating. It is not an easy movie to watch at times. The injuries are graphically portrayed, the suffering of the injured very realistic and the ultimate solution to the food problem will upset some people (but, in spite of what I've heard some say about this movie, it isn't the focus of the story. It's just an example of what had to be done to survive in an impossible situation.) It also has a surprisingly strong spiritual component to it.

Truly excellent.

10/10