Iron Will (1994)

When Will Stoneman's father dies, he is left alone to take care of his mother and their land. Needing money to maintain it, he decides to join a cross country dogsled race. This race will ... See full summary »

Director:

Charles Haid

Writers:

John Michael Hayes, Djordje Milicevic

Stars:

Mackenzie Astin, Kevin Spacey, David Ogden Stiers

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mackenzie Astin	...	Will Stoneman
Kevin Spacey	...	Harry Kingsley
David Ogden Stiers	...	J.W. Harper
August Schellenberg	...	Ned Dodd
Brian Cox	...	Angus McTeague
George Gerdes	...	Borg Guillarson
John Terry	...	Jack Stoneman
Penelope Windust	...	Maggie Stoneman
Jeffrey Alan Chandler	...	DeFontaine
Michael Laskin	...	Simon Lambert
James Cada	...	Peter Swenson
Rex Linn	...	Joe McPherson
Allan R.J. Joseph	...	Albert Carey
Alvin William 'Dutch' Lunak	...	Gabriel Carey
Tony Griffin	...	Mike Riley

Storyline

When Will Stoneman's father dies, he is left alone to take care of his mother and their land. Needing money to maintain it, he decides to join a cross country dogsled race. This race will require days of racing for long hours, through harsh weather and terrain. This young man will need a lot of courage and a strong will to complete this race.

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Plot Keywords:

racing | dog movie | family relationships | father son relationship | mother son relationship | 

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Taglines:

Inspired by the incredible true story.

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Genres:

Adventure | Family

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for adventure action

Details

Official Sites:

Disney's Official Site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 January 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

Voluntad de hierro

Filming Locations:

Bingham, Maine, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$21,006,361

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The movie is a fictionalized account of the 1917 Winnipeg-to-St. Paul dog-sled race, sponsored by the Great Northern Railway. The main character in the movie, Will Stoneman, is based on two real-life participants in the 1917 race: Albert Campbell, the eventual winner, a mixed-blood Cree trapper from Manitoba who endured harassment from his racist white competitors throughout the race; and Fred Hartman, one of only two American participants, was touted as a hero during the race by American newspapers. His sled dogs fought among themselves and his lead dog was killed. The other American racer dropped out two days before the finish but Fred continued, coming in last and then collapsed. J.W. Harper, the president of the St. Paul Winter Carnival in the movie, is based on Louis W. Hill, son of railroad magnate James J. Hill, president of the Great Northern Railroad.

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Goofs

When the two remaining competitors coming through the woods, a row of modern telephone poles is visible.

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Quotes

J.W. Harper: You're prepared to risk this young man's life to sell some newspapers?

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Connections

Featured in Troldspejlet: One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1995)

User Reviews

"Iron Will"

Here's a "feel good" movie that I showed to a bunch of 8th graders who are "way too cool" to ever like something with a plot so contrived. I have seen it at least 10 times in the last two years. It has never failed to produce emotional responses, at least as early as when Gus gets savaged by the bad guy's dog, and Will takes out a gun (obviously thinking of putting him down), and most certainly when Will slugs the guy late on that evening. It has the predictable villain, and other events that most people could forecast, but I had kids who otherwise are apathetic standing up and cheering as the events unfolded. My conclusion: kids seem to be cynical and jaded, but when you give them a reason to be optimistic, they have hope and are uplifted. "Iron Will" inspires me; particularly when I see its effect on middle school students. I would rate it even higher if I couldn't predict many events in the movie. This really works well with other Iditerod/dog stories.