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Reviews
The Clan of the Cave Bear (1986)
Nice Try, but Keep Trying
Not true in all respects to Jean Auel's novel, but entertaining in its own right. Then again, neither the book or film is accurate in light of more recent archaeological and anthropological research.
The story is clearly set in the ice age, and close to the ice. Many Paleolithic burials have been found in this kind of setting. The stunning Canadian scenery, with its dense coniferous forests and mountains scarred from the last ice age, is perfect to convey this.
Acting is good, with Daryl Hannah doing very well in the lead, and James Remar outstanding as Creb, the crippled holy man. In the book, I believe Ayla was about twelve, so it would have been smart to give Nicole Eggert (as the younger "Middle Ayla") a lot more screen time, and she was certainly capable of it. The scenes with Nicole Eggert and James Remar conversing are the most enjoyable in the film.
I think costumes could have used a little more work. All of the characters wore furs and pieces of leather crudely patched together, but for some reason Miss Eggert's costume didn't look quite right and appeared unduly cumbersome for a kid to wear; probably should have tried some different styles for her and the handful of other young people in the film. At the other extreme, it seemed kind of odd for men to be out hunting muskox wearing practically nothing at all. Okay, maybe the Arctic isn't always freezing, but muskox live only in the Arctic and like the cold.
Along with Quest for Fire, Clan of the Cave Bear is a serious work about the Old Stone Age. Unfortunately, both films fall somewhat short when it comes to truly great cinematic entertainment about our Paleolithic ancestors. The film industry needs to continue trying to meet the challenge.
La guerre du feu (1981)
A Fine Effort, but the Challenge Continues
This is a good "caveman" film, and very much intends to be a serious effort. Archaeological and anthropological knowledge change all the time, so today the film is not always accurate, and will probably be less so tomorrow. Acting is quite good, so are makeup and costuming. Communication among characters is, of course, archaic, leaving little to criticize.
What I didn't care for are the scenery changes. It appears they travel so far to find fire they move to entirely different biomes in the process. That would involve trekking hundreds if not a thousand miles or more -- unlikely, unrealistic, and certainly unnecessary for the film.
Quest for Fire is a good effort on many fronts and, decades later, still gets high marks for entertainment. It's one of only two serious films in the genre, the other being Clan of the Cave Bear. In my opinion, the film industry needs to continue creatively working on the challenge of making an entirely first-rate film about our Paleolithic ancestors. It's not an easy challenge at all.
Rites of Passage (2012)
Really Really Bad
Once in a great great while an indie film, self-published book, or a self-recorded album comes out OK, but frankly most are just junk junk junk. This one is no exception, and promptly belongs in the dustbin. It's a jumbled meaningless mess that pridefully basks in its self-importance. The producers could have given the $2.5 million to charity and had a far better result.
Some Native Americans have complained about this film not respectfully portraying their people and culture. They should take heart, because the good news is that the film is so bad that most viewers will never notice. Anyway, this film disrespects everybody. Keep reading to see how it disrespects one of the cast:
If this is another indication, & the worst one at that, we've never seen a career begin to nosedive the way Kate Maberly's has. Her role in Rites of Passage (no acting needed, so it blends in with the other parts) does absolutely nothing for her career; maybe it buys a few lunches in Beverly Hills bistros. This once-so-bright and beaming star everybody loved seems to have fallen from the sky lately into bit roles, often ranging from the stupid to the degrading, mostly in indie films like this one, although this one gets the prize at being the most awful. Unfortunately, we haven't seen much substantial coming from her music interests, either. Showing up to LA events in the expected born-rich-girl designer outfit uniforms has nothing whatsoever to do with acting. We're really worried, and she should be, too. To even bother to show for Rites of Passage, she's taking some very bad advice. Ms. Maberly really needs to find her way home again.
So, to avoid having your intelligence thoroughly insulted, don't bother to watch this film. By not watching, you will be giving yourself more time to enjoy something else. Anything else.