Bear Island

"Below freezing and beyond fear... Will anyone survive its terror?"

1979 1h 58m EN

😐

6.1

MID

⭐

5.8

IMDB

★6.1TMDB · 67★5.8IMDB · 2,816

ThrillerActionAdventureMystery

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A group of people converge on a barren Arctic island. They have their reasons for being there but when a series of mysterious accidents and murders take place, a whole lot of darker motives become apparent. Could the fortune in buried Nazi gold be the key to the mystery? Donald Sutherland and Vanessa Redgrave investigate

“Below freezing and beyond fear... Will anyone survive its terror?”

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Cast

Donald Sutherland
Frank Lansing
Vanessa Redgrave
Heddi Lindquist
Richard Widmark
Otto Gerran
Christopher Lee
Lechinski
Barbara Parkins
Judith Rubin
Lloyd Bridges
Smithy
Lawrence Dane
Paul Hartman
Patricia Collins
Inge Van Zipper

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Don Sharp
Writers: Don Sharp, David Butler
Languages: English
Countries: Canada, United Kingdom

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

47 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: Canada, United Kingdom.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Don Sharp, shot by Alan Hume. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Robert Farnon. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Tony Lower shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Donald Sutherland and Vanessa Redgrave and Richard Widmark carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Below freezing and beyond fear... Will anyone survive its terror?".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0078836 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Don Sharp directs. Alan Hume behind the camera. Robert Farnon scores. Tony Lower cuts. Produced in Canada, United Kingdom. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

147 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2International production across 2 countries: Canada, United Kingdom.
3Directed by Don Sharp, shot by Alan Hume. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Robert Farnon. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Tony Lower shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Donald Sutherland and Vanessa Redgrave and Richard Widmark carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Below freezing and beyond fear... Will anyone survive its terror?".
8IMDB entry: tt0078836 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 67 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
10Classified under 16 themes, including "gold", "island", "based on novel or book", "nazi".

The technical file

Cinematography: Alan Hume
Original score: Robert Farnon
Editing: Tony Lower
Production design: Harry Pottle
Stunt coordinator: Vic Armstrong
Runtime: 118 min · 1h 58m
Status: Released
Budget: $12,200,000
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: Bear Island (1979)
IMDB rating: 5.8/10 · 2,816 votes
MPAA: PG

Also by

Don Sharp

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-04-28
★ 6/10
I've seen this film I don't know how many times and I never can remember the ending... I think that is probably because so much of the preamble in this overlong arctic drama is dull and listless. Certainly it has an A-list cast, but somehow the whole just doesn't equal the sum of the parts. Richard Widmark ("Otto") heads up a group of scientists on the eponymous island that was formerly used as a Nazi submarine base. It doesn't take us long to discover that on board one of the abandoned U-boats is a the stuff to give "Goldfinger' a wet dream - and someone amongst them is determined to secure it for themselves, regardless of the increasing mortality rate amongst their colleagues. The snowscapes do lend much eeriness and chill to this Alistair MacLean thriller, but the acting isn't remotely joined up. Vanessa Redgrave sports a ropey accent as "Dr. LIndquist" and Donald Sutherland just seems to be in a jovial, Errol Flynn mode for much of his performance as "Lansing" before the thing starts to slide, rather stolidly, towards an ending that really does disappoint. It's a good story, this - plenty of double dealing in the stye of "Ice Station Zebra" (1968) and nobody knows whom to trust. Thing is, Don Sharp just doesn't build on that mistrust; nor on the claustrophobic surroundings of their hostile environment - he just relies too much on the box office status of this well past it's best cast and sadly it just underwhelms.

Production companies