''Bear Island'' is a 1979

thriller film Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre ...

loosely based on the 1971 novel '' Bear Island'' by

Alistair MacLean Alistair Stuart MacLean ( gd, Alasdair MacGill-Eain; 21 April 1922 – 2 February 1987) was a 20th-century Scottish novelist who wrote popular thrillers and adventure stories. Many of his novels have been adapted to film, most notably '' The G ...

. It was directed by

Don Sharp Donald Herman Sharp (19 April 192114 December 2011) was an Australian film director. His best known films were made for Hammer Film Productions, Hammer in the 1960s, and included ''The Kiss of the Vampire'' (1963) and ''Rasputin, the Mad Monk' ...

and starred

Donald Sutherland Donald McNichol Sutherland (born 17 July 1935) is a Canadian actor whose film career spans over six decades. He has been nominated for nine Golden Globe Awards, winning two for his performances in the television films ''Citizen X'' (1995) an ...

Vanessa Redgrave Dame Vanessa Redgrave (born 30 January 1937) is an English actress and activist. Throughout her career spanning over seven decades, Redgrave has garnered numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Television Award, two ...

Richard Widmark Richard Weedt Widmark (December 26, 1914March 24, 2008) was an American film, stage, and television actor and producer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as the villainous Tommy Udo in his debut film, '' Kiss of Death'' (1947) ...

Christopher Lee Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee (27 May 1922 – 7 June 2015) was an English actor and singer. In a long career spanning more than 60 years, Lee often portrayed villains, and appeared as Count Dracula in seven Hammer Horror films, ultimat ...

and

Lloyd Bridges Lloyd Vernet Bridges Jr. (January 15, 1913 – March 10, 1998) was an American film, stage and television actor who starred in a number of television series and appeared in more than 150 feature films. He was the father of four children, includi ...

Plot

A solitary figure hurries across an arctic landscape to his tent, from where he sends an emergency radio signal. Larsen (

Hagan Beggs Hagan Beggs (March 19, 1937 – September 16, 2016) was a Northern Irish-born Canadian actor. He was best known for starring as Dr. George Dunbar on the Canadian television series, ''Danger Bay'', which aired on CBC Television and The Disney Cha ...

) is trying to contact his colleagues on the ship 'Morning Rose', but he is killed before he can transmit any useful information. The 'Morning Rose' is carrying a multinational expedition of

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

scientists to the remote Bear Island to study climate change. The team is led by the German scientists Gerran (

) and his deputy Hartman (

Lawrence Dane Lawrence Joseph Zahab (April 3, 1937 – March 21, 2022), known professionally as Lawrence Dane, was a Canadian actor and film producer, best known for his role as Lt. Preston in ''Bride of Chucky''. Life and career Born in Masson, Quebec, Dane ...

), and includes Norwegian Psychiatrist Lindquist (

) and the laconic Pole Lechinski (

). American biologist Frank Lansing (

) joins the boat, where he is reunited with his friend Smithy (

) and former colleague Rubin (

Barbara Parkins Barbara Parkins (born May 22, 1942) is a Canadian-American former actress, singer, dancer and photographer. Early life Parkins was born in Vancouver, British Columbia.Nicholas Cortland) and Heyter ( Michael J. Reynolds). Gerran forbids access to the old U-boat base, but it becomes apparent that Lansing is very interested in it - his father was a U-boat commander who died there. Lansing and Rubin disobey instructions and venture into the area near the U-boat base but someone triggers an avalanche using explosive charges, killing Rubin. Later; Lansing finds an underwater entrance to the U-boat base, where he finds his father's submarine with his remains still inside it. He also finds signs that others have visited the base recently, and suspects Jungbeck and Heyter. Lansing and Smithy decide to go to the NATO base for help, but their snowmobile is sabotaged - luckily they both survive the explosion. Meanwhile, Lindquist finds a message left by Larsen - who had been a Norwegian agent - confirming that Jungbeck and Heyter are neo-Nazis controlled by a third expedition member codenamed Zelda. Lansing takes Lindquist to the U-boat where they find crates marked as containing explosives, but on opening one they discover it is full of gold. Back at the base, there are more suspicious incidents; the radio mast collapses, fatally wounding Lechinski, and an explosion destroys the electrical generator, apparently killing Smithy. Lansing fingers Jungbeck and Heyter, who are arrested and locked up. The next morning, Lansing and Lindquist head out from the base, but are followed by Jungbeck and Heyter who have been released by Zelda. While lying in wait for his pursuers, Lansing realises that Hartman has given him an unloaded rifle and that he must be the mysterious Zelda. Jungbeck and Heyter track them down, but are killed by Lansing. Lansing returns to the U-boat and finds that the gold has been removed. He meets Smithy, who is alive after all, and wants the gold for himself. Hartman waits to leave with the research boat and the gold, unaware that his henchmen are dead. Gerran, a repentant ex-Nazi who wants to return the gold to Norway, confronts Hartman at the harbour but is shot and disabled. Smithy disarms Hartman and, for reasons best known to himself, takes him on the boat while Lansing, whose snowmobile somehow doubles as a speedboat, sets off in pursuit. Smithy is jumped by Hartman and killed, Lansing boards the boat and, in a final confrontation, kills Hartman. The SS logbook recovered by Lansing reveals that his father had refused to hand over the gold to the SS in 1945, and had been executed along with his crew. At the burial of his father, Smithy and Lechinski, Lansing achieves some form of closure and embraces Lindquist.

Cast

Production

Development

The original novel was published in 1971 and became a best-seller, selling over eight million copies. "It will make a whopping good movie," wrote the ''Los Angeles Times''. In 1976 Maclean's second wife Mary formed a company with producer Peter Snell, Aleelle Productions, who aimed to make movies based on MacLean novels including ''Golden Gate'', ''Bear Island'', ''The Way to Dusty Death'' and ''Captain Cook''. Film rights came solely into the hands of the Canadian-born

Peter Snell Sir Peter George Snell (17 December 1938 – 12 December 2019) was a New Zealand middle-distance runner. He won three Olympic gold medals, and is the only man since 1920 to have won the 800 and 1500 metres at the same Olympics, in 1964. Snell ...

who had lived in England since 1961. Snell set up the film in Canada, which was experiencing a film boom due to the assistance of tax concessions in 1976 allowing the write-off of losses on films that qualify as sufficiently Canadian. Snell wanted to make a film that targeted the international market; there would be no Canadian characters and the film was not set in Canada. However Snell and several of the actors and most of the crew were Canadian. "Three in every eight households have a MacLean novel," said Snell. "He's certainly sold better than

Ian Fleming Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer who is best known for his postwar ''James Bond'' series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., a ...

. The

James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...

pictures are fast running out of gimmicks. Action-adventure will always work better in the long run if you stay away from gimmicks." Peter Snell enlisted director Don Sharp, who had worked on an adaptation of MacLean's ''Puppet on a Chain''. They developed the project for several of months in the mid 1970s but Snell was unable to raise finance. However some time later the project reactivated. Sharp decided to change the film crew in the novel to a scientific unit. "I don't think you can make films about film units," he later said adding "I think possibly we tried to put too much meaning and too much cast into an action adventure story. I think if we cut some of the character interaction and just played it for speed and thrills it might have made more money." Other changes from the novel included altering the characters, and arriving at the island earlier. Snell said MacLean was supportive of the changes.

Budget

In November 1978 it was announced the movie would be the most expensive made in Canada until that time, costing over $9 million. "You've got to come up with something television can't," said Snell. "You've got to come up with spectacle." Of the budget, $3.3 million came from the British arm of

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

, $3 million from the Canadian radio and cable television company, Selkirk Holdings, $1.8 million from the

Toronto Dominion Bank Toronto-Dominion Bank (french: links=no, Banque Toronto-Dominion), doing business as TD Bank Group (french: links=no, Groupe Banque TD), is a Canadian multinational banking and financial services corporation headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. ...

, $1.2 million from the

Bank of Montreal The Bank of Montreal (BMO; french: Banque de Montréal, link=no) is a Canadian multinational investment bank and financial services company. The bank was founded in Montreal, Quebec, in 1817 as Montreal Bank; while its head office remains in ...

, and $100,000 from the

Canadian Film Development Corporation Telefilm Canada is a Crown corporation reporting to Canada's federal government through the Minister of Canadian Heritage. Headquartered in Montreal, Telefilm provides services to the Canadian audiovisual industry with four regional offices in V ...

(the latter was seed money for pre production and was paid back when the film was financed). The Bank of Montreal lent the producers money to make the film. When the producers could not raise finance, the bank was forced to become investors. Snell wanted to make the movie on location, feeling audiences would not react well the shooting "studio snow" which had been the method used on an earlier MacLean adaptation, ''

Ice Station Zebra ''Ice Station Zebra'' is a 1968 American espionage thriller film directed by John Sturges and starring Rock Hudson, Patrick McGoohan, Ernest Borgnine, and Jim Brown. The screenplay is by Alistair MacLean, Douglas Heyes, Harry Julian Fink, and W ...

''. "Audiences can tell styrofoam snow," said Snell. It was the thirteenth film made from a MacLean novel. Snell said "He complained of no continuity" with the previous films "but with me he's close to being a partner. Usually his books get bought and he's invited to the premiere. In his case I'm on the phone regularly to him in Geneva where he lives and he's getting a kick out of it."

Shooting

Filming started 22 November 1978 in

Stewart, British Columbia Stewart is a district municipality at the head of the Portland Canal in northwestern British Columbia, Canada, near the Alaskan panhandle. In 2011, its population was about 494. History The Nisga'a, who live around the Nass River, called the h ...

. The unit were based at Stewart for seven weeks then moved to

Glacier Bay National Park Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve is an American national park located in Southeast Alaska west of Juneau. President Calvin Coolidge proclaimed the area around Glacier Bay a national monument under the Antiquities Act on February 26, 1925. C ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

. Location filming in Stewart and Glacier Bay took three months. A Soviet ship was used to transport the unit. It was hired for three weeks but because of bad weather was needed for another week at $6,000 a day. The cast and crew numbered 103 and there were 101 Russian crewmembers, 66 of whom were women. The shoot was difficult.

Vic Armstrong Victor Monroe Armstrong (born 5 October 1946) is a British film director, stunt coordinator, second unit director, and stunt double—the world's most prolific, according to the ''Guinness Book of Records''. Career The Armstrong doubled for H ...

was put in charge of the second unit. One day he went on a location scout up the mountain in a helicopter with Sharp, and three others and they were stuck for four days due to bad weather without food or proper clothing; they survived by staying in the helicopter and by eating the pilot's lunch over several days. When they returned, six feet of snow fell overnight and a week's filming was lost as they dug out of snow. Later on during the shoot, helicopter pilot John Soutar was killed in an accident. The

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

invention An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an i ...

called

Larven Larven "Caterpillar" was a Swedish snowmobile that was manufactured from the 1960s to the 1980s in Östersund Östersund (; sma, Staare) is an urban area (city) in Jämtland in the middle of Sweden. It is the seat of Östersund Municipality and ...

(The

Caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...

) by Lennart Nilsson is used in the chases around the island. "We're delighted to be working on an international picture", said second unit director Alan Simmonds. "But co-productions can be a one-way street. The whole mentality of the film is English or American - the style, the amount of money. We're good, we know we're good, but the moneymen won't take a risk on Canadians." The unit then moved to London where interiors were completed at

Pinewood Studios Pinewood Studios is a British film and television studio located in the village of Iver Heath, England. It is approximately west of central London. The studio has been the base for many productions over the years from large-scale films to te ...

. Sutherland called his character "an intelligent, humorous, lonely man." The film went a million dollars over budget, which Sharp says was the first time it had happened in his career. He later called the location "silly" because although it was spectacular visually and right for the story it was logistically difficult.

Release

Critical

The ''Quarterly Review'' called it "murder on the Alaska Express... but, in search of something to take the children to which doesn't feature a scene of bestiality, you could do a lot worse". ''The Observer'' said it "has the same numbing effect as frost bite." ''MacLean's'' called it "a clinker if there ever was one." The ''Globe and Mail'' said "one could perhaps be excused for expecting it to be a major disaster. It isn't: the Arctic landscapes are breathtaking, and some of the action sequences are not only active, but also exciting" but that "when compared to '' The Guns of Navarone''... it's routine adventure- flick stuff: blood, guts and (a little) suspense intercut with acting of appalling quality, and dialogue that makes one yearn for the days of silent movies." The ''Los Angeles Times'' called it "best left to the easily satisfied".

Box Office

The film was a flop at the box office. Sharp says the film "did alright" but had a lot of success on video. During pre production, Snell announced he had the film rights to six other MacLean novels, three of them not written. Snell and Selkirk were so positive about ''Bear Islands prospects that at one stage they planned a series of Alistair MacLean adaptations for annual Christmas release, starting with ''

The Way to Dusty Death ''The Way to Dusty Death'' is a thriller novel written by Scottish author Alistair MacLean. It was originally published in 1973. The title is a quotation from the famous soliloquy in Act 5, Scene 5 in Shakespeare’s play ''Macbeth''. The boo ...

''. That film was never made but Snell did go on to make '' The Hostage Tower'' and '' Air Force One is Down'' based on MacLean stories.