''The Runestone'' is an American 1991

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...

, the first film written and directed by

Willard Carroll Willard F. Carroll (born November 12, 1955, in Easton, Maryland) is an American producer, writer, director, and animator. Career He was an executive producer of ''The Brave Little Toaster'', ''The Brave Little Toaster Goes to Mars'' and ''The ...

. The film is an updating of the Ragnarok legend, with

Fenrir Fenrir (Old Norse: ; "fen-dweller")Orchard (1997:42). or Fenrisúlfr (O.N.: ; "Fenrir's wolf", often translated "Fenris-wolf"),Simek (2007:81). also referred to as Hróðvitnir (O.N.: ; "fame-wolf")Simek (2007:160). and Vánagandr (O.N.: ; " ...

being found in a

runestone A runestone is typically a raised stone with a runic inscription, but the term can also be applied to inscriptions on boulders and on bedrock. The tradition began in the 4th century and lasted into the 12th century, but most of the runestones da ...

in Pennsylvania unearthed by archaeologists. The film is based upon the novel by Mark E. Rogers, which was published in a small press limited edition pamphlet.

Plot

Deep in a coal mine in Pennsylvania, a strange stone is found with Norse runes. The stone is transported to New York City, where archaeologists investigate the mystery. Death and destruction follow, as one of the archeologists becomes possessed, and begins killing everyone around him. Sam Stewart and wife Marla (

Joan Severance Joan Marie Severance (December 23, 1958) is an American actress and former fashion model. Early life Severance was born in Houston, Texas, the daughter of Martha and John C. Severance. Her father was an IBM systems manager who had to move freq ...

) find it has some connection to their friend Martin. A young boy named Jacob ( Chris Young) is haunted by terrifying nightmares of what is to come, and his uncle ( William Hickey) explains these dreams through stories from Norse legend, which says that the only one who can destroy Fenrir is

Týr (; Old Norse: , ) is a god in Germanic mythology, a valorous and powerful member of the and patron of warriors and mythological heroes. In Norse mythology, which provides most of the surviving narratives about gods among the Germanic peoples, ...

, the Norse god of single combat, victory and heroic glory, who is prophesied to return to fight the creature. In the nick of time, the mystical Clockmaker (

Alexander Godunov Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

), who actually is Týr, begins fighting Fenrir. The film cast includes

Peter Riegert Peter Riegert (born April 11, 1947) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Donald "Boon" Schoenstein in ''Animal House'' (1978), oil company executive "Mac" MacIntyre in '' Local Hero'' (1983), pickle store owner Sam Posner in '' ...

as a Pez popping, cussing policeman, and features a cameo by Rick Marzan as a police officer named .

Cast

as Capt. Gregory Fanducci *

as Marla Stewart * William Hickey as Lars Hagstrom * Tim Ryan as Sam Stewart *

Mitchell Laurance Mitchell "Mitch" Laurance (born Mitchell Dycoff) is an American film and television actor and sports broadcaster. Early life, family and education Mitchell Dycoff was born in Queens, New York City, New York and raised in Hewlett, New York. He ha ...

as Martin Almquist *

Lawrence Tierney Lawrence James Tierney (March 15, 1919 – February 26, 2002) was an American film and television actor who is best known for his many screen portrayals of mobsters and tough guys in a career that spanned over 50 years. His roles mirrored his ...

as Chief Richardson * Dawan Scott as Fenrir * Chris Young as Jacob *

as Sigvaldson, The Clockmaker * Donald Hotton as Ask Franag * Arthur Malet as Stoddard * Rick Marzan as Strange

Release

The film was released on VHS and

laserdisc The LaserDisc (LD) is a home video format and the first commercial optical disc storage medium, initially licensed, sold and marketed as DiscoVision, MCA DiscoVision (also known simply as "DiscoVision") in the United States in 1978. Its diam ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

by Live Home Video in 1991. In Germany the film was released as "Anthony III", without having any connection to

The Kindred (1987 film) ''The Kindred'' is a 1987 American horror film directed by Jeffrey Obrow and Stephen Carpenter. Obrow also produced the film, and co-wrote it along with Carpenter, Earl Ghaffari and John Penney. Starring David Allen Brooks, Amanda Pays and Ro ...

, which has been released as "Anthony". In the late 2010s it was released on DVD.

Soundtrack

In March 2010,

Perseverance Records Perseverance Records is a record label which releases film scores on CD and online. Releases are usually accompanied by extensive booklets. Extras, such as audio interviews with composers, are also sometimes included. Discography * *''No Pass ...

released the soundtrack album with music by David Newman. The score was reminiscent of the 1950s B-movie scores composed by

Henry Mancini Henry Mancini ( ; born Enrico Nicola Mancini, ; April 16, 1924 – June 14, 1994) was an American composer, conductor, arranger, pianist and flautist. Often cited as one of the greatest composers in the history of film, he won four Academy Award ...

such as ''

Creature from the Black Lagoon ''Creature from the Black Lagoon'' is a 1954 American black-and-white 3D monster horror film produced by William Alland and directed by Jack Arnold, from a screenplay by Harry Essex and Arthur Ross and a story by Maurice Zimm. It stars ...

'' and ''

Tarantula Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy spiders of the family Theraphosidae. , 1,040 species have been identified, with 156 genera. The term "tarantula" is usually used to describe members of the family Theraphosidae, although ...

''.

References

External links

* * 1991 films 1990s adventure films Films directed by Willard Carroll Films based on Norse mythology Films set in Pennsylvania 1991 horror films Films scored by David Newman Hyperion Pictures films Films with screenplays by Willard Carroll Adventure horror films 1990s English-language films {{1990s-horror-film-stub