Never Cry Wolf (film)
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| Never Cry Wolf | |
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 Theatrical poster |
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| Directed by | Carroll Ballard |
| Produced by | Executive Producer: Ron W. Miller Producers: Joseph Strick Jack Couffer |
| Written by | Book: Farley Mowat Screenplay: Curtis Hanson Sam Hamm Richard Kletter Narration: Charles Martin Smith Eugene Corr Christina Luescher |
| Narrated by | Charles Martin Smith |
| Starring | Charles Martin Smith Brian Dennehy Zachary Ittimangnaq |
| Music by | Mark Isham |
| Cinematography | Hiro Narita |
| Editing by | Michael Chandler Peter Parasheles |
| Distributed by | Walt Disney Pictures |
| Release date(s) | October 7, 1983 |
| Running time | 105 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English Inuktitut |
| Allmovie profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Never Cry Wolf (1983) is an American drama film adaption of the Farley Mowat autobiographical book of the same name. The film, directed by Carroll Ballard, features Charles Martin Smith, Brian Dennehy, and Zachary Ittimangnaq.[1]
The drama was made during the 1980s when Walt Disney Productions, under the guidance of Walt Disney's son-in-law Ron W. Miller, was experimenting with more mature plot material in its films. The following year Miller would start the Touchstone Films label.
The premise of the film is that the Arctic's caribou population is rapidly dwindling, and wolves are being blamed, yet no one has seen a wolf kill a caribou. The authorities send Tyler (Charles Martin Smith) - a biologist and not a survival expert - into the wilderness to study the wolves.
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[edit] Plot
With a small amount of supplies and lots of beer, Tyler (Charles Martin Smith) is dropped off by bush pilot Rosie (Brian Dennehy) and he makes his way into the cold Arctic. An Inuit dog sledder named Ootek (Zachary Ittimangnaq) helps him establish a camp. Tyler discovers that unlike the world he is accustomed to, humanity is meaningless in this area. Every evening, he hears the wolves, but never sees them. Not long after, he is having nightmares about being attacked by the ravaging wolves.
The animals in the Arctic pay little attention to him. He is, in fact, just another creature in the vast chilly ecosystem. Worse yet, he is the freshest piece of kill for the next predator who finds him.
Tyler soon finds the target of his investigation, a white wolf he names George, his mate Angeline, and their young pups.
Tyler and "George the Wolf" engage in a battle of wits and wills as he tries to study the animal and his habits. He grows to respect George and hopes that it is not the wolves killing off the caribou.
[edit] Background
The film's fundamental premise is that life in the Arctic seems to be about dying: not only are the caribou and the wolves dying, but the indigenous Inuit people as well. The animals are losing their habitat and the Inuit are losing their land and their resources while their youth are being seduced by modernity. They are trading what is real, true, and their time-honored traditions for the perceived comforts of the modern world.
Never Cry Wolf blends the documentary film style with the narrative elements of drama, resulting in a type of docudrama. It was originally written for the screen by Sam Hamm but the screenplay was altered over time and Hamm ended up sharing credit with Curtis Hanson and Richard Kletter.[2]
The picture is also noteworthy for being the first Walt Disney film to show naked adult buttocks. The buttocks shown are those of actor Charles Martin Smith.[3]
Smith devoted almost three years to Never Cry Wolf. Smith wrote, "I was much more closely involved in that picture than I had been in any other film. Not only acting, but writing and the whole creative process." He also found the process difficult. "During much of the two-year shooting schedule in Canada's Yukon and in Nome, Alaska, I was the only actor present. It was the loneliest film I've ever worked on," Smith said.[4]
L. David Mech, an internationally recognized wolf expert who has researched wolves since 1958 in places such as Minnesota, Canada, Italy, Alaska, Yellowstone National Park, and on Isle Royale, criticized the work, stating that Mowat is no scientist and that in all his studies, he had never encountered a wolf pack which regularly subsisted on small prey as shown in Mowat's book or the film adaptation.[5]
[edit] Filming locations
The film locations included Nome, Alaska, the Yukon Territory, and British Columbia, Canada.[6]
[edit] Cast
- Charles Martin Smith as Tyler, a biologist with out any survival skills, yet brave enough to study wolves in their environment.
- Brian Dennehy as Rosie, the bush-pilot, a care-free type who exploits the region for money.
- Zachary Ittimangnaq as Ootek, an Inuit who helps Tyler survive the wilderness.
- Samson Jorah as Mike
- Hugh Webster as Drunk
- Martha Ittimangnaq as Woman
- Tom Dahlgren as Hunter #1
- Walker Stuart as Hunter #2
[edit] Critical reception
When the film was released, a review in the Los Angeles Times called the film, "...subtle, complex and hypnotic...triumphant filmmaking!"[7]
On the television program Siskel & Ebert At the Movies, Gene Siskel felt the film was "absolutely terrific" and Roger Ebert said "this is one of the best films I've ever seen about Man's relationship with the other animals on this planet", both gave the film "Thumbs Up".
Film critic for All Movie Guide, Brendon Hanley, also liked the film, especially the work of Smith, and wrote, "Wolf's protagonist, wonderfully played by the reliable character actor Charles Martin Smith...The result is a quirky, deceptively simple meditation on life."[8]
Ronald Holloway, film critic of Variety magazine, gave the film a mostly positive review, and wrote "For the masses out there who love nature films, and even those who don't, Carroll Ballard's more than fits the commercial bill and should score well too with critical suds on several counts."[9]
Some critics found the premise of the film a bit hard to believe. Vincent Canby, film critic for The New York Times, wrote, "I find it difficult to accept the fact that the biologist, just after an airplane has left him in the middle of an icy wilderness, in a snowstorm, would promptly get out his typewriter and, wearing woolen gloves, attempt to type up his initial reactions.[10] Canby added, the film was "a perfectly decent if unexceptional screen adaptation of Farley Mowat's best-selling book about the author's life among Arctic wolves."
The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 100% of critics gave the film a positive review, based on eleven reviews."[11]
[edit] Distribution
The drama was marketed with the following tagline:
- They Thought He Couldn't Do the Job. That's Why They Chose Him.
The film opened in limited release October 7, 1983 and went into wide circulation January 20, 1984.
The film was in theaters for 192 days (27 weeks) and the total US gross sales were $27,668,764. In its widest release the film appeared in 540 theaters (2/17/84).[12]
[edit] Comparisons to book
There are several differences in the film when compared to Mowat's book. In the book, Ootek and Mike's roles are reversed, Mike is actually Ootek's older brother (Ootek is a teenager) and Ootek speaks fluent English and communicates openly with Mowat while Mike is more reserved.
The film adds a more spiritual element to the story while the book was a straight-forward story. The film also isolates the characters while in the book, Mowat meets several people from different areas of the Arctic.
Also in the book, the wolves are not killed and neither did the bush pilot bring in investors to build a resort.[13]
[edit] Awards
Wins
- Boston Society of Film Critics Awards: 4th BSFC Award; Best Cinematography, Hiro Narita; 1984.
- Hawaii International Film Festival: Excellence in Cinematography Award, Hiro Narita; 1984.
- Motion Picture Sound Editors: Golden Reel Award; Best Sound Editing - Sound Effects; 1984.
- National Society of Film Critics Awards: NSFC Award Best Cinematography, Hiro Narita; 1984.
- Western Heritage Awards: Bronze Wrangler; Theatrical Motion Picture, Carroll Ballard; 1984.
Nominations
- Academy Awards: Best Sound; Alan Splet, Todd Boekelheide, Randy Thom, and David Parker; 1984.
[edit] See also
- Never Cry Wolf (1963) book by Farley Mowat.
[edit] References
[edit] Notes
- ^ Never Cry Wolf at the Internet Movie Database.
- ^ NNDB/Soylent Communications web site.
- ^ NNDB/Soylent Communications, ibid.
- ^ John Carpenter web site, Charles Martin Smith interview.
- ^ Shedd, Warner (2000). Owls Aren't Wise and Bats Aren't Blind: A Naturalist Debunks Our Favorite Fallacies About Wildlife, pp.336. ISBN 0609605291.
- ^ IMDb, ibid.
- ^ Los Angeles Times, Calendar Section, October 7, 1983.
- ^ Hanley, Brendon. All Movie Guide, film review.
- ^ Holloway, Ronald. Variety, film review, September 1, 1983.
- ^ Canby, Vincent. The New York Times, film review, October 14, 1983.
- ^ Never Cry Wolf at Rotten Tomatoes. Last accessed: January 24, 2008.
- ^ The Numbers box office data. Last accessed: November 23, 2007.
- ^ Mowat, Farley. Never Cry Wolf, Back Bay Books: 2001. ISBN 0316881791.
[edit] External links
- Never Cry Wolf at the Internet Movie Database
- Never Cry Wolf at Allmovie
- Never Cry Wolf film review, "A Spiritual Message In A Movie," by Raju Chebium
- Never Cry Wolf filming locations
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