The Edge

The Edge (1997)

Director: Lee Tamahori

Writer: David Mamet

Cast: Anthony Hopkins, Alec Baldwin, Elle MacPherson, Harold Perrineau, Larry Musser

Synopsis:

While staying in a remote northern resort cabin, billionaire Charles Morse (Hopkins), along with fashion photographer Robert Green (Baldwin) and his assistant Stephen (Perrineau) are involved in a plane crash, which leaves them stranded in the wilderness. Left with no food and no means of contacting civilization, the trio are forced to try to walk out of the wilderness. Along the way, they are forced to contend with harsh weather, rough terrain, aggressive wildlife and perhaps even betrayal from a friend. 

First Impressions:

I've always had a fascination with movies depicting man's struggle to survive the wilderness. I'm not sure why but I'm constantly drawn to those types of stories. So, when ads for this film started hitting TV back in 1997, I was obviously interested. I was able to catch it in theaters with a group of friends upon release and I was pleased with what I saw. I was 21 years old and I was already a fan of Hopkins from his previous works that I'd seen like Silence of the Lambs and The Bounty. This is one of those films that I've owned in multiple formats and watch on a semi-regular basis when I'm in the mood for some Man vs. Nature entertainment. It has been a few years since I've watched last, so it'll be interesting to see how it holds up.

Story/Direction: 

"You know, I once read an interesting book which said that, uh, most people lost in the wilds, they, they die of shame."

As I mentioned, I love the whole man versus wild dynamic. This is due mostly, I think, because its such a primal subject. I'm sure many of us have often wondered how we'd fare is we were stripped of our modern comforts and thrust into the unforgiving wilderness. How would we deal with the lack of food and shelter, harsh weather and, of course, the potentially dangerous wildlife? While this movie deals a bit with the struggles of surviving in the wilds both from a physical and psychological aspect, it's not really that type of introspective movie. It's very much an adventure movie and relies a great deal on the action and set pieces. That being said, there's still a solid, if not very complex story here and for additional intrigue, it throws in a love triangle and a potential murder plot for fun, which honestly I could have done without.

This is another film written by David Mamet (however, unlike my last review, I knew that going in) and as I've mentioned before, I can take or leave his stuff. I think he's very good at writing interesting interactions and situations but his dialogue grates on me a bit. Like I mentioned in my review of Ronin, I find that he doesn't write dialogue the way people actually talk. I know the dialogue in most movies is like that but I just find Mamet's dialogue attempts to sound clever, jaded or profound with every line and it just gets tiresome. This little pet peeve is on full display in the movie, particularly with Bob's lines, which often don't make sense given the context of the conversation. 

As far as direction goes, Lee Tamahori does a fine job. The film is paced very well and sets up the characters quickly and efficiently without the need for too much exposition. Other than that, there's very little exceptional about the directing in this movie. It's solid but not spectacular.

Acting:

One of the things about these types of movies is that there isn't a lot of speaking roles. In this case, there are really three main characters with everyone else relegated into the background. First and foremost, Antony Hopkins is great in this film. He starts by playing Charles Morse as a quiet, buttoned-down intellectual who is hardened by his experiences in the wild. It's certainly not his best performances and there are certainly some elements of ham here or there, but it's quite different than most of Hopkins' other performances and worth some kudos in my book.

Alec Baldwin is the co-lead here and it's easy to forget after all of the comedy work he's done lately, that he actually was an accomplished dramatic actor for the first part of his career. Baldwin's Bob Green is almost the polar opposite of Hopkins' Morse. He starts as an arrogant, self-absorbed fashion photographer who is pushed nearly to his breaking point by the circumstances he's been thrust into. Overall a pretty solid performance.

Finally, we have Harold Perrineau, who has made a fine career as a character actor. He plays Bob's assistant, Steve who takes on the role of the callow youth playing off of the two older leads. Perrineau is a fine actor but he's not given a lot to do here except serve as motivation for the other two characters when he's put in danger. This is a shame but I understand it because the film is really about the dynamic between Charles ad Bob. 

Visuals:

There's precious little in the way of special effects here, save for a bit of rear projection or green screen work when the actors had to appear as though they were running from a bear. However, the visual backdrop in this movie is spectacular, particularly if you like mountain scenery. The film was shot in the Canadian Rockies and it looks gorgeous. Tamahori does a good job at using aerial wide shots to establish the terrain that our heroes have to contend will. The film also does a great job projecting how cold it would be in the mountains during late autumn. The visuals are definitely a high point for this movie. 

Score/Music:

The music was done by the great Jerry Goldsmith, who as I've mentioned before doesn't get nearly the praise that he should get for such a prolific career. This isn't one of his more well-known scores but it's one of his better ones, in my opinion. I find Goldsmith has a real talent for melding his music very well with a film's subject matter. In The Edge, the music is majestic and mysterious, not unlike the mountains themselves. And of course, I know it's a good score because I found myself whistling it for days after viewing. 

Action:

There's a fair amount of action in this movie but most of the scenes aren't what you'd normally see in an adventure film. Nevertheless, the action scenes are still well shot and do a good job of keeping the audience on the edge of their seats. The plane crash scene is particularly well done, as is the group's numerous encounters with a local bear. Like I said, the action isn't what you call run of the mill but it's still a whole lot of fun.

Final Verdict:

Despite David Mamet's irritating dialogue I still enjoyed this movie a great deal. It's a nice little hidden gem in both Hopkins' and Baldwin's filmographies. If you're into lost in the wilderness types of movies or if you're a fan of either lead, it's definitely worth a watch.