Monday, July 17, 2017

The Cry of the Black Wolves (1972)

Original title: Der Schrei der Schwarzen Wolfe

Director: Harald Reinl

Writers: Jack London, Kurt Nachmann, Rolf Olsen

Composer: Gerhard Heinz

Starring: Ron Ely, Raimund Harmstorf, Gila von Weitershausen, Arthur Brauss, Angelica Ott, Jean-Claude Hoffmann, Hans Terofal, Catharina Conti, Carl Lange, Alexander Grill, Dan van Husen

More info: IMDb

Tagline: The power and savagery of the Northern wilderness leaps from the screen as only Jack London could describe.

Plot: Mountain man Bill Robin (Ely) battles nature and the bounty hunter hired to kill him for killing another man, only he's innocent.



My rating: 7/10

Will I watch it again?  Probably not.

I've had a boy/man crush on Ron Ely since I was a little kid in 70s watching him in TV's TARZAN and DOC SAVAGE: MAN OF BRONZE (1975).  He's got that cool, calm badassery about him that few actors possess.  Plus he's about 6'5" so he makes for an imposing dude.  There's a lot to like in this picture besides Ely (even though his voice is dubbed by another actor).  The story, while somewhat simple, has enough going for it that I wasn't bored for a moment and the scenery is absolutely gorgeous (it was filmed in Austria but it sure looks great standing in for Alaska).  The buildings look and feel authentic, inside and out and there's a little gunplay and action spread throughout the film, from beginning to end.  And the ending?  Not bad.  I liked it.  One bonehead reviewer on IMDb said it was the worst movie he'd ever seen.  He must not've seen many movies.  This is definitely worth watching.  I watched a great looking widescreen print.  I'd steer away from anything fullscreen.  The scenery alone deserves better.





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