Miracles Still Happen

I saw this movie back in the 80s I think, and I'm compelled to finally write a review because just a couple of days ago Franz Lidz wrote an extensive NYT piece on Juliane Koepcke titled "She Fell Nearly 2 Miles, and Walked Away". Absolutely compelling and quite unbelievable, yet truly extraordinary courage from Juliane.

While the 'special effects' and technical attributes of this movie may in fact be laughable to some, I have never been able to erase the images this movie etched on my young and impressionable mind when I first saw it at around 8 years of age. The story of this girl's survival and of the trials she endured have stayed with me all these years, and I have thought back on more than one occasion about how the girl made it out of situations far beyond anything I have seen.

The fact that this is a true story, and the fact that I was only a child when I first saw this may be the reason behind my high rating of this movie. Each time this movie aired on television in the 70s and 80s I would be riveted to the television, drinking in each scene with an interest I cannot explain. I suppose watching this for the first time as an adult (and with a jaded view of the world) it may not be as enjoyable to some. I actually went out of my way to obtain a copy so I could show this movie to my son.

This, like many other movies, is not for everyone. If you are impressed by remarkable human survival stories, are partial to Peru/Macchu Picchu and/or the Amazon, then I believe you might enjoy this movie as much as I have been enjoying it for the past 30 years.

I first saw this movie back in the 1980's and now in 2006 this movie still is one of the best movies I have ever seen! I would recommend anyone to look at this movie. You will not be sorry. It is well acted out, so real and never a dull moment. The acting is superb and the location makes the movie seem like you are there. From the beginning right up to the end, this movie is the type that makes you lose your attention. The actress does an excellent job of portraying the girl who survived this horrific plane crash in the Amazon and it shows how she managed to survive in the Amazon all alone. It is unbelievable that anyone could survive under such conditions. This is why this movie is so appealing. The fact that this is a true story makes the movie even more interesting and to think that a young girl could survive from this ordeal is overwhelming. I find this movie one that I can watch over and over again and one that I never get tired of. This is indeed quite a compliment as I have hundreds of movies! I would say this is probably my favorite movie and the best I have ever seen!

When I heard about this film back then, I wanted to see it for I was a big Susan Penhaligon fan, and also the story (based on an actual event) intrigued me. Well I finally got a chance to see it after 20 years and WHAT A MESS!!!! I know this true story of a young girl, who is a lone survivor of a plane crash over the amazon jungles on Christmas time, and how she survived the amazon rainforest all by herself for 8 days, facing alligators and worms and insects, is a gripping story that would have made an excellent TV movie or even a major Hollywood movie at the time. But as it is shown here, the plane crash is so cheap, I have seen BUCK ROGER serials from the 30's with better special effects, plus despite the winning and great performance by Penhaligon, the bizarre music, which does NOT fit the film at all, which rather distracts from the dramatic scenes, plus the odd camera shots, the odd flashbacks, bizarre opening credits, really ruins what should have been a gripping film! It was a good idea to have the real people involved in the real story, like the family friend to the local priest, to the rescuers, playing themselves, but the overall effect is undistinguished. Also for what was supposed to be a major event film at the time, it just looks and feels like amateur filmmaking, almost like those "local community message filmmaking" style, and NOT a major film as hyped back then. Also there is no ending! The film just ends completely abruptly! I wanted to know more about what happened to this girl after the ordeal and nothing! Still it was nice to see the lovely Penhaligon give a great performance, one of her all time best, and really light up the screen (whenever the awful music score didn't ruin the scene!). Very disappointed!

The thing I remember most about this film is that it used to air on local KTLA TV (Ch. 5) during every Christmas season during the mid to late 70s, mainly due to the fact that the true story took place on or near Christmas Eve. It was always a bit disturbing to see the hell that this girl goes through, being the lone survivor of a plane crash in the Peruvian jungle. The graphic scene of this young girl pulling leeches out of her infected leg made quite an impression on this young viewer. Not quite the kind of Christmas cheer I was used to seeing at the time. Definitely not a Rankin-Bass production.