The Edge

The Edge is an original movie. There have been movies with stranded people, fighting for survival and movies with jealous lovers trying to kill the rich spouse, but how often has there been such an adventurous story combining them both? It seems Hopkins has befriended Bart the Bear with multiple appearances with the new star. The scenery in Alaska is magnificent. It's almost as if the viewer is there on the plane. I wonder if Charles Morse did start a new life.

A billionaire, his younger "supermodel" wife, and her photography crew travel by plane to the north wilderness for a photo shoot.

While Charles (the billionaire), Stephen (the photographer), and his assistant are out scouting for new shooting locations in the plane, the run into a flock of birds and crash in vast wilderness more than dozens of miles away from the rest of the party (right in the middle of bear country). Can they survive in the wilderness long enough to get rescued, or will the have to fight what the wilderness has in store for them?

This is a great, edge of your seat thriller from the late 90s. I'd give it a 7.2 rating.

Boy, here's an intense film, a survival-in-the-wilderness adventure/thriller starring the unlikely duo of Anthony Hopkins and Alec Baldwin. It's not hard to guess who's the villain, in addition to a man-eating bear who stalks the two of them after their plane crashes in the woods of Alaska.

The sophistication of Hopkins, playing an extremely smart man, battling the crude Baldwin, who is insanely jealous of Hopkins' possessions, including his gorgeous wife (Elle McPherson), is intriguing to watch. So is the great scenery and best-of-all, a great action story that has you focused intently for the full two hours.

A human characteristic so often ignored in films the past half century is put on display here: compassionate forgiveness. Seeing forgiveness demonstrated instead of revenge is almost shocking to see. Kudos to the filmmakers, too, for not going overboard on the brutality in this adventure.

Anthony Hopkins plays billionaire Charles Morse, a bookish man who is married to a much younger woman(played by Elle McPherson) who is coveted by her photographer(Alec Baldwin) The two men, as well as an assistant(played by Harold Perrineau) are flown into a remote location in the Alaskan wilderness, when they are struck by a flock of birds, causing them to crash in the lake, killing the pilot, and placing the three survivors in a life and death struggle with not only the harsh elements, but a huge Kodiak bear that smells blood...

Harrowing adventure drama from writer David Mamet is well directed by Lee Tamahori and acted by the leads, especially Anthony Hopkins, whose transformation from bookish introvert to determined survivalist is believable(they're not mutually exclusive anyway!) Relationship among the men is a bit muddled, especially after the climax, but solid thriller is also compelling and frightening.

Not a film for people with a fear of bears...

I enjoyed this film the first time I saw it and purchased it solely for the Hopkins character. The more I watch it, the poorer The Edge seems overall, and the more impressed I am with Mr. Hopkin's character and his performance.

I do have to agree about the Lit. 101 symbolism. It struck me that Mamet probably saw the Indian paddle or some similar trinket and based the entire screenplay on the idea this gave him. I suppose that's OK, if rather conventional.

The film was shot about an hour away from where I lived at the time, so I'm biased in that regard. But it is an incredibly beautiful area in Alberta.

Though I hate it when people say this, I do like the Hopkin's character because I can identify with him in some ways. His ability to maintain his humanity throughout all of his trials, natural and relational, is inspiring, and in my view, well worth taking the time to watch. His performance carries this otherwise ho-hum movie.