SPOILER ALERT
SPOILER ALERT
SPOILER ALERT
Okay, so by now if you are still reading this, I have to imagine that you either are familiar with this movie already, or perhaps you do not mind the spoilers. Please just don't say that you were not given advanced warning.
Alright, so now that you have been warned about spoilers, and there are no excuses, let's get into the part of this review which is filled with spoilers.
So I mentioned that a lot of people did not seem to like this movie. Gene Siskel said that it was formulaic and not profound, and hated Alec Baldin's acting in this one. He simply did not care about Baldwin's character. Other people also feel that this movie dragged for the first half hour or so, and Siskel's opinion that this movie has been done in other ways a thousand times before is a fairly common view. Point taken.
Except that it has some virtues to it that I think many people are overlooking. I did not think that Alec Baldwin's acting was that bad in this movie. But even if you think that it was, Anthony Hopkins was off the charts with how good his acting was in this one. Somehow, you feel the internal struggle, you almost read what the character is thinking throughout the movie. Hopkins plays billionaire Charles Morse. He is married to Mickey, his literally supermodel wife. It is clear that he loves her, but less clear how she feels about him. There is a significant age difference, which perhaps lead to some questions. Some characters in this movie seem to lean towards pointing this out without blatantly saying it, until one of the characters, Robert (or Bob) Green, played by Alec Baldin, outright states it quite late in the movie. But let me not get ahead of myself.
This is not a minor point. Indeed, Charles is always, always thinking and observing. He has a wealth of knowledge of things, a fact established almost immediately in the film. He does not always see any real advantage to possessing this wealth of knowledge, although it will come in handy later on. For now, we just know that he is highly intelligent and sees things that others probably do not suspect he knows or sees. For example, we see him observing Mickey, and how she is with Bob, an attractive man in his own right. Bob feels entitled to making his fortune, although he has not yet done so. But it seems clear early in the movie that he and Mickey are closer than they perhaps should be, and that they have not quite hidden it as successfully as perhaps they should have from Charles. This is a source of friction and distrust between Charles and Bob. And while mostly unspoken - again, almost until the very end - you can sense that it is a bone of contention between the two men.
Anyway, the group is somewhere in the remote north, either Canada or, more likely, Alaska. It is never outright mentioned where they are in the movie, but everyone seems to say Alaska, so let's go with that. It is cold, but we get the sense that it is not yet winter. The weather is growing cold, but it seems like this is the fall season. Bears in this remote region are a huge problem and are not yet hibernating. The danger that bears pose is made clear almost from the first, although early on, it is just foreshadowing what is to come.
Bob is a photographer, and he is looking for the perfect shot. A model has canceled on him, making him desperate for some kind of replacement. To that end, he finds a picture of a local Native American, Jack Hawk (played by Gordon Tootoosis). Bob feels that this man, Jack Hawk, has the right look for his picture. But he lives in a cabin twenty miles away. Remember, this is a remote mountain region. No major roads - in fact, no roads of any kind can be seen, apparently - and so they will have to get to that cabin by plane. Bob and his assistant Stephen (played by Harold Perrineau) go there, and Bob invites Charles to go with them. Mickey seems to like the idea and encourages Charles, who seems eager to get away after the host of the cabin has pitched a sales idea on him. This is another thing clearly weighing on Charles. He is a billionaire, and so everyone seems to want a piece of his money, making him distrustful of their intentions.
Ultimately, Charles goes with Bob and Stephen. They get on a plane, flying over some remote mountains. As mentioned earlier, there really is spectacular scenery throughout this movie, and we see it particularly as they fly over these mountains. When they reach the log cabin, there is a note saying that Jack Hawk is out hunting up by Big Bass Lake, about twenty miles north of the cabin. So they head up in that direction. One problem that comes back to haunt the group later: Bob takes the note that Jack Hawk left on his cabin, which means that later, when search and rescue missions begin, nobody will know that this group headed 20 miles north of the cabin.
So when the plane hits some geese along the way, forcing the plane to crash into the edge of a mountain peak and crash into a near freezing lake far below, nobody could possibly know where this group wound up. Which of course means that this group is on their own. They will have to survive the elements and walk out of these isolated woods themselves.
Now, there are problems with all of this. I will address them, but I will not explore them here, because to do so is to get sidetracked from the actual movie itself. However, the pilot gets a face full of glass, limiting his ability to guide the plane after the birds crash into the plane, and thus making a much more serious accident all but inevitable. Yet, the pilot is the only one who sustains any kind of real injury. And in his case, he is the only one who does not survive. After getting out of the lake, they are desperate to warm themselves, and Bob decides - all on his own and against basic common sense - to use the flares to light the fire to warm themselves. Then Stephen cuts himself - quite badly - while trying to carve a spear. It is a serious injury and, ultimately, it will cost him his life after Bob hangs the blood-stained tourniquet instead of burying it, as Charles has advised.
Let's get beyond those questions left unanswered. And let's also get beyond the fairly well-known fact that the three survivors are right by a river of some sort, yet steer away from it for some reason. I cannot pretend to be an expert on outdoors survival skills when you are lost in the wilderness. However, the one thing that I do know, and which seems to be common knowledge, is that when you find a river, you stick close to it and follow it, because that will inevitably, eventually, lead out of the wilderness and take you to some sort of signs of civilization.
Yeah, let's put all of that aside. These three guys are lost in the woods, by themselves. Surely, it is no surprise that they likely will make mistakes. And so they do. Let's leave it at that.
They go and head to the direction which feels south to them, even though they seem to ignore the sun in the sky, which could be more effective in terms of giving them a sense of direction. Again, more unanswered questions, but let's get beyond that. They walk and climb, climb and walk. Ultimately, they find the remnants of their own fire by the same lake which they crashed in. Meaning that they have spent a day or two walking in one big circle.
It is at this point when Stephen stabs himself with the knife and, later, when the bear attacks and kills him. This leave Charles and Bob, and the tensions which exist between them. And yet, to survive the bear and the elements, they are now forced to rely on one another. It is an uneasy alliance to be sure, but for now, it is an alliance.
By the way, the bear is a real one, played by Bob the Bear. He is excellent in this movie. Probably his best performance. However, even here there are more questions than answers. These guys consistently manage to outrun the bear, which is simply unrealistic. Bears may look big and fat and clumsy, but they are in fact very athletic and can run far faster than even the fastest humans can. So for these guys to consistently outrun him, and since the bear seems to lose interest in them at times, and then resume stalking them, it also feels questionable. However, he will make an appearance again, and soon.
Eventually, they realize that the bear is toying with them. Stalking them, seemingly outsmarting them. Of course, the bear is in his element, and they are not. It will not allow them to eat or make any real progress out of the woods. They had tried to get a squirrel, with a trap, and then immediately forget about it once they hear a helicopter. They run through the woods and manage to find a clearing, but not on time for the helicopter to see them, as it is already too far away. So without any real hope of being saved from a search crew, and without any real resources other than their own ingenuity, they realize that they have to kill the bear. Charles is the first to recognize it, and he convinces Bob, despite Bob's reluctance and obvious skepticism.
A showdown with the bear is inevitable. Eventually, it comes, and the two men have prepared very well. Probably a little too well, because it feels a little contrived. Their have somehow prepared their battlefield immaculately, although the plan does not go accordingly. Still, it comes down to the two men are in some kind of a stream and have to make their final stand against the bear. Both of them get hit and tossed aside easily, but they get up and resume the fight. Bob is about to get overwhelmed by the bear, but Charles steps in and stabs the bear with a spear. He then provokes the bear to attack, and when the time is right, Charles plants the spear between two rocks and points it upward. When the bears pounces, he impales himself on the spear.
Game, set, match.
Suddenly, the two men have plenty to eat. They also make these nifty makeshift coats, and Charles makes bear tooth necklaces for both men. They have conquered the most immediate and obvious threat. But they have also killed the one thing which kept their uneasy alliance going. Having survived such a grave, serious and immediate threat to their lives, you might think that the experience would help to bring the men closer, right?
Actually, the opposite happens. At first, they continue to work together to brave the still difficult elements. They keep trecking and seem to be in deep and serious conversations most of the time. Until, that is, they find a cabin.
This is the point where you find out what both men are really made of. It seems to them both that this will be the end of their adventure. The cabin offers some shelter, some drinks (tea and hard liquor) and, most importantly, a canoe. Once they test it and find that it floats, the odds now seem in their favor to walk out of these hostile woods, just as Charles originally predicted.
Except that Bob begins to drink the whiskey. Heavily. It becomes clear that he is drinking like this for a reason. Charles seems to know, seems to understand. He has seen the note hidden (forgotten) in the box which his pocket knife came in. Somehow, his wife had forgotten to take this little note out, which is actually instructions on what to engrave on two pieces of jewelry. One is the gift knife for Charles, but the other is for Bob's watch, thanking him for all of the nights. By now, Charles knows without a shadow of a doubt that bob is having an affair with his wife, and knows also that Bob intends to kill him. Especially when Bob grabs the gun stored in the cabin and begins to put bullets in it. They talk and all pretense of civility goes away quickly. Bob says that Mickey is only with Charles because of his money, that he has no business with a beautiful woman like that.
Bob tells Charles to go outside. They go and continue to talk. Bob clearly seems uncomfortable, and we cannot be sure if he has it in him to actually go ahead and kill Charles. Meanwhile, Charles had spotted a deadfall, a disguised hole in the ground intended to protect against bears. Charles leads Bob close to the deadfall, although Bob remains oblivious. They continue talking, and Charles tries to talk Bob out of killing him. At some point he approaches Bob, making him nervous and forcing him to back up...right into the deadfall, as it turns out.
Despite all of the odds against him, Charles has come out on top. He has used his wits to best the hostile elements, the bear, and Bob's plan to kill him. Yet, he decides to try and save Bob, who otherwise would be doomed. He brings him back to the cabin and applies a tourniquet. Then he gets Bob in the canoe and they paddle down the river. They reach a lake and stop for a break at an isolated stretch. Once again, they talk a bit. Bob apologizes for trying to kill Charles, and then makes clear that he believes he is about to die. Charles urges him to hang on, but Bob will have none of it.
And then a plane comes by. Charles tries waving it down, then runs to grab some pine branches atop the fire to create visible smoke. The plane finally does see it, and heads to the two men. It seems that after all of this, they are finally saved.
Except that when Charles turns around, excited that the plane has seen them and they are about to be saved, he sees Bob laying facedown in an awkward position. He checks and finds Bob is dead.
When we see Charles next, he is getting off the helicopter. A lot of press is there, reporting on this story. So they rush to try and get a comment from Charles. But Charles walks past and first stops by the old man who had last tried to sell him on the idea of developing this region. He asks him why the bunny is unafraid, and the old man responds that the hare is not afraid because he is smarter than the panther, a reference to an exchange between the two men earlier in the movie. Then Charles goes to his wife, Mickey, who first looks at the body bag containing Bob's corpse being taken off the helicopter, then looks at her husband. They embrace, and Charles places something in her hands. It is Bob's watch, with the engraving that she had for him. Clearly he knows that she has cheated on him. They exchange a meaningful look.
Then Charles turns and addresses the press. When asked how the others with him had died, he tearfully explains that they died saving his life.
All of that, at least, sums up what happens in the movie. However, as mentioned earlier, there is a whole lot more going on than that. I loved this movie, despite the lukewarm reception and the criticisms that people have of this movie. Apparently, there were more criticisms of it from my end than even I expected, because it was a longer list than I was consciously aware of, admittedly.
Still, it is a story of survival, even if at times flawed. It is action, yet it is not mindless action. Maybe they make mistakes in this movie, trying to survive in the wild. And maybe the knowledge which Charles has learned of survival in the wild is flawed. Nonetheless, the point is that he is thinking and sees things which others do not. He does not allow obvious or even major disappointments to defeat him, but keeps them in perspective. Maintains an attitude that they are temporary setbacks and not permanent defeats.
Also, his thinking stretches beyond just immediate survival. He is aware that Bob, despite appearances, is himself a rival and a threat to his survival. Silently, keeping his calm, he observes and looks for opportunities to protect himself in the event that he is attacked, as evidenced by his silently observing the deadfall just outside of the cabin minutes before Bob leads him outside to eliminate him. This thinking is what keeps him - and the group as a whole - alive.
Another aspect of this film that I like is that despite these men not particularly liking each other, they nevertheless work together for their mutual survival. They use their best tools - thinking - to defeat the bear as well as extremely hostile elements in the isolated and unfamiliar wilderness they find themselves in. And there is something to be said for that.
Highly recommended.
Found this original review from many years ago, and thought it would be fitting to post it here, along with the new review. But I took pains not to read it, although I did go back and reference the names (which I forgot). Otherwise, I did not read it before writing this newer review and, in fact, still have not read it as I am about to publish this particular review. The original review, which I posted here almost 14 years ago now:
Movie Rental Review: The Edge published on Sunday, September 16, 2012:
https://charbor74.blogspot.com/2012/09/move-rental-review-edge.html
"The Charbor Chronicles": Move Rental Review: The Edge
I love this movie! I mean, it just has so much to offer, and it does so in an intelligent, subtle, adult manner. Yet, it is also an edge of your seat thriller!
Perhaps I am dating myself here, but the commercials, when they came out, did not do this movie justice. It looked like an exciting movie, and the bear chasing men somewhere deep in the woods looked exciting enough. But this movie has so much more to offer than that. It is, ultimately, almost a spiritual movie (in a non-religious way), addressing what we have become in this modern world of ours, and how hard it is, in essence, to truly find ourselves, to keep our wits about us and keep an overall better perspective, when thrown, involuntarily, into an unfamiliar setting.
Anthony Hopkins, who I personally think is one of the most capable and talented actors out there, plays Charles Morse, a billionaire who shows a penchant for retaining obscure facts and information that he has never quite fully been able to put a full use to (something that I, admittedly, can kind of relate to on some levels), takes a trip with an entourage to a very remote locale in North America somewhere (we have to figure that it is either in Alaska or northern Canada, somewhere, judging by the nordic remoteness, and the snow capped mountain range). This entourage includes his wife, Mickey (played by model Elle Macpherson) , Charles's assistant Robert (Bob) Green (played by Alec Baldwin), and Stephen (played by Harold Perrineau, who you might recognize from the latter two Matrix movies, and he was also on a few episodes of Lost).
We do not know precisely what business they are in, but we do know that Bob Green is trying to get the perfect photograph. It is during one of his photo shoots with Mickey (Charles's supermodel wife), that we first essentially learn that she is having an affair with Bob. Charles notices, too, perhaps for the first time, but perhaps not. One way or the other, he knows, but says nothing. Robert is, in fact, having a somewhat difficult and stressful trip, however. It is Charles's birthday, and it clearly bothers him to see Charles and Mickey close together. Also, he has come to get the perfect picture, but the person that he specifically wanted to take pictures of has grown severely sick. When Bob comes across a picture that Styles, the backwoodsman host at the remote cabin lodge where the group is staying, has taken a picture of a local Native American, Jack Hawk (played by Gordon Tootoosis), who seems to have the right look that Bob is looking for in a picture. Bob instinctively decides to go after this mysterious man.
It proves a fateful decision, because when they go up to Jack Hawk's cabin, they find it deserted, but with a note attached, saying that he is out hunting up by Big Bass Lake, about twenty miles north of the cabin. They decide to go looking for him, and that is when a flock of birds winds up flying right into the airplane, and they crash into a lake. the pilot is killed in the crash, while Bob, Stephen, and Charles all survive. Bob has taken the note with him, so there really is no way that anyone would necessarily know that the men are actually twenty miles further north than their last stated destination.
Bob and Stephen went on the plane trip because they were looking for the perfect picture with the native, but Charles has decided to go, rather instinctively (and passively) himself for another reason: to get away from the cabin, and specifically the host, Styles. Styles, played quite well by L.O. Jones) seems to be quite knowledgeable about the wilderness himself. Styles comments on how pretty Charles's wife is, but keeps his thoughts to himself, just essentially noticing it (and hinting, perhaps, at the obvious age difference between husband and wife). When Styles hears that Charles is supposed to be quite knowledge of facts, he challenges him. he takes down an oar that is hanging, which shows a panther, and asks Charles what is on the other side. Charles calmly responds that it is a rabbit, smoking a pipe - a sign that he is unafraid, because he knows that he is smarter than the panther. Styles is impressed each time he finds out how much knowledge Charles actually has and, at one point, begins to talk to him about the possibility of developing the area, in order to try and make this beautiful, but extremely remote location more readily accessible for more people to be able to enjoy. Charles is listening to all of this patiently, wordlessly, until Styles mentions a specific dollar amount, when he stops the conversation, understanding that Styles is trying to make some sort of business proposal, obviously aware of Charles's money. There is now clear tension between the two men, and that proves to be the reason that Charles goes on the fateful plane trip. We get the sense that he just wanted to clear his head a little bit. As it turns out, he gets much more than he bargained for.
So, the three men are out in the middle of a very remote wilderness. They have to try and keep warm (they crashed into a northern lake and had to swim their way out), and build a fire. They have difficulty with it, though, and that is the first time we notice a real difference between Bob and Charles. Bob takes the flares that Charles had the foresight of taking from the plane. It lights the fire that warms them, but in the process, they minimized the chances of using them in order to be found by the inevitable search party.
Charles mentions to Bob at one point that the main reason that people die when they get lost in the woods is due to shame, and says that they forgot to do the one thing that could have saved them - thinking.
As the movie goes on, we find a lot of such differences between Bob, who is not used to the woods and thinks only instinctively, looking for any and all comforts that he can (including the comfort of wanting to indulge in hopes of some miraculous return), and Charles, who constantly, relentlessly focuses on the possible worst case scenario and tries to remain prepared for all manner of possible challenges, although he remains optimistic that they will, in fact, walk out of the woods, and back to safety.
They begin their hike back southwards, assuming that they will find their way, hopefully, back to the Jack Hawk's cabin. It is not an easy hike, and along the way, they get chased by a huge bear (played by Bart the Bear), who goes after them relentlessly. They manage to escape, at least this time, and they continue their hike. But when they arrive at the exact location where they had been when they started the hike, they are all disheartened. Charles remains cool, but the other two are showing signs of not just frustration, but nearly panic. Charles gives Stephen a task to do, in order to get his mind off things. He makes him carve a spear, and it is here that Stephen accidentally cuts himself quite severely. Charles tries to attend to the wound, and tears off the blood stained cloth of the pants, handing it to Bob to bury. But Bob hangs it up on a tree branch instead, and the bear smells it in the air and finds them, attacking Stephen and killing him.
Suddenly, the stakes seems very high.
Charles and Bob make their escape, and continue their venture. But before long, they find out that the bear is still following them, essentially stalking them. It is then that Charles knows that they will have to have a confrontation with the bear, a struggle to the death, either for the bear, or for one or both of the men. He prepares, although they are starving, and really still just look for something, some kind of a break that never comes. Help, to be found at last, or even just to finally eat something to restore their strength. maybe a bit of rest.
***Spoiler alert***
Of course, the confrontation is inevitable. The bear comes, and we see just how big of a beast he is. He is huge, enormous, and simply overwhelming. It hardly seems possible that even two grown men with sticks could prevail.
Yet, that is what happens. Charles, having read the book, knows to try and coax the bear and get it to loom over him, then to use it's enormous weight against it once it comes down, in effect impaling it.
Now, they can finally eat as well as stay warm considerably more easily, and can likely traverse through those woods and return to civilization.
Finally, they reach an old, abandoned cabin. It has a boat and some oars, and once they test it out, they know that they have gotten through, and will likely return to the lives that they had known before.
But it is then that Bob, seemingly overly preoccupied with drinking and loading the gun. We see him brooding, and preparing himself to do what he does not want to do.
Charles, in the meantime, has anticipated this. We notice him spotting the deadfall outside, and then, when the two men walk outside in order for Bob to do the deed, Charles rather slyly directs Bob right next to the deadfall, and gets him to engage in conversation, asking him how long the affair with his wife has been going on.
Bob, already nervous and emotionally charged, trying to prepare himself to actually commit an act of murder, just wants to get this whole thing over with. He looks and sounds unstable, while Charles, in facing death, sounds calm and almost conversational. There comes a point when he actually starts to approach Bob, which startles Bob enough that he takes a step back - and in the process, falls right into the deadfall.
His leg has been impaled by one of the sharp sticks on the bottom. The situation has obviously now completely reversed, with Charles in complete control and alive, while Bob, has sustained a serious injury and has now been rendered completely helpless. Charles has a choice, and he makes it quickly. He decides to save Bob.
It takes some doing, but again, Charles remains calm throughout. Bob seems to be wavering in and out of consciousness, and he is clearly not healthy any longer.
Charles managed to do the best that he can with him, and manages, nonetheless, to get him out and onto the kayak. Equipped with a boat, he intends to take the boat and find safety.
They find themselves on an island, essentially seemingly taking a rest. Charles has figured that Bob really needs to warm up, because he is in really rough shape. So, he builds him a fire on the island to keep him warm. Bob, in the meantime, begins to question Charles, questions why he would save a man who had intended to murder him. Bob finally apologizes for what he did, and seems on the verge of giving up, of expiring.
Just then, there is the whirring of a distant engine, but it is so faint, that Charles cannot be sure if he heard it right. When he hears it more distinctly, and more importantly, when it actually comes into view, Charles does everything that he can to signal it, wave it down. But it seems not to see them, so Charles quickly uses the knife that Bob gave him as a gift to cut some plants in order to create smoke, and once he does this, the plane finally sees them, and circles around towards their direction.
They are saved, and Charles is ecstatic - until he looks over at Bob, and sees that he is in a very awkward position, face down. He has died indeed, and surely of shame, much like Charles had warned him about at the beginning of their wilderness adventure.
When returned finally to the safety of the camp, Charles once again turns to Styles, and asks him the question that Styles asked of him not long before. Why is the rabbit unafraid? Because he is smarter than the panther. Styles gives him a knowing smile.
The media assembled all want anything, any small statement or scrap for stories for the publications back home. Charles mentions how life's tests never seem to come at the time or in the form that you expect them.
When asked how the other men died, Charles tears up, and says that they died saving Charles's own life.
In conclusion, this is a really awesome movie! It is one of those strange movies that I simply cannot get enough of. Nary a year will pass without me somehow putting it on to watch yet again, and I always enjoy it, even though I know exactly what will happen, by now. But there always seems to be some small, subtle thing, perhaps even a detail, that I initially missed. When a movie keeps you interested enough to pay attention to such small details, you know it's good!
