High Ice (film)
High Ice, also known as Challenge of the High Ice,[4] is a 1980 American adventure television film directed by Eugene S. Jones and starring David Janssen, Tony Musante, Madge Sinclair, and Gretchen Corbett. Its plot follows a park ranger and army lieutenant attempting to save three rock climbers stranded on a mountain ledge. The film was released in the United States as an NBC Movie of the Week in early 1980, but was given a theatrical release internationally. The extended theatrical cut of the film shown in foreign countries includes nude sequences that were excised from the television version.
High Ice | |
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Genre | |
Written by |
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Directed by | Gordon Hessler |
Starring | |
Music by | Robert O. Ragland |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
Production | |
Producers |
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Cinematography | Robert E. Collins |
Editor | George Hively |
Running time | 97 minutes[1] |
Budget | $2 million[2] |
Release | |
Original network | NBC |
Original release |
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Premise
A park ranger (David Janssen) clashes with an army lieutenant (Tony Musante) regarding the rescue efforts of three rock climbers stranded on a mountain ledge in Washington.
Cast
- David Janssen as Glencoe MacDonald
- Tony Musante as Lt. Col. Harris Thatcher
- Madge Sinclair as Dr. Pittman
- Gretchen Corbett as Liz
- James G. Richardson as Scott
- Allison Argo as Kathy
- Dorian Harewood as Lt. Zack Hawkins
- Warren Stevens as Sgt. Lomax
- Katherine Cannon as Sandy
- James Canning as Lt. Foster
- James Kaufman as Lt. Foley
Production
Filming took place in Darrington, Washington in the summer of 1979.[2] The production budget was approximately $2 million.[2]
Release
Upon its airing on NBC in January 1980, High Ice was met by approximately 25 million viewers in the United States.[2] The film was subsequently given a theatrical release internationally, with nudity which had been cut from the television version reinstated.[2] The film aired on television again in the late 1980s on MTV.[5]
Critical response
James Brown of the Los Angeles Times deemed the film a "visually breathtaking, but dramatically stuttering diversion... Director Eugene Jones further hampers his own cause with some choppy transitions, confusing flashbacks and muddled dramatic focus."[4]
References
- "High Ice (1980)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
- Fiege, Gale (August 24, 2009). "'High Ice': It may be cheesy, but 1980 TV movie belongs to Darrington". The Herald. Everett, Washington. Archived from the original on February 29, 2020.
- Harrison, Bernie (January 7, 1980). "Monday's Highlights". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. p. 13 – via Newspapers.com.
- Brown, James (January 7, 1980). "'High Ice' Has Its Ups, Downs". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. p. 64 – via Newspapers.com.
- Scheuer, Steven H. (1987). Movies on TV '88-'89. Bantam Books. p. 349. ISBN 978-0-553-26851-5.