Ein Mann in der Wildnis

Gritty, bloody saga of a man, left for dead by fellow trappers after being ripped to shreds by a bear, who drags himself through the winter wilderness to get his revenge on those who left him behind.

A true story, though if you want to look it up on the Internet, the mountain man's real name was Hugh Glass (not "Zachary Bass"). He managed (with no equipment or weapons) to get 200-300 miles to Fort Kiowa, and actually took no revenge on either of the two men who left him to die. One, interestingly enough, was a youth -- later very famous -- named Jim Bridger.

The movie leaves out a few details, such as his rolling in rotting logs so that maggots would clean out the infected wounds, since the real story defies belief, but Richard Harris does a superlative job in bringing this amazing character to life. Huston does his usual great job as the loony expedition leader, of course. I've seen this three times and still enjoy it. It leaves you with a rather unpleasant feeling that we modern men are a pretty sorry bunch of pussies by comparison

Richard Harris is horribly mauled by a grizzly bear and left to die in the primeval forest of 1820's America, by trapping expedition captain John Huston. The injured Harris is forced to go to extraordinary lengths in order to survive and catch up with the rest of his party.

A very offbeat, handsomely produced outdoor adventure, Man In The Wilderness is a story that's told primarily in pictures, with very minimal dialog. This moody, sometimes cerebral film might not be for everyone, though others will find it quite satisfying.

Richard Harris delivers a great performance, despite the fact that the script only allows him to speak five times during the movie, three of which were near the end. He's forced to convey emotions mainly through body and facial expression.

Some favorite scenes are when the trappers are pinned down by the weather and begin to imagine a vengeful Harris, coming out of the wilderness to get them, and of course the fascinating climax and finale.

The film's basic premise was borrowed four years later, in the bad drive-in movie Apache Blood. That film is not recommended, whereas this would make a pretty good double-bill with A Man Called Horse or Jeremiah Johnson.

I was very saddened to read that Richard Harris died. He was a very fine actor who left an outstanding body of work. Man In The Wilderness really showcases this remarkable actors talent. Its based on a true story about Hugh Glass (here called Zack Bass) a man on a trapping expedition torn apart by a bear and left for dead. He travels miles and miles to get revenge(Jim Bridger was one of the men who left him). I'm amazed this man lived after such a savage attack and being left to die. Bass did some unusual first aid on himself, he rolled in maggots so they would eat the dead flesh off his body. This film has got an outstanding opening score. Its one of the best I ever heard. Harris's challenge is that he doesn't have a lot of dialogue and has to act like he is crippled and in pain for most of the film. John Huston is also fine as the sinister leader of the expedition who leaves him for dead.

I can't say it any better than Jeremiah did. "In the dark trials of wilderness God's grace could still be found working in the heart of a wounded man. I first saw this film in 71 and had to sit through it again. In those days you could do that. You follow Zack from his early years of losing his mother to having God's love forced on him by a vicious minister. Zack never found much use in God in his life. An island of a man he is well respected tracker on the John Henry Expedition. As told by other commentators he is mauled by a grizzly (an amazing feat in movie making) even my kids had to admit that, and left to die alone by cowardly men. I was blown away by his ability to survive. He is just another animal when he manages to grab raw meat from a dying buffalo. Imagine finding a human now with the endurance and fortitude to be so resourceful as Zackery Bass. Richard Harris gives one of his best performances that I've seen and I've seen them all. My favorite scene is when he reads the bible to one of God's creatures and finds solace in the words. I recommend this film highly to just about everyone. If you think you're having a bad day just .remember what Zack had to do in order to see another day. The soundtrack too is another reason is see it. They just can't make 'em like this anymore.

Well I am putting this in after just watching the Revenant. I took another look at this film which scared the heck out of me as a kid. I can remember watching this on television, weekend days at least 2x. It is a horrifying story, but keeps your attention.

The persistence and human will portrayed are somehow inspiring.

The weird old boat and hunting party that drag along add to the weirdness that makes this memorable. This story of Hugh Glass has been told many times, I guess. The fear of native Americans on the frontier drives this plot of this film too. Portrayals like this trained me how to think in ways.....which are very hard to overcome.

Having spent a lot of time in the woods, seeing bears (black only) and having spent time in the woods in winter, this story is very hard to believe. I can't imagine trying to fight a grizzly. As we all know now, watching survival shows, just getting water that doesn't make you sick is a big deal. You could die from something small like that let alone mortal wounds, no proper clothing, knives and hunting implements.

This film seems to focus on the psychological, but its the tools and skills that would allow someone to survive.