Überleben!

When this picture came out in 1976 on theatres I and my father went to watch it, sadly due my tender age they didn't allowed me enter to see so disturbing picture, thus I'd beg to him watch it as long as he report the whole picture aftermaths, the time goes by and just in 1984 I'd another opportunity to watch it on TV, everything what my father told to me were still fresh at my memory, over this terrifying accident at Andes mountains.

The fatal flying from Uruguay toward Chile taking on board a rugby team among passengers crashed at frozen mountain at winter season in 13 October of 1972, afterwards the survivors stranded at mountain trying to a radio contact, meanwhile at ground strong efforts were made for a searching and possible rescue by several countries led by Uruguay Air Force and even by civil aircrafts without success, the helpless passenger between the starvation had a hard choice to do cannibalism to survive.

This Mexican poduction had a smashing box-office in Latin America, featuring the great Hugo Stiglitz whom Tarantino has great regards, based on the book wrote by Clay Blair Jr, adapted by Rene Cordona Sr. It astonished the world and the audience, therefore it wasn't easy to watch so unsetting cannibalism sequences, I'd to skip these loathsome scenes, among 45 passengers and crew just 16 have been survived in 73 longest days at freezing spot, due the heroic deed of two youngest self-sacrificing survivors.

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First watch: 1984 / How many: 3 / Source: TV-Youtube / Rating: 6.5.

Survive! (1976)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

American version of the Mexican film SUPERVIVIENTES DE LOS ANDES, which is based on the true story of the soccer team whose plane crashed in the Andes Mountains and those who survived had to resort to cannibalism in order to live. SURVIVE! was cut down by 26-minutes, had a documentary style narration added and of course was dubbed in English. When I saw director Rene Cardona's name I was expecting some major exploitation and while there's certainly some, this here is actually fairly well-made when you consider how small the budget is. Most people are going to know this story from the American film ALIVE and if you're looking for an uplifting look on the subject then that's the film to see. This one here was obviously rushed into theaters to try and capture some of the hot buzz around the story and apparently both version were a major financial success. I was surprised to see how effective the plane crash sequence was here as they had to use some good editing to sell it. The performances aren't all that bad and there's no question that the story itself keeps you interested. There's a lot of focus on the cannibalism in the film and there are several rather graphic moments where we see the skin being removed and eventually eaten. These scenes aren't nearly as bloody as the film's reputation would have you believe but they're still going to turn some off. The American version runs 85-minutes and features some narration added to the material just so they could cut out a bunch of dialogue sequences that I'm sure set everything up. The original Mexican version clocks in at 111-minutes and contains more scenes of the military trying to locate the down plane and one survivor's father has a much bigger role in the Mexican version.

Almost 20 years before Frank Marshall brought tears to your eyes with his mesmerizing epic "Alive", there already was the legendary Mexican exploitation director René Cardona who used the same drama as an outline for his ambitious film "Supervivientes de los Andes". The unforgettable fatal flight of Fairchild 571 that crashed in the Argentinian Andes on October 13, 1972. This terrible accident cost the lives of many passengers, most of them members of a professional rugby team. But 16 people of them were eventually rescued thanks to their strong will to survive and because they fed on the mortal remains of their unfortunate fellow-passengers. Of course you can't claim that this cheaply made and roughly edited film is better than the famous 90's version but I definitely appreciate and respect this film more. After all, an exploitation film demands a lot more input from both cast and crew while the big-budgeted Marshall film, although intense, feels more like routine money-making. The sets and special effects naturally can't compete with "Alive", but "Supervivientes..." delivers an equally impressive sentiment of hopelessness and creates an even more nightmarish hell of snow. Cardona's film is ambitious, surprisingly compelling and easily one of the most remarkable Mexican productions ever. I am really astonished that Cardona's take on this story isn't more exploitative and explicit. The scenes where the deceased passengers are cut open and consumed are nevertheless hard to digest, but they only serve to increase the credibility of the catastrophe and to stress the inhuman conditions of the survivors. Rather praiseworthy for a vicious director who gained fame with his notoriously bad films like "Night of the Bloody Apes" and the Santo-series. The unknown young Mexican actors do a great job and the musical score is endearing. The story is well-known, of course, so the screenplay doesn't offer any unexpected shocks. Either by history or previously having seen "Alive", you know which kind of dramas these people still have to endure before being rescued and you can only await them. Still, this is a good film that shouldn't be bashed like too often is the case.

The highest compliment one can pay to this movie is that it's no better or worse than the 1993 version of the same story ("Alive"), despite its having been produced on a much lower budget, with more primitive special effects. The problem is that if you're familiar with the story, there are no surprises left; you're simply waiting for the inevitable. It must be noted, however, that the "gore" factor has been considerably hyped up: the scenes that are "not for the squeamish" amount to a total of two. (**)

This dubbed Italia effort, the first movie, recreating the events of that tragic day in 1972, when that soccer team crashed in the Andes, is indeed involving, despite some cheaply filmed shots, that required a background screen. The surviving victims, some in a great deal of pain, finally had to resort to eating their friends. Two embarked off to get help, the second time succeeding in their quest. We learn from the first effort, if they had gone in the opposite direction, they would of come across the town. But you're in the Andes, remember. You couldn't hypothesize on where the closest help is. During this crisis of starvation and stuck in this below O blizzard, you almost feel like your one of them in this hellish ordeal. This movie which in my opinion, was better than the remake 16 years later, doesn't hold back on the dissection of these dead nude bodies, where for the living, this was their only source of nourishment. Be warned, some of the canniballism scenes may disturb but for you strong stomachs out there, this is a recommended viewing experience of a tragedy, you'll never forget, where hope and belief had to be kept strong. An inspirational drama, with an inspirational soundtrack.