Die Prophezeiung

Reviewers of the film are quick to undercut its actual effectiveness as a film without realizing that many parts of the film succeed, including the tension of the characters against the beast, the horror of the beasts' attacks, the helplessness of man within nature, etc. Reviewers would be accurate to attack the cheesy effects, hokey dialogue at times and overall loss on energy in the film toward the climax, but there's much more going on here.

Prophecy is, at best, a) a departure for John Frankenheimer, b) a 70's horror movie with a social conscience and, c) not withstanding amateurish special effects, predictable dialogue and long-view shots of Talia Shire looking petrified beyond speech, an actually entertaining, somewhat surprisingly satisfying film. The novel created an intelligent, often compelling case for early environmentalism and the frightening consequences of doing nothing in light of the dangerous contamination of the Earth. Prophecy as a film suffers from a deplorable special effects deficiancy (case in point: at one point in the film, the monster is clearly "walking" on the dock with the courtesy of a mechanical dolly and hydraulic levers...uggh) as said before, but looking beyond this, the film's plotline does build tension, though it loses steam in the end, concluding with a rather lamely tacked-on "surprise" ending that is more befitting of the TV networks in the 70's. Frankenheimer captures a "land-locked" Jaws-like eating machine on film with a vengeance, and the subsequent carnage is, while unfortunate, in light of the circumstances that created the beast, understandable. The focal point of the movie, the beast itself, operates as a deranged ecological locomotive ( actually sounding like one onfilm at times ) hell-bent on taxing mankind for its misfortune.

Remarkably ( and most likely accidentally) the film achieved a perfect "of the moment" time slice capture of the late 70's era, replete with the worries, political movements, ambiguities and uncertainties of the time all woven within the backstory of the Indian's struggle against the papermill, global overpopulation, bigotry and commercialization at the expense of nature.

Beautiful scenery ( courtesy of British Columbia, circa 1978/1979), believable performances, particularly from Richard Dysart and Armand Assanti, combined with circumstances and sequences never actually realized on film before combine to make a pretty meaty B movie. Case in point, the opening sequence with the dogs and the cliff, the tunnels of the Indian village and their subsequent use later in the film. I saw this film when I was 11, and the memory of the camping family and their fate in the film has YET to leave me. Don't think I've ever camped again without recalling that scene...

I recommend the film without taking it as seriously as it seems to take itself, though the message of environmentalism is one worth listening to. The plot device of methyl mercury poisoning in Minimata, Japan is based on true life actual events, and is considerably more frightening than the sum of this movie, but is worth researching sometime.

• Monstergarp

Prophecy is one of those films I'd never heard of, went entirely under my radar. I can confidently say it has aged remarkably well and it's astonishing that it was made in the 1970's.

Starring Talia "Adriiiieeennne" Shire & Armand "One facial expression" Assante this tells the story of a doctor and his girlfriend who venture to the forests of Maine to bring peace between loggers and native Americans.

Trouble is something's out there killing folk and the loggers believe its the native Americans! Well it's not in fact it's a great big creature that I'm sure must have been Trey Parker & Matt Stones influence for South Parks very own Manbearpig. The likeness is truly uncanny.

Essentially a mystery film with a creature feature addition this is actually a perfectly watchable film and looks great. Practical effects, memorable story though a bit of a lackluster finale.

If you like your beastie films you can do worse and Al Gore is super serial about this one.

The Good:

Looks great

Manbearpig

An excellent though ridiculous death scene

The Bad:

Couple of weird writing decisions

Assante is just terrible

Lead was very lifeless as was Shire

I was rooting for the monster

...... but the creature itself isn't half bad considering that this was made in 79'- pre CGI. The film has some great expansive wilderness scenery and an effective score by Leonard Rosenman. It has a great opening which in a sense promises more than the rest of the film delivers—quite plodding for the most part—but this is really a minor quibble. The acting is decent and there is enough tension generated by the opening sequence to keep ones interest throughout the proceedings.

There is minimal gore, but the tone of the film is relatively intense and serious, with a violent undercurrent that is more implied than expressive and adds to some well mounted terror sequences. The last half hour certainly isn't dull and is filmed with panache and a great deal of swampy atmosphere.

This is a very hard US PG rating (pre - PG13 days). A brief fight scene involving a chainsaw and an axe (although by no means graphic) is like something seen in a more exploitative hardcore action film. Had the film makers pushed a little stronger and bloodied a little more and went for an R' rating, this film may have become a minor horror classic considering the talent involved. As it stands, its still a hoot and well worth a mention in your DVD creature feature collection.

"Prophecy" was released at the same general time as the popular "Alien" back in 1979. "Alien" was a fair hit at the box office (with a far better monster) while "Prophecy" didn't do very well, causing director John Frankenheimer to plummet into a depression.

I first saw the film as a kid because I was intrigued by the 15-foot grotesque monster. As it turned out, I thought the film was merely okay. I decided to see the picture again in the mid-90s and, I don't know if it was nostalgia, but I thoroughly enjoyed "Prophecy" as an adult. I've seen it a few times since then and enjoyed it every time. As far as comparing it to "Alien," I fully admit that "Alien" is technically a much better film and way more innovative & influential, but through the years I've seen "Prophecy" about twice as often as "Alien." This proves, if nothing else, that "Prophecy" has re-watchable merit.

THE STORY: There are problems in Maine (although the film was actually filmed in the Great Northwest) between the paper mill and the local Indians. The Natives argue that they are somehow being contaminated by the industry. Robert Foxworth and his pregnant mate Talia Shire fly up to investigate and discover that mercury poisoning from the mill is the problem. They witness a handful of loony, overgrown or hideously mutated animals that verify their findings, most notably a mutated grizzly bear that looks like it's been turned inside out (speaking of which, I didn't realize they had grizzly bears in Maine; although I suppose it could be a mutated overgrown black bear).

The tone of the story is completely serious so don't expect any camp like in the similar "Lake Placid." Robert Foxworth is excellent as the protagonist; I'm surprised he didn't have a more stellar career. Talia Shire ("Rocky"), the sister of Francis Ford Coppola, is meek and likable. Armand Assante ("Odyssey") is robust and determined as the Native protagonist and Victoria Racimo is fabulous as his wife (squaw?).

There are quite a few memorable scenes, like when the Natives block a forest road culminating in an intense stand-off with the paper mill personnel, chain saw and all. Another potent sequence is when Foxworth investigates the paper mill and has an intense discussion/argument with the mill boss. The manager powerfully points out that the mill simply provides what the consumers demand and that Foxworth's actual report is going to use up thousands of sheets of paper; hence, he shares responsibility.

BOTTOM LINE: For the first hour and 15 minutes or so "Prophecy" expertly unveils the mystery while capturing the viewers attention with mounting interest. It's the last 25 minutes where the film partially stumbles. The mutated creature is fully revealed and chases the group through the forests. There's a lot of running & screaming and many die. This should be a powerful pay-off but for some reason it's not. It's merely okay, and almost boring. Still, there are some memorable visuals, like the moonlit chase through the fog-laden lake.

"Prophecy" may not be great like "Jaws" or "Alien," but it's quite a bit better than flicks like "Grizzly."

I saw this picture on Betamax in '81 or '82 and it really got under my skin. Frankenheimer's monster movie is partly responsible for me getting into the business (along with Jaws, Alien, Raiders, Blade Runner, not that I'm really inviting such comparisons). I actually had occasion to have a smoke and chat briefly with Robert Foxworth about the making of the picture when I was grip on a made-for-TV suspense pic in Atlanta. He was approachable, friendly and enjoyed talking about that show. He said that they had lost a stunt driver, and narrowly escaped losing a cast member or two when their first construction truck/picture car (the 4wd monster truck our ensemble try to escape in) took a dive off a cliff. They had to scramble to find another one and finish the picture. RF also said that Frankenheimer was an accomplished chef and had occasionally treated the DP and Cast to gourmet meals.

Prophecy is now on DVD, presented the way it was originally shot. I think I bought my copy for less than $15. All of the criticisms of this film are true, and it does not belong in the first Frankenheimer potential box set with "The Train," "Manchurian Candidate," and "Seven Days in May." But with this marginal script and genre, bound together with a tired, preachy and inaccurate environmental message, Frankenheimer managed to put together a monster picture that has surprisingly stout legs. Remember, Paramount released this monster muppet against "Alien," arguably the best film of its kind ever made. The monster grizzly is enraged, frightening and unpredictable. It is key to the film's suspense. If the Emmerich/Devlin team gave 'Zilla the same qualities, suddenly that film is worth watching for more than the effects. Prophecy had virtually no effects by today's standards. They had to make up for this with shooting and editing; a.k.a. conventional, hand-crafted filmmaking. I may indeed be prejudiced, but I still like this movie with all of its problems.