Opération Green Ice

In the early eighties films were made without perfectly drycleaned wardrobe, without perfect glamour hair and without enough makeup to paint a world scene. This film is one of those that puts you in the film and away from the soundstage. Granted it's not a masterpiece but the story is solid and the acting and production is pretty good. The synth/spanish soundtrack by Bill Wyman also adds greatly to the Columbian landscapes and characterization (especially Wiley's campy yet likeable theme). Be wary however that there is a long scene involving one of the worst film songs of all time (floating) which will have you grinding your teeth in anguish as you reach for the remote to fast forward through it. Wiley (Ryan O Neal) travels to Mexico and meets Holbrook (Archer), a rich babe who is fiance' to Meno (Sharif). While Meno sucks dry Mexico's supply of Emeralds what he really wants is to return to the diamond concession in South America, using Holbrook to do so. In the process of his work he becomes responsible for killing Holbrook's sister which turns her against Meno thereby teaming her with Wiley to rob Meno's emerald vault. It's a good thief thriller, some laughable moments but not a bore at all.

This is one of those movies with a cult following. The plot might sound like something you heard before. But its the charm of this movie that sets it apart from the rest. I have seen this movie over 30 times since 1981 and I never tire of it. Some movies are just a pleasure to watch and listen to. It's like listening to your favorite song over and over. It's laid back and just plain enjoyable without all the stress we often get from modern movies.

Certainly a lot of the credit goes to Bill Wyman for making the score. Ultimately it is what puts the shine on Green Ice.

10/10

In the Early Eighties ,There was 'Green Ice' which is a surprisingly enjoyable caper that's packed with action - Adventure,and romance, (Ryan O'Neal, plays Joe Wiley a recently divorced Electronics expert, who leaves New York, for the exotic plains of south America, where he meets the beautiful society heiress, Lillain Holbrook,(Ann Archer,

Whilst in the exotic resort of Las Hadas, O'Neal inadvertently becomes involved with Emerald Smuggling, Archer is searching for her peace activist sister, who who is brutally slain in the chilling opening sequence. Omar Sharif,plays Archer's potential but somewhat he sinister Suitor, Meno Argenti, a kingpin banished from the diamond concession but is a big player in the emerald, business,

There is a fantastic sequence, which see's O'Neal and his associate played by the ever brilliant, John Larroquette,travel in a convoy of Custom hot air balloon's to rob Sharif's emeralds,Which are housed in his Voice activated vault, Atop a glistening skyscraper,

Their is excellent Cinematography, throughout this picture particularly the aerial, shots, James Bond credits designer Maurice Binder designs the opening titles which are excellent, Former Rolling Stone Bill Wyman, infuses the film with his brilliant Synth electronic score, Like The Green Emerald's in the film Green Ice Sparkles with excellence

I kid you not, the last time I saw this movie, I could not have been older than eight years old. It still sticks with me, probably because it was one of the first heist/thriller movies I ever saw.

Omar Sharif was all over the place in the movies of that era, most notably (in mind) in "Oh Heavenly Dog!" with Chevy Chase and Jane Seymour. He was a bad guy in that one, too, and I often think of the two movies with a similar nostalgia. This was certainly my first exposure to the beautiful Anne Archer and the underrated Ryan O'Neal. "Green Ice" also gave us a glimpse of John Larroquette before his face and name became widely known.

This is truly a movie which does not deserve to be forgotten. The music is memorably flaky, but not any cheesier than the "Tootsie" soundtrack or any others from that era. A precursor to "Romancing the Stone", "Green Ice" shows off lots of gems, has lots of suspense and thrills, and a truly despicable, yet dimensional villain. And then there's the action. It is not easy to land a hot air balloon on a high rise, let alone break into said high rise without setting off all kinds of alarms. Using a holographic imager to crack the vault was just the coolest of all techno-geek ideas.

To conclude, I have never seen any film made before or after this one (although "Rough Cut" was close) that brings the romance, action, tension, and characters to the audience like "Green Ice" did.

I remember seeing this on HBO and just watching in awe of how well crafted films can be. This film isn't high art in the traditional sense. It came out during the transitional 1970s to 1980s era of one society wanting to be high tech, and another entering the computer age perhaps against its will and without consent. That's important because there's a kind of technological angle that this film uses to further the plot, which was a foretelling of things to come in terms of tech portrayed in films.

But the larger film is a bit long and can be a slog at times, but it's actually quite interesting as the film shows us glimpses of another world. A world where international intrigue shows its seamier side in terms of criminality on both sides of the law; law breakers and those who are supposed to enforce the law.

The film also shows us some of the issues plaguing nations like Columbia, and shows us the extent to which dissident groups will go in order to enable their change for social order. The film shows the truth of such efforts, and the ultimate victors and losers.

I know all of what I wrote sounds kind of high minded, but films in the 70s and 80s were a lot more sophisticated than today's offerings, and more tasteful too. Green Ice has all kinds of tawdry and violent elements that aren't pornographic like a lot of today's media which seem to need to show us, the audience, every sexual act and every bullet striking every body part with every blood splatter.

Green Ice also doesn't rely on a lot of over the top action nor a lot of machine-gun editing nor shaky cam that plagues so much of today's media.

See it once and see what you think.