Challenge to Survive

The Shat has a small role not worth anything, strange to see Romulus the wolf have only a cameo. Mel Torme ( is this the singer guy ? ) and an eagle ( Caesar ) are the leads in a modest story of a small plane crash in thee snowy wilds.

Romulus gives truth to the idea that it's best to stay close to your mode of transportation when lost.

Film's one clever idea which leads to the finale is its high point. The real deaths of a pigeon and rabbit is unforgiveable. Human is OK only because of his concern for some animals.

My review was written in March 1981 after a screening near TImes Square: "The Land of No Return" is a pleasant though uneventful wilderness adventure shot several years ago and featuring singer Mel Torme in almost a one-man survival show. Pretty snow country scenery and an upbeat message offer mild diversion here for family audiences.

Set in Utah, pic concerns the plight of a TV animal trainer (Torme) whose private plane crashes in the mountains. Accompanying Torme on his long and weary trek is his trained eagle named Caesar, a handy pet who hunts for food to sustain the duo. A trained wolf, Romulus, also escapes the crash and has adventures on his own.

Torme's TV production partner, portrayed by guest star William Shatner, handles the worrying chore back home. Nearly all the footage, however, is of rugged Torme (looking quite different with moustache and beard) struggling to stay alive and sporting an outlandish array of golf sweaters and loud sports jackets (which he is taking to Shatner) to try and keep warm on this unscheduled hike.

An extremely slow pace and lack of exciting incidents mar this low-budget pic. Among tech credits, Ralph Geddes' musical score, emphasizing organ and other keyboards is an effective mood-setter.

Though you have Caesar listed as a chimpanzee, he was in fact a Golden Eagle. He hunted to provide food for his trainer and the falconry sequences were very well done. It was Caesar who drew attention to his trainer's plight- Helicopter pilots spotted the eagle soaring and noticed his trailing jesses.

Romulus the wolf was only a presence, as can be said for the human actors.

This film is sort of tepid when it gets down to the basis of the story. An individual stranded in the elements of winter doing the best to survive. He has some help from a trained Golden Eagle and a Wolf. A suitcase full of sweaters and jackets didn't hurt either. The late Mel Torme doesn't do all that bad a job acting in this film. William Shatner was not given much of a part and comes off as somewhat excess baggage. I was never a Mel Torme fan as far as his singing went but for some reason seem to remember him best from this essentially forgotten movie. Although entertaining it's not worth going out of your way to view. If the opportunity does come up watch it.

Called Survival Element in the UK.

Not bad for a 70s TV movie. One thing that it has going for it is the level of realism. Most survival movies make things far too easy for the hero, or add an action subplot to increase the tension. If anything, the story is a tad mundane, with a middle aged man reduced to the barest of survival levels.

I agree with the other posters that Shatner's part was extraneous. In fact, the film would have done better with less flipping back and forth, but I suppose that they had to maintain the screen time of the other lead actor. That and the occasional overly cute moments, drags the film down to a 4. Like most TV movies it was probably marred by an attempt to appeal to the widest possible demographic.

Might be worth a go for the dedicated survival film enthusiast if found cheap.