Les aventuriers

Another Edna Ferber saga about the largest state of the union ; she did the same for Texas .Two giants. But whereas "giant" sprawled over three hours , "ice palace " moves at the speed of sound and gives the filling of watching a digest,sometimes even an interminable trailer ; one moves from generation to generation in a jet plane;time moves so fast that the plot suffers accordingly.

Burton is the equivalent of Dean ,a self-made man (though he's helped by his father-in-law ) who becomes a tycoon via overfishing and unfair competition ; like Jett ,he's a hateful racist who does not like the half-breed (remember the scene of the Mexican wife in the beauty parlor ).

Robert Ryan portrays the liberal hero ,but your belief has to be suspended if you are to believe in his political career :from humble trapper to the White House, in such a small time, ( the facile trick of the newspapers headlines ) ; And pregnant Shirley Knight crossing the icy territories on a sleigh when she's expecting her baby any day now is beyond belief !

But there's a compensation :you don't have time to get bored ,and if you like melodramatic family saga ,you"ll get something out of it. What about a miniseries(and not a remake) which would do Ferber more justice?

This is one of those grandiose movies in which everyone is destined to be a governor or some such character. So, this isn't a movie that you take too seriously. It is a movie which depends on characters to keep you interested. Two friends, played by screen legends Richard Burton and Robert Ryan, go through ups and downs, and a big feud that culminates through the generations. The story itself isn't too bad. It gets a bit too grandiose for some people, and possibly not enough for others. At the time, Burton was considered the great actor, and Ryan was considered a Western actor. But now both are regarded as superstars. And this is a pretty star studded cast. And it isn't a boring story. There are assets to this film.

I like this movie due to the fact it celebrates the statehood of Alaska and it features Richard Burton pre Cleopatra when he was a solid journeyman Actor before all the hype of the Taylor/Burton affair. Vincent Sherman who made many fine films at Warner Bros. directs this film and it is a very easy going picture with great photography. Sherman did fine work at WB (and is noted for his relationships -at different times with feuding divas Joan Crawford and the Queen of the Lot Bette Davis)

Am also a fan of the Warner Bros stock company of the 1960's and several players of that group are cast here including the fine actor Ray Danton, and the lovely Diane McBain. Both Danton and McBain were groomed for stardom and Warners kept both busy in both movies and TV. Luscious Diane McBain was so beautiful but got lost at WB standing behind glamour girls Natalie Wood, and Connie Stevens. Warners would shunt their stock players between various TV shows and movies filming on the lot. There is a great picture which I wish someone would find that showed J L Warner with the dozens of players under contract at the time shot on the back lot: Troy Donahue, Connie Stevens, Edd Byrnes, Roger Smith, Peter Brown, Chad Everett, Dorothy Provine, Tony Eisley, Gary Vinson, Diane McBain, Ty Hardin et al, names that conjure up wonderful memories of a bygone era)

Is "Ice Palace" a great movie? no! Is it enjoyable to watch? Yes!

I'd never heard of this Edna Ferber saga, but it was very interesting to watch. In the rare setting of Alaska, this movie features glaciers, eskimos, fishing canneries, and beautiful fur coats. It also tackles impending statehood, since it's a period piece. But more importantly, it has every element of a great soapy drama: jealousy, friendship, love triangles, family feuds, scandal, star-crossed lovers, betrayal, and tragedy.

The two leads of the film are Robert Ryan and Richard Burton, and they meet in an unlikely situation. One falls out of a fishing boat and the other saves his life. That very important act binds them together for the next few decades. What a great part for Robert Ryan! He made a career out of playing mean villains, even more so than Richard Widmark, but in Ice Palace, he's not the bad guy. Richard Burton is the bad guy, and he's so mean! He's so despicable, unless you really love him, it'll be hard to forgive him in later movies.

The age makeup in this saga is quite impressive. In addition to gray hair, Carolyn Jones is given a matronly body suit and crinkly wrinkles around her eyes. Richard Burton has pale makeup on his face to make him look wrinkled and worn, as well as a stooped posture. Robert Ryan, the oldest in real life of the three, looks fantastic in his gray wig; age becomes him! If you want to see two good-looking guys, great performances, and a heart-tugging story, all draped in majestic white snow, check out Ice Palace.

The growing tension between Richard Burton and Robert Ryan is amazing. Both actors were as serious, driven, righteous (in their own minds), and caring as the other. All performances were believable and interesting. The change from generations to generation was seamless. And character change melded nicely with Ryan and Burton. Carolyn Jones however did not impress me as much as she did in the beginning. She somehow lost her luster as the film seemed to continue without her. Strangely this also was her role through the duration of the film. And I felt she seemed to be going through the motions towards the end. Just my opinion. I also found the characters of Christopher and Grace charming at first and utterly brainless towards the end. You have to see it and the circumstances to believe it. The innocent bliss that leads them throughout the film culminates. To mention Jim Buckus, his performance was quite an agitation to most every event in the film due to his characters business interests. Believable even if you still see him as Mr Howell! LOL! Four years later, character development, who can say, Recommended if you looking for a (mini) epic that might just keep your interest.

I'm keeping my copy!

Otherwise outstanding performances