Une race à part

After declaring myself not a Philippe Mora fan, mostly based on "According to Occams Razor", which is a mockery of a movie, and 'Pterodactyl Woman From Beverly Hills", which is just pathetic, I was totally surprised as to how much I enjoyed "A Breed Apart" . The North Carolina location photography is very good, and the acting by Rutger Hauer is especially intriguing. He is a mystery man, protecting the animals on his Blue Ridge Mountain island. His hermit like tranquility is threatened by poacher Brion James, and another intruder, Powers Boothe, helps Hauer run off Brion and his gang. Kathleen Turner being romantically rejected by Hauer, decides to play the jealousy card, with decidedly mixed results. Meanwhile Boothe is using both Turner and Hauer to try and complete his mission of stealing two Bald Eagle eggs for $250,000 promised by egg collector, Donald Pleasance. Well worth a look. - MERK

Why would I watch the movie now that the person who so carefully crafted the storyline on this page has just as carefully given away every single aspect of the movie?

If you are going to write a synopsis, then don't give away all the major plot points. Hint, give clues, talk generalities, but don't spoil THE WHOLE DAMN THING!

What is wrong with you people?

Although the film lacks a strong story line, the actors do well in their roles. Most of the reading of the story comes from "between the lines" and the actors abilities to present the story to us. I think the editor did a good job of putting together a reasonable film even though he was missing a reel that got lost in transit. Admittedly if he had had all four reels, the final cut would have been improved. Still I enjoyed watching this film even though I had to fill in some blank spots with my own thoughts as to how some things tied together. A little popcorn, some spare time, and lets watch 'A Breed Apart'. The scenery is fine.

Jim Malden (Rutger Hauer) is a reclusive woodsman who obsessively protects the animals on his land. Single mom Stella Clayton (Kathleen Turner) owns the local store and has a crush on him. Mike Walker (Powers Boothe) needs $150k to fund a mountain climb in China. Rich egg collector J. P. Whittier (Donald Pleasence) is willing to pay, but needs Mike to steal the eggs of a new breed of bald eagle. In fact, he wants all the eggs to drive the new species into extinction.

These are big time actors from this era and I am surprised to have never heard of this movie. After doing some reading, I can see why. Aside from any difficulties, the story is rather wonky. The premise of the new eagle species is also a bit wonky. On top of that, it's hard to outright root for any of the characters. In the end, I love these actors and that helps a lot.

Rutger Hauer does a typically fine job as Jim Malden, a nature-loving recluse who lives on a privately owned island. Taking care of the animals there is everything to him. A local store keeper, Stella Clayton (a radiant Kathleen Turner), is obviously sweet on him, but he has a knack for pushing people away. (He's one of those movie characters who has turned his back on society after tragedy in his past.) Into their lives comes Mike (Powers Boothe), an expert mountain climber. Mike needs a lot of money for his latest ambitious venture, and hooks up with a creepy collector (Donald Pleasence), who's offered him six figures to steal some bald eagle eggs; these eggs belong to a new (fictional) subspecies that are bigger than ordinary bald eagles.

Directed by cult favourite Philippe Mora ("Mad Dog Morgan", "The Beast Within", "Howling" II and III), "A Breed Apart" is the kind of film more noteworthy for its good intentions than for whatever it actually accomplishes. However, while the script seems to be full of unresolved subplots, this is supposedly because one full reel disappeared while en route from North Carolina to California. The human stories have some appeal, but are trite compared to some of the films' bigger messages and majestic outdoors scenery. One cliched plot point has a pair of braindead, yahoo hunters played by Brion James and John Dennis Johnston seeking revenge against Malden. This leads to predictable developments.

The biggest question that Paul Wheelers' script poses is whether or not Mike will exit the somewhat grey moral area that he currently occupies. The man is something of an enigma, and delights in wasting the time of a sexy reporter (Jayne Bentzen) looking for her big breakthrough story.

The actors are entertaining to watch. Hauer is playing a cliched character (a "noble savage" as Mike calls him), and the charismatic Boothe and the lovely Turner have more interesting roles to play. Pleasence is effective in his select few scenes; James and Johnston are standard-issue but amusing redneck antagonists. (The latter is a semi-regular in the films of Mora.)

Notable for an atmospheric electronic score composed by Maurice Gibb of the Bee-Gees, and its exquisite photography by Geoffrey Stephenson.

In real life, the bald eagle WAS at risk of becoming extinct in 1984, but fortunately its numbers subsequently improved.

Seven out of 10.