Roar
- 1981
- Tous publics
- 1h 35m
A naturalist living with big cats in East Africa expects a visit by his family of four from Chicago. A mix-up leaves him searching for his family, who have been left in the clutches of wild ... Read allA naturalist living with big cats in East Africa expects a visit by his family of four from Chicago. A mix-up leaves him searching for his family, who have been left in the clutches of wild lions.A naturalist living with big cats in East Africa expects a visit by his family of four from Chicago. A mix-up leaves him searching for his family, who have been left in the clutches of wild lions.
Zakes Mokae
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- (as Zakes Moakae)
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Featured reviews
Jesus Christ! I've read a lot about this since it was resurrected a while back, but nothing quite prepares you for just how insane it is. It is as if Timothy Treadwell had decided to make a sitcom starring his beloved grizzly bears. The Treadwell here is Noel Marshall, Hollywood producer and husband of Tippi Hedron. The two were obsessed with lions, so they wrote this picture, where a family lives with like 50 different big cats, mostly lions but also several tigers, cheetahs, leopards, etc. There are also some elephants. The script is nearly nonexistent - I mean, how exactly are you going to get 50 giant cats to do what you want? So the idea is just to write a bare sketch of a plot and then throw your cast (which mostly consists of Marshall, Hedron and their children) to the lions like it's ancient Rome or something. Besides Noel Marshall, who probably should have been in a mental institution, the rest of the family members and other cast look terrified much of the time. At one point, one of the Marshall sons has to speak the line "I don't have to be in Chicago until next week!" A lion jumps up on him halfway through the line and you can hear his voice quiver. Of course, Melanie Griffith is one of the kids. Amazingly, no human died during the many years of production (some lions did, though, when the ranch was flooded). The film itself is far from great, but it's a must-see.
I first saw this movie as a child and it has always stayed in my memory as an enjoyable experience. I just watched it recently as an adult and found it every bit as enjoyable as before. It's directed by Noel Marshall who spent a decade making this film. What really works the best is the fantastic music score. Unlike some films today, "Roar" doesn't drag on for hours and has no shallow character's or bad CGI. This is the way films should be made. Real lions and tigers involved in this amusing story of a family arriving at the wrong time to be greeted by the local wildlife. I don't understand the other reviewer and their negative comments. Watch this for yourself. It's not spineless garbage but a passionate and thoughtful film. Thank you for reading.
ROAR is one of those rare films where the behind-the-scenes story is more interesting than the one up on screen. It's a would-be animal movie along the lines of BORN FREE about a normal American family coping with a house full of big cats, but the whole thing is so ridiculous in both execution and planning that it's a film which has gained infamy as one of the most dangerous in history.
The problem lies with writer/director/star Noel Marshall, he of the wild hair and dubious acting talents. Marshall thought it would be a good idea to mix together a ton of different big cats, including a number of male lions, and throw them in with unprepared actors, including his wife Tippi Hedren and stepdaughter Melanie Griffiths. The resulting shooting schedule saw over 70 injuries to cast and crew, the most infamous of which was the director of photography, Jan De Bont, getting scalped.
The enjoyment factor of this one is of the 'car crash' variety. Marshall is obviously a zealot who acts and sounds a lot like Timothy Treadwell, the doomed star of the Herzog documentary GRIZZLY MAN, who got a bit too close to the grizzly bears he was obsessed with and paid with his life. Nobody died during ROAR, but they came close. There isn't really a script here, just characters reacting to the big cats, and the only decent bit is the tense mid-section in which Hedren and her screen children attempt to evade the cats which are chasing them around the house (which is far better than the whole of the tiger-in-the-house thriller BURNING BRIGHT). Otherwise, it's just a case of watch and endure it.
The problem lies with writer/director/star Noel Marshall, he of the wild hair and dubious acting talents. Marshall thought it would be a good idea to mix together a ton of different big cats, including a number of male lions, and throw them in with unprepared actors, including his wife Tippi Hedren and stepdaughter Melanie Griffiths. The resulting shooting schedule saw over 70 injuries to cast and crew, the most infamous of which was the director of photography, Jan De Bont, getting scalped.
The enjoyment factor of this one is of the 'car crash' variety. Marshall is obviously a zealot who acts and sounds a lot like Timothy Treadwell, the doomed star of the Herzog documentary GRIZZLY MAN, who got a bit too close to the grizzly bears he was obsessed with and paid with his life. Nobody died during ROAR, but they came close. There isn't really a script here, just characters reacting to the big cats, and the only decent bit is the tense mid-section in which Hedren and her screen children attempt to evade the cats which are chasing them around the house (which is far better than the whole of the tiger-in-the-house thriller BURNING BRIGHT). Otherwise, it's just a case of watch and endure it.
I first saw this in the early 90s on a vhs. Revisited it recently with my 7 year old nephew.
While i found it a bit tedious now, my nephew enjoyed it.
The film doesn't have any plot n it has lots of hide n seek kinda moments. It is funny at times, the scene where the lioness try the skateboard, the facial expression of the big cat when a leopard grabs away the meal, the cat pushing the female in the water, etc.
The film is very picturesque.
I found Tippi Hedren at 51 in this film very attractive n in good shape.
I recently watched ROAR for the first time. Boy oh boy this film got to me!!! Not because of the story (it's got none beyond a near nonsensical plot), but you instantly realize what you see is real, and all the "actors" (though only Tippi Hedren and Kyalo Mativo qualify as such) are in danger of being eviscerated alive by giant and not exactly predictable cats in every scene.
This film may try to tell your head it's a comedy, but it won't fool your natural instincts: I was breaking out in cold sweats after a mere ten minutes. Thankfully, nobody died during the making of the film (at least that we know of, since no remains of actors or stuntmen were found and none were reported missing) but after watching it I still felt as if I had accidentally watched some weird sort of snuff movie.
In the long and varied history of irresponsible filmmaking and dangerous vanity projects, this has to count near the top. It's some crazy shîte lemme tell you! But once you get over the fact that everyone you see is in constant mortal danger, it's also a ton of twisted fun. Truly a one of a kind movie. I highly recommend it (just don't forget to pick up your jaw from the floor afterwards ;-)
This film may try to tell your head it's a comedy, but it won't fool your natural instincts: I was breaking out in cold sweats after a mere ten minutes. Thankfully, nobody died during the making of the film (at least that we know of, since no remains of actors or stuntmen were found and none were reported missing) but after watching it I still felt as if I had accidentally watched some weird sort of snuff movie.
In the long and varied history of irresponsible filmmaking and dangerous vanity projects, this has to count near the top. It's some crazy shîte lemme tell you! But once you get over the fact that everyone you see is in constant mortal danger, it's also a ton of twisted fun. Truly a one of a kind movie. I highly recommend it (just don't forget to pick up your jaw from the floor afterwards ;-)
Did you know
- TriviaMost of the lion attacks were real, and usually resulted in actual injury to the cast and crew.
- GoofsAfter Hank goes to the airport to get his family, on his return trip, he picks up Mativo and the tigers. Mativo's bike is placed in the trunk with the front wheel hanging out. Further down the road, the trunk is closed with no bike hanging out. Still further, the bike is again hanging out.
- Crazy creditsOpening credits features this text: "Since the choice was made to use untrained animals and since for the most part they chose to do as they wished, it's only fair they share the writing and directing credits."
- Alternate versionsIn Australia, two versions of the film were shown theatrically. In 1982, a year after the original film received an NRC (PG equivalent) rating, the film was re-released in an edited G-rated version advertised as being "for the whole family".
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Making of Roar (2004)
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- El gran rugido
- Filming locations
- Shambala Preserve, 6867 Soledad Canyon, Acton, California, USA(Chief location)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $17,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $110,048
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $15,064
- Apr 19, 2015
- Gross worldwide
- $110,449
- Runtime
- 1h 35m(95 min)
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1
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