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Ethan Hawke, Vincent Spano, Josh Hamilton, Bruce Ramsay, John Haymes Newton ... see more see more... , David Kriegel , Kevin Breznahan , Sam Behrens , Illeana Douglas , Jack Noseworthy , Christian J. Meoli , Diana Barrington , David Cubitt , Gordon Currie , Michael De Lorenzo , Ele Keats , John Malkovich , Danny Nucci , Frank Pellegrino , Jerry Wasserman , Tony Morelli , Aurelio di Nunzio , Fiona Roeske , Valorie Massalas , Mike Fenton , John Cassini , Josh Lucas , Jose Zuniga , Jake Carpenter , Jan D'Arcy

This is the first mainstream film to deal with the harrowing true story of a Uruguayan rugby team whose plane crashed in the Andes mountains in October of 1972 and who were forced to resort to canniba... read more read more...lism to survive more than two months of isolation. (The only other film to tackle the subject, Rene Cardona's Survive! was a seedy little mess that delighted in exploiting the cannibalism aspect.) The events depicted are primarily based on the novel of the same name by Piers Paul Read. The interview-style prologue features an uncredited John Malkovich as one of the survivors, whose spiritual ruminations on the disaster kick off the film's main action. We are briefly introduced to the characters before disaster strikes, in the film's most horrifying set-piece -- the depiction of the crash in grueling detail. The handful of survivors who manage to extricate themselves from the twisted wreckage seem incapable of working through their panic as they hope against all odds that a rescue party will locate them. One of the survivors, Nando (Ethan Hawke), awakens from a coma and makes a remarkable recovery -- enough to demonstrate level-headed leadership after team captain Antonio (Vincent Spano) begins to lose his nerve. As the weeks wear on and rations are depleted, the survivors are forced into a moral dilemma: the only remaining source of food seems to be the bodies of the dead. Those who choose for religious reasons not to consume their former companions must face the realization that they will soon starve or freeze to death. In the end, three men who choose survival above all else find the strength to set out on a treacherous mission to a ridge, where hopefully one of them will make it to civilization. Director Frank Marshall infuses the proceedings with sufficient intensity to keep the story moving, but the film fails to fully explore the often-recounted spiritual aspects of the ordeal as established in the opening monologue. Ironically, the writers' apparent attempts to remain true to Read's account of events -- resulting in some rather odd stretches of dialogue -- impede the drama even more than the Hollywood glamorization of the story's nominal "heroes," who remain rugged and handsome despite months of malnutrition and severe frostbite. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi

Flixster Users

66% liked it

44,817 ratings

Critics

68% liked it

22 critics

R, 2 hr. 5 min.

Directed by: Frank Marshall

Release Date: January 15, 1993

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DVD Release Date: October 8, 2002

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Stats: 1,482 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (1,482)

  • LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    March 24, 2011
    LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    "I'm proud to be a man on a day like this."

    Uruguayan rugby team stranded in the snow swept Andes are forced to use desperate measures to survive after a plane crash.

    REVIEW

    Frank Marshall's fi... read morelm adaptation of the book recounting the 1972 plane crash in the Andes of a Uruguayan soccer team is a long (try about 2 and 3/4 hours) film that spares little in the grueling endurance test that the surviving members of the crash face. It was (in 1993) populated by a mostly nameless cast in a deft move by producers to keep the characters involved central to the story. Ethan Hawke is about the biggest name in this film,and even though his character carries much of the weight of the movie's storyline, the group effort to endure and ultimately survive this trial is still the true focus here.

    To me, this film was very difficult to watch, and the cannibalism storyline (which is dealt with very tastefully and soberly) is not my primary reason for that. As mentioned before, it is a long and detailed recount, where you the audience feel the shock, pain, expectations, dashed hopes, fears, tragedies, soul-searching, grief and (finally) joy of everyone involved. It is a gut-wrenching experience all around and I dare anyone who sees this film and pays any attention to it to say otherwise.
  • FiLmCrAzY
    April 16, 2010
    FiLmCrAzY
    Ok its sad what happened to those that this actually happened to , but the movie is just so boring!!i don think it fully capture what those people actuallly had to o hrough and how they must of felt !!
    Some of te characters actuallly annoy me and i wouldnt have been able to put... read more up with them
  • FilmFanatik
    December 21, 2009
    FilmFanatik
    I kinda dug this one.
  • stormyweather980
    August 15, 2009
    stormyweather980
    "Alive" is the compelling true story of a Uruguayan rugby team who's plane crashes, stranding them in the Andes Mountains. They have to find a way to survive the chilling cold weather until they find a way to get back home.
    "Alive" has many dramatic sequences such as when the pe... read moreople who are still alive have to eat parts of the dead people in order not to starve. There are also many turning points such as the survivors finding out that the search has been called off.

    I recommend "Alive" to anybody that likes captivating true stories about survival. NOTE: That was my Amazon review from the year 2000. One of the best true stories of all time.
  • RCCLBC
    July 23, 2009
    RCCLBC
    A surprisingly gripping recount of the mind-boggling ordeal faced by the survivors of a plane crash, deep in the heart of the Andes mountains.

    The liberties that appear to have been taken (for the sake of a more viewer friendly / homogonized story) are easy to overlook knowing... read more that the core of the film is based on facts which the average person could never truly fathom.

    While some of the acting and dialog is rather weak...it is still a riveting look at an event that is hard to imagine, much less believe.
  • bhobbs1985
    June 26, 2009
    bhobbs1985
    The true story about a Uruguayan rugby team that goes down in the Andes in a plane crash.
    45-people try to bare the cold, possible starvation, injuries, and the emotional and mental struggles that they find themselves in as they fight for there lives for nearly 2-months.
    When ... read morethe rest of the world has gave up looking for them; there hope and will to survive rages on. This is a true movie about survival , about the human will to live, and about life and death.
    It's one of the greatest movies I have seen and I think a must see for anyone who cherishes there lives and is simply proud to be "Alive"
  • thmtsang
    July 15, 2007
    thmtsang
    Excellent movie about survival.
  • YosemiteSamFan
    July 14, 2007
    YosemiteSamFan
    Spectacularly scary plane crash scene. The survivors are trapped on a snowy mountain peak with the wreck, and they have to eat what's available. They handled this subject delicately. I don't really care much for dramas or serious flesh-eating.
  • 76Majikat
    March 1, 2007
    76Majikat
    This film was enough to put me off eating meat for a while! Worth a watch, but don't want to watch it again
  • RossCollinsUK
    January 14, 2007
    RossCollinsUK
    Classic tale of a rugby team forced to canibalism after a plane crash in the snowy Andes.

View All Alive Reviews

Critic Reviews

Felix Vasquez Jr.
February 15, 2010
Felix Vasquez Jr., Cinema Crazed

A pretty harrowing and rather disturbing look at the struggles of survival in the face of certain death... Full Review

Rob Gonsalves
July 23, 2007
Rob Gonsalves, eFilmCritic.com

Marshall and Shanley dance around their story's unpleasant center. Full Review

Sarah Chauncey
June 4, 2004
Sarah Chauncey, Reel.com

There are better real-life disaster flicks out there... and the flesh looks remarkably like chicken.

Bob Bloom
February 15, 2004
Bob Bloom, Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)

An overlooked gem, made even more powerful by the fact that it is based on a factual incident.

Jon Niccum
January 23, 2004
Jon Niccum, Lawrence Journal-World

Sturdy adaptation of the unforgettable novel

Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
July 12, 2003
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice

An intense and gripping story of survival and heroism. Full Review

Pablo Villaca
June 8, 2003
Pablo Villaca, Cinema em Cena

Recriação fiel do trágico acidente ocorrido em 72, o filme explora interessantes questões morais e é eficaz ao dramatizar a luta daquele pequeno grupo por sua sobrevivência.

Scott Weinberg
April 27, 2003
Scott Weinberg, eFilmCritic.com

Although written in a fairly pedestrain fashion, the movie does a good job of raising the "What would you do?" issues. Me, I'd be chomping blindly, hoping to ingest the dead first. Full Review

Marty Mapes
January 3, 2003
Marty Mapes, Movie Habit

The picture, the sound, and above all, the outstanding true story, make Alive a must-see Full Review

Owen Gleiberman
September 7, 2011
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly

Click to read the article Full Review

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