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Breakheart Pass (film)

January 07, 2023

Breakheart Pass is a 1975 American Western film that stars Charles Bronson, Ben Johnson, Richard Crenna, and Jill Ireland. Based on the 1974 novel of the same title by Scottish author Alistair MacLean (1922–1987),[4] it was filmed in north central Idaho.[5][6][7][8][9]

Breakheart Pass
Theatrical release poster by Mort Künstler
Directed byTom Gries
Written byAlistair MacLean
Based onBreakheart Pass
by Alistair MacLean
Produced byJerry Gershwin
Elliott Kastner
StarringCharles Bronson
Ben Johnson
Richard Crenna
Jill Ireland
Charles Durning
Ed Lauter
David Huddleston
CinematographyLucien Ballard
Edited byByron Brandt
Music byJerry Goldsmith
Production
company
Gershwin-Kastner Productions
Distributed byUnited Artists
Release date
  • December 25, 1975 (1975-12-25) (Finland)[1]
Running time
95 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$6 million[2]
Box office$2,130,000[3]

Plot

In the 1870s, residents of the garrison at the Fort Humboldt frontier outpost of the United States Army are reported to be suffering from a diphtheria epidemic. A special express train is heading up into the remote mountain ranges towards the fort filled with reinforcements and medical supplies. There are also civilian passengers on the train in the rear luxurious private car – Nevada Governor Fairchild (Richard Crenna) and his fiancée Marica (Jill Ireland), the daughter of the fort's commander.

The train stops briefly in the small whistle stop settlement of Myrtle, where it takes on board local lawman United States Marshal Pearce (Ben Johnson) and his prisoner, John Deakin (Charles Bronson), a supposedly notorious outlaw who was identified via a picture in a newspaper advertisement offering a $2,000 (approximately $49,000 today) reward. But as the journey goes on through the beautiful snowy mountain scenery, several train passengers, including most of the train's soldier escort, are mysteriously killed or go missing. Deakin, who is actually an undercover U.S. Secret Service agent, uncovers en route that the "epidemic" at the outpost is actually a conspiracy between a group of killers led by the notorious outlaw Levi Calhoun (Robert Tessier), and a tribe of Indians under Chief White Hand (Eddie Little Sky). Instead of medical supplies, the train's boxcars are transporting a large secret shipment of weapons, rifles, ammunition and dynamite stolen from U.S. arms manufacturers for sale to the Indians, in return for allowing Calhoun and his men to mine and smuggle gold from their lands. Most of the people on the train, including Governor Fairchild and Marshal Pearce, are Calhoun's partners in crime, and those innocents who discover the evidence for his sinister plot are eliminated. Eventually, Deakin narrows his list of possible uninvolved allies down to Marica and Army Major Claremont (Ed Lauter), who agrees to assist the agent in his efforts to prevent the arms delivery.

At snow-covered Breakheart Pass, all hell breaks loose as Indians attack the train to take the weapons they were promised, and Calhoun and his men ride out to the train in order to find out what is going on. Deakin and Major Claremont use dynamite to blow up and break the track rails, grounding the train before it reaches the fort; and while Deakin runs interference, Claremont rushes ahead to Fort Humboldt to free the soldiers imprisoned by Calhoun's gang. A gunfight breaks out when the freed soldiers clash with the Indians and bandits at the train; Calhoun is killed by Gov. Fairchild when he threatens Marica, but the governor is then in turn cut down by Major Claremont. At the end of the battle, Deakin intercepts Marshal Pearce and shoots him when the corrupt lawman decides to go down fighting.

Cast

Production

Writing

Producers Elliott Kastner and Jerry Gershwin had filmed a number of Alistair MacLean novels previously, including Where Eagles Dare and When Eight Bells Toll.[citation needed]

Casting

Charles Bronson was paid $1 million plus 10% of the gross for his role.[10]

Lewiston realtor Irv Falling, a retired U.S. Army colonel, played a cameo role as the father of Marica, Gov. Fairchild's fiancée (Jill Ireland) in the final snowy scene, as frontier army colonel and commander at Fort Humboldt reunites with his daughter. He had helped the Bronsons find a home to rent.[5][7] Bronson and Ireland arrived in Lewiston for filming in early March 1975 and stayed at 322 Stewart Avenue.[11]

Filming

Some exteriors were filmed in Pierce and Reubens in north central Idaho.[7][12] The Native American extras were Nez Perce, mostly from Lapwai.[11]

Railroad scenes were filmed on the Camas Prairie Railroad (based in Lewiston).[7][9][13] The hire of the train (Great Western Railway steam locomotive #75)[14] carriages and track cost $500,000 (approximately $2,518,000 today).[10] Opening scenes in the Myrtle settlement / "whistle stop" were shot at a specially built set (to look like an old abandoned Gold Rush town) just outside Arrow Junction about fifteen miles (25 km) east of Lewiston.[15] It was the final film role participation for longtime veteran stuntman Yakima Canutt, who was aged 79 at the time.[5] He was in charge of the second unit direction;[16] his son, Joe, was one of the stuntmen.[17] Canutt oversaw the scene where the caboose and troop carriages crashed off the rail line into a ravine.[15][18] Six cameras filmed the cars falling 200 feet (60 m) into the canyon, however, the dummies (representing the soldiers) failed to fall out during the crash. The crash was filmed at Halfmoon Trestle (46°19′30″N 116°34′27″W / 46.325°N 116.5743°W / 46.325; -116.5743 (Location of Halfmoon Trestle)), east of U.S. Route 95 in Lapwai Canyon.[15][16]

Alternating shots of clear and overcast skies are present in the final climactic scenes.

Bronson later said that in the original story it was not revealed until the very end that his character was a detective. When he read an early script, the reveal was made much earlier. Bronson demanded it be changed to the way it was in the original story and this was done. During filming, Bronson discovered the script had been changed again to reveal his character was a detective early. Bronson was unhappy with this but went along with it as by then filming was underway and he felt he could not leave the production.[19]

Music

A limited edition (3,000 run) CD soundtrack of Breakheart Pass, highlighting the original music of Jerry Goldsmith, was released by La-La Land Records. It is out of print.[20]

Release

Home media

DVD

  • Release date: December 19, 2000
  • Full Screen & Widescreen Anamorphic
  • Region: 1
  • Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 & 16:9
  • Audio tracks: English, French
  • Subtitles: English, Spanish
  • Running time: 95 minutes

Kino Video released "Breakheart Pass" for the first time on Blu-ray on August 12, 2014.

Reception

Box office

The film was a box office disappointment in the United States.[21]

Critical response

The Los Angeles Times called it "a fun if familiar picture but is played so broadly on such an elementary level that it can hope to satisfy only the most undemanding of viewer."[22]

See also

References

  1. ^ Breakheart Pass premieres
  2. ^ Champlin, Charles. (February 27, 1975). "CRITIC AT LARGE: The Scot's Got Lots of Plots". Los Angeles Times. p. f1.
  3. ^ SECOND ANNUAL GROSSES GLOSS Byron, Stuart. Film Comment; New York Vol. 13, Iss. 2, (Mar/Apr 1977): 35–37,64.
  4. ^ Vorpahl, Beverly (February 7, 1976). ""Who-Done-It" filmed in area". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. p. 20.
  5. ^ a b c Dullenty, Jim (April 1, 1975). "Interview roles reversed". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. p. 1.
  6. ^ "'Breakheart Pass' ready for all the world to see". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. photos. February 7, 1976. p. 3.
  7. ^ a b c d Campbell, Thomas W. (February 13, 1976). "'Breakheart' – bullets fly, men die". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. p. 14A.
  8. ^ Bunning, Paul (February 16, 1976). "Idaho scenery steals show". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. p. 5.
  9. ^ a b Blumenthal (July 10, 1975). "Motion picture production creates an anti-recession boom for Idaho city". The Ledger. Lakeland, Florida. (New York Times). p. 4C.
  10. ^ a b Blumenthal, Ralph. (April 20, 1975). "Roll 'em! Film enriches Idaho". Chicago Tribune. p. 8.
  11. ^ a b O'Connell, Mary J. (March 3, 1975). "Bronson, Ireland arrive for 'Breakheart' filming". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. p. 12A.
  12. ^ Idaho film archive May 12, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  13. ^ "It's not for real". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. (photo). April 14, 1975. p. 6.
  14. ^ Railroad Movies on DVD (RailServe.com)
  15. ^ a b c "A taste of Tinsel Town: In 1975, the film 'Breakheart Pass' was filmed against the backdrop of north central Idaho; a look back as the film returns to Lewiston". www.inland360.com. July 12, 2012. Retrieved March 20, 2017.
  16. ^ a b "Helluva way to run a railroad". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). April 13, 1975. p. 14A.
  17. ^ Pitts, Michael (1999). Charles Bronson: The 95 films and the 156 Television Appearances. McFarland & Company. p. 32. ISBN 0786417021.
  18. ^ Kough, Barry (April 13, 1975). "The frontier train of "Breakheart Pass" crashed..." Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). (photo). p. 1A.
  19. ^ Siskel, Gene. (September 7, 1980). "Movies: Bronson: After 62 films, still the reliable pro". Chicago Tribune. p. d3.
  20. ^ Breakheart Pass soundtrack July 26, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  21. ^ Siskel, Gene (February 20, 1977). "Movies: Yesterday's heroism—Could it cure today's ailing western?". Chicago Tribune. p. e2.
  22. ^ Thomas, Kevin (March 10, 1976). "MOVIE REVIEW: Bronson Stars in 'Breakheart Pass'". Los Angeles Times. p. f9.

External links

January 07, 2023
breakheart, pass, film, breakheart, pass, 1975, american, western, film, that, stars, charles, bronson, johnson, richard, crenna, jill, ireland, based, 1974, novel, same, title, scottish, author, alistair, maclean, 1922, 1987, filmed, north, central, idaho, br. Breakheart Pass is a 1975 American Western film that stars Charles Bronson Ben Johnson Richard Crenna and Jill Ireland Based on the 1974 novel of the same title by Scottish author Alistair MacLean 1922 1987 4 it was filmed in north central Idaho 5 6 7 8 9 Breakheart PassTheatrical release poster by Mort KunstlerDirected byTom GriesWritten byAlistair MacLeanBased onBreakheart Passby Alistair MacLeanProduced byJerry GershwinElliott KastnerStarringCharles BronsonBen JohnsonRichard CrennaJill IrelandCharles DurningEd LauterDavid HuddlestonCinematographyLucien BallardEdited byByron BrandtMusic byJerry GoldsmithProductioncompanyGershwin Kastner ProductionsDistributed byUnited ArtistsRelease dateDecember 25 1975 1975 12 25 Finland 1 Running time95 minutesCountryUnited StatesLanguageEnglishBudget 6 million 2 Box office 2 130 000 3 Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Production 3 1 Writing 3 2 Casting 3 3 Filming 4 Music 5 Release 5 1 Home media 5 1 1 DVD 6 Reception 6 1 Box office 6 2 Critical response 7 See also 8 References 9 External linksPlot EditIn the 1870s residents of the garrison at the Fort Humboldt frontier outpost of the United States Army are reported to be suffering from a diphtheria epidemic A special express train is heading up into the remote mountain ranges towards the fort filled with reinforcements and medical supplies There are also civilian passengers on the train in the rear luxurious private car Nevada Governor Fairchild Richard Crenna and his fiancee Marica Jill Ireland the daughter of the fort s commander The train stops briefly in the small whistle stop settlement of Myrtle where it takes on board local lawman United States Marshal Pearce Ben Johnson and his prisoner John Deakin Charles Bronson a supposedly notorious outlaw who was identified via a picture in a newspaper advertisement offering a 2 000 approximately 49 000 today reward But as the journey goes on through the beautiful snowy mountain scenery several train passengers including most of the train s soldier escort are mysteriously killed or go missing Deakin who is actually an undercover U S Secret Service agent uncovers en route that the epidemic at the outpost is actually a conspiracy between a group of killers led by the notorious outlaw Levi Calhoun Robert Tessier and a tribe of Indians under Chief White Hand Eddie Little Sky Instead of medical supplies the train s boxcars are transporting a large secret shipment of weapons rifles ammunition and dynamite stolen from U S arms manufacturers for sale to the Indians in return for allowing Calhoun and his men to mine and smuggle gold from their lands Most of the people on the train including Governor Fairchild and Marshal Pearce are Calhoun s partners in crime and those innocents who discover the evidence for his sinister plot are eliminated Eventually Deakin narrows his list of possible uninvolved allies down to Marica and Army Major Claremont Ed Lauter who agrees to assist the agent in his efforts to prevent the arms delivery At snow covered Breakheart Pass all hell breaks loose as Indians attack the train to take the weapons they were promised and Calhoun and his men ride out to the train in order to find out what is going on Deakin and Major Claremont use dynamite to blow up and break the track rails grounding the train before it reaches the fort and while Deakin runs interference Claremont rushes ahead to Fort Humboldt to free the soldiers imprisoned by Calhoun s gang A gunfight breaks out when the freed soldiers clash with the Indians and bandits at the train Calhoun is killed by Gov Fairchild when he threatens Marica but the governor is then in turn cut down by Major Claremont At the end of the battle Deakin intercepts Marshal Pearce and shoots him when the corrupt lawman decides to go down fighting Cast EditCharles Bronson as Agent John Deakin John Murray Ben Johnson as U S Marshal Pearce Richard Crenna as Governor Richard Fairchild Jill Ireland as Marica Charles Durning as O Brien Ed Lauter as Major Claremont Bill McKinney as Reverend Peabody David Huddleston as Dr Molyneux Roy Jenson as Chris Banion Rayford Barnes as Sergeant Bellew Scott Newman as Rafferty Robert Tessier as Levi Calhoun voiced by Paul Frees uncredited Joe Kapp as Henry The Steward Archie Moore as Carlos The Cook Sally Kirkland as Jane Marie First Prostitute Sally Kemp as Second Prostitute Eddie Little Sky as Chief White Hand Keith McConnell as Gabriel John Mitchum as Red Beard Read Morgan as Captain Oakland Robert Rothwell as Lieutenant Newell Casey Tibbs as Jackson Doug Atkins as Jebbo Eldon Burke as Ferguson uncredited Irv Faling as Colonel Scoville uncredited William Klein as Seamon Devlin uncredited Ron Ponozzo as Soldier uncredited Production EditWriting Edit Producers Elliott Kastner and Jerry Gershwin had filmed a number of Alistair MacLean novels previously including Where Eagles Dare and When Eight Bells Toll citation needed Casting Edit Charles Bronson was paid 1 million plus 10 of the gross for his role 10 Lewiston realtor Irv Falling a retired U S Army colonel played a cameo role as the father of Marica Gov Fairchild s fiancee Jill Ireland in the final snowy scene as frontier army colonel and commander at Fort Humboldt reunites with his daughter He had helped the Bronsons find a home to rent 5 7 Bronson and Ireland arrived in Lewiston for filming in early March 1975 and stayed at 322 Stewart Avenue 11 Filming Edit Some exteriors were filmed in Pierce and Reubens in north central Idaho 7 12 The Native American extras were Nez Perce mostly from Lapwai 11 Railroad scenes were filmed on the Camas Prairie Railroad based in Lewiston 7 9 13 The hire of the train Great Western Railway steam locomotive 75 14 carriages and track cost 500 000 approximately 2 518 000 today 10 Opening scenes in the Myrtle settlement whistle stop were shot at a specially built set to look like an old abandoned Gold Rush town just outside Arrow Junction about fifteen miles 25 km east of Lewiston 15 It was the final film role participation for longtime veteran stuntman Yakima Canutt who was aged 79 at the time 5 He was in charge of the second unit direction 16 his son Joe was one of the stuntmen 17 Canutt oversaw the scene where the caboose and troop carriages crashed off the rail line into a ravine 15 18 Six cameras filmed the cars falling 200 feet 60 m into the canyon however the dummies representing the soldiers failed to fall out during the crash The crash was filmed at Halfmoon Trestle 46 19 30 N 116 34 27 W 46 325 N 116 5743 W 46 325 116 5743 Location of Halfmoon Trestle east of U S Route 95 in Lapwai Canyon 15 16 Alternating shots of clear and overcast skies are present in the final climactic scenes Bronson later said that in the original story it was not revealed until the very end that his character was a detective When he read an early script the reveal was made much earlier Bronson demanded it be changed to the way it was in the original story and this was done During filming Bronson discovered the script had been changed again to reveal his character was a detective early Bronson was unhappy with this but went along with it as by then filming was underway and he felt he could not leave the production 19 Music EditA limited edition 3 000 run CD soundtrack of Breakheart Pass highlighting the original music of Jerry Goldsmith was released by La La Land Records It is out of print 20 Release EditHome media Edit DVD Edit Release date December 19 2000 Full Screen amp Widescreen Anamorphic Region 1 Aspect Ratio 1 33 1 amp 16 9 Audio tracks English French Subtitles English Spanish Running time 95 minutesKino Video released Breakheart Pass for the first time on Blu ray on August 12 2014 Reception EditBox office Edit The film was a box office disappointment in the United States 21 Critical response Edit The Los Angeles Times called it a fun if familiar picture but is played so broadly on such an elementary level that it can hope to satisfy only the most undemanding of viewer 22 See also EditList of American films of 1975References Edit Breakheart Pass premieres Champlin Charles February 27 1975 CRITIC AT LARGE The Scot s Got Lots of Plots Los Angeles Times p f1 SECOND ANNUAL GROSSES GLOSS Byron Stuart Film Comment New York Vol 13 Iss 2 Mar Apr 1977 35 37 64 Vorpahl Beverly February 7 1976 Who Done It filmed in area Spokane Daily Chronicle Washington p 20 a b c Dullenty Jim April 1 1975 Interview roles reversed Spokane Daily Chronicle Washington p 1 Breakheart Pass ready for all the world to see Spokane Daily Chronicle Washington photos February 7 1976 p 3 a b c d Campbell Thomas W February 13 1976 Breakheart bullets fly men die Lewiston Morning Tribune Idaho p 14A Bunning Paul February 16 1976 Idaho scenery steals show Spokesman Review Spokane Washington p 5 a b Blumenthal July 10 1975 Motion picture production creates an anti recession boom for Idaho city The Ledger Lakeland Florida New York Times p 4C a b Blumenthal Ralph April 20 1975 Roll em Film enriches Idaho Chicago Tribune p 8 a b O Connell Mary J March 3 1975 Bronson Ireland arrive for Breakheart filming Lewiston Morning Tribune Idaho p 12A Idaho film archive Archived May 12 2008 at the Wayback Machine It s not for real Spokesman Review Spokane Washington photo April 14 1975 p 6 Railroad Movies on DVD RailServe com a b c A taste of Tinsel Town In 1975 the film Breakheart Pass was filmed against the backdrop of north central Idaho a look back as the film returns to Lewiston www inland360 com July 12 2012 Retrieved March 20 2017 a b Helluva way to run a railroad Lewiston Morning Tribune Idaho April 13 1975 p 14A Pitts Michael 1999 Charles Bronson The 95 films and the 156 Television Appearances McFarland amp Company p 32 ISBN 0786417021 Kough Barry April 13 1975 The frontier train of Breakheart Pass crashed Lewiston Morning Tribune Idaho photo p 1A Siskel Gene September 7 1980 Movies Bronson After 62 films still the reliable pro Chicago Tribune p d3 Breakheart Pass soundtrack Archived July 26 2008 at the Wayback Machine Siskel Gene February 20 1977 Movies Yesterday s heroism Could it cure today s ailing western Chicago Tribune p e2 Thomas Kevin March 10 1976 MOVIE REVIEW Bronson Stars in Breakheart Pass Los Angeles Times p f9 External links EditBreakheart Pass at IMDb Breakheart Pass at AllMovie Breakheart Pass at the TCM Movie Database Movie review at AlistairMacLean com Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Breakheart Pass film amp oldid 1114894214, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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