Snowbeast
| Snowbeast | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Herb Wallerstein |
| Produced by | Wilfrid Lloyd Baumes |
| Written by | Joseph Stefano |
| Starring |
Bo Svenson Yvette Mimieux Robert Logan Clint Walker Sylvia Sidney |
| Music by | Robert Prince |
| Cinematography | Frank Stanley |
| Editing by |
Dennis Mosher Carroll Sax Uncredited: Neil Travis |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Release date | 1977 |
| Running time | 86 minutes |
Snowbeast is a made-for-television horror film, first broadcast in 1977 in the United States.
The movie details the attacks of a ravenous creature (a yeti or Bigfoot/sasquatch) on a Colorado ski resort. The teleplay was written by Joseph Stefano, who wrote the script for Alfred Hitchcock's classic 1960 thriller Psycho. Stefano reportedly used a book by Roger Patterson (who claimed to have encountered a sasquatch in 1967) as his primary inspiration, though no credit is given.
Snowbeast was directed by Herb Wallerstein, a veteran of many television shows such as I Dream of Jeannie, Star Trek, The Brady Bunch, and The Six Million Dollar Man.
Plot
A ski resort in the Colorado Rockies has its annual winter carnival spoiled by the brutal murders of a series of vacationers by an unknown animal. The local sheriff (Clint Walker) believes that the culprit is a legendary creature, a yeti or sasquatch. The owner of the ski resort declares there is no such being, because she doesn't want to lose her business. Either way, the creature must be stopped as it is continuing its attacks.
In the film's climax, the monster attacks Gar Seberg (Bo Svenson) who shoots it with a revolver. However, the creature survives the gunshots, and, out of ammunition, Gar picks up a ski pole and impales the beast, causing it to fall off a mountain and die. Seberg and his wife Ellen (Yvette Mimieux) embrace happily while the rest of the group looks on.
Release
The film appears to be in the Public Domain because it is an American production which did not have a proper copyright notice. This has caused the film to be released legitimately by numerous distributors on TV, DVD and VHS, sometimes on the home DVD-R format, all in copies of varying quality. As of 2008, the film is available on DVD from the following companies: Mill Creek Entertainment (USA), Legacy Entertainment/Air Music and Media Group (USA and Canada), Synergy Entertainment (USA), EastWestDVD (USA), Family Value Collection (USA) and VIPCO (UK).
Reception
Due to its on-location setting, timelessly captivating Bigfoot theme, and higher-than-usual production values for a made-for-television movie, the film was a major success when it was first released, and it has since earned a cult following.
External links
- Snowbeast at the Internet Movie Database
- Snowbeast is available for free download at the Internet Archive [more]
- Behind-the-scenes production photos Collection of crew member Stephen Lodge.