made-for-television
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
horror film
Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes.
Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apo ...
starring
Bo Svenson
Bo Svenson (born Bo Ragnar Svensson; 13 February 1941) is a Swedish-American actor, film director, film producer, published author and award winning screenwriter, known for his roles in American genre films of the 1970s and 1980s. He has appe ...
Bigfoot
Bigfoot, also commonly referred to as Sasquatch, is a purported ape-like creature said to inhabit the forest of North America. Many dubious articles have been offered in attempts to prove the existence of Bigfoot, including Anecdotal evidence, ...
-like monster terrorizing a ski resort in the Colorado Rockies. It was directed by Herb Wallerstein from a
teleplay
A teleplay is a screenplay or script used in the production of a scripted television program or series. In general usage, the term is most commonly seen in reference to a standalone production, such as a television film, a television play, or a ...
written by Joseph Stefano (''The Outer Limits'' co-creator, who also wrote the screenplay for
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...
's 1960 thriller ''
Psycho
Psycho may refer to:
Mind
* Psychopath
* Sociopath
* Someone with a personality disorder
* Someone with a psychological disorder
People with the nickname
* Karl Amoussou or Psycho, mixed martial artist
* Peter Ebdon or Psycho, English snook ...
''). The film originally premiered as the ''NBC Thursday Night Movie'' on
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters ...
on April 28, 1977.
Plot
Gar Seberg (Svenson) and his wife Ellen (Mimieux), return to his home town, a ski resort in the Colorado Rockies. Gar is a former Olympic skiing champion, and is looking for work. As they arrive, the town's annual Snow Carnival is spoiled by the disappearance of some vacationers. Resort owner Carrie Rill (
Sylvia Sidney
Sylvia Sidney (born Sophia Kosow; August 8, 1910 – July 1, 1999) was an American stage, screen and film actress whose career spanned over 70 years. She rose to prominence in dozens of leading roles in the 1930s. She was nominated for the Aca ...
), fears losing business and tries to keep the disappearances a secret, but there are witnesses, who say that the culprit is a
Bigfoot
Bigfoot, also commonly referred to as Sasquatch, is a purported ape-like creature said to inhabit the forest of North America. Many dubious articles have been offered in attempts to prove the existence of Bigfoot, including Anecdotal evidence, ...
/Sasquatch. As it is revealed that the missing people were brutally killed, the local sheriff (Walker) spreads the story that there is a lone savage bear on the loose. Carrie's grandson Tony (Logan) gives Gar a job at the resort, but also tells him that he must stalk and kill the monster. Ellen was previously in television and had worked on a documentary about Sasquatch sightings, so Gar has an open mind and is reluctant to kill the beast—until he sees the remains of the first victim. Then the monster comes to town, killing the mother of the carnival queen and sending the town into a panic.
In the film's climax, Gar, Ellen, Tony and the sheriff go to the woods and track the monster. The creature attacks Gar, who shoots it, but the beast is still alive, so Gar picks up a ski pole and impales it, causing it to fall off the cliff and die.
Cast
*
Bo Svenson
Bo Svenson (born Bo Ragnar Svensson; 13 February 1941) is a Swedish-American actor, film director, film producer, published author and award winning screenwriter, known for his roles in American genre films of the 1970s and 1980s. He has appe ...
Sylvia Sidney
Sylvia Sidney (born Sophia Kosow; August 8, 1910 – July 1, 1999) was an American stage, screen and film actress whose career spanned over 70 years. She rose to prominence in dozens of leading roles in the 1930s. She was nominated for the Aca ...
as Mrs. Carrie Rill
*
Thomas Babson
Thomas William Babson (born July 15, 1945) is an American ice hockey coach and actor.
Early life
Tom Babson graduated from Gloucester High School, where he was the captain of the ice hockey team in 1963. After graduating, he played one season at ...
as Buster Smith
* Jacquie Botts as Betty Jo Blodgett
* Jamie Jamison as John Cochran
* Richard Jamison as Ben Cochran
* Liz Jury as Mrs. Blodgett
* Richard Jury as Charlie Braintree
* Annie McEnroe as Heidi
* Michael J. London as The Snowbeast
Release
Home media
''Snowbeast'' was released on VHS by GoodTimes Video/Entertainment in August 1987.
Reception
Retrospective reviews
Later reception for ''Snowbeast'' has been more negative, with many critics calling it a poor quality ''Jaws'' rip-off.
Fred Beldin of '' Allmovie'' felt that the film was a significantly less effective take-off of Stephen Spielberg's ''Jaws'', with the title monster not scary once it is fully revealed. Beldin concluded his review by calling the film "one of the weaker entries into an already tepid horror subgenre." Zack Handlen from '' The A.V. Club'' offered the film similar criticism, while also pointing out that director Wallerstein was not as gifted a filmmaker to enable the film to rise above being just another poor ''Jaws'' rip-off. ''HorrorNews.net'' stated that, while the film showed promise, it was undone by an over-reliance on cliches, POV shots, and ski footage.
Leonard Maltin
Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic and film historian, as well as an author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives. He is perhaps best known for his book of f ...
panned the film, calling it "dumb", and "below average". Blockbuster Inc.'s ''Guide to Movies and Videos'' awarded it one out of four stars, while refusing to comment about the film. In his ''Video Sourcebook'',
Thomson Gale
Gale is a global provider of research and digital learning resources. The company is based in Farmington Hills, Michigan, west of Detroit. It has been a division of Cengage since 2007.
The company, formerly known as Gale Research and the Gale Gr ...
rated the film one and a half out of four stars, stating that the film was 'neither scary or funny'.