The Rift (1990 Film)
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''The Rift'' (
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...
: ''La grieta'') is a 1990 Spanish
science-fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, sp ...
horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit physical or psychological fear in its viewers. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with Transgressive art, transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements of the genre include Mo ...
directed by Juan Piquer Simón and starring Jack Scalia,
R. Lee Ermey Ronald Lee Ermey (March 24, 1944 – April 15, 2018) was an American actor and United States Marine Corps, U.S. Marine drill instructor. He achieved fame for his role as Gunnery sergeant, Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in the 1987 film ''Full Met ...
and
Ray Wise Raymond Herbert Wise (born August 29, 1947) is an American actor best known for his role as Leland Palmer in ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991, Twin Peaks (season 3), 2017) and its prequel film ''Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'' (1992). He has appeared ...
. The story concerns Wick Hayes (Scalia), an engineer who is blamed for the disappearance of the submarine he designed, and leads an investigation team to the depths of the ocean, where he encounters an array of abnormal creatures. Part of a wave of underwater fantasy films released around 1989, it was retitled ''Endless Descent'' for the U.S. market.


Plot

An experimental submarine, the ''Siren II'', with an experienced NATO crew is sent to find out what happened to the missing ''Siren I''. Wick Hayes, the designer of the sub blames the Contek corporation's modifications to his original design. The ''Siren II'' is captained by experienced officer Captain Randolph Phillips. The ''Siren II'' traces ''Siren I''s black box to an underwater rift. They are surrounded by a toxic weed, although an on-board scientist says plant life at this depth is impossible. ''Siren II'' escapes the weed by reversing the polarity of the hull, although some of the weed gets into the sub. Later, they surface in a cave system where they discover that Contek has been engaged in illegal genetic engineering experiments that have produced a variety of mutant creatures.


Cast


Production


Development and writing

In a contemporary ''
Fangoria ''Fangoria'' is an internationally distributed American horror film fan magazine, in publication since 1979. It is published four times a year by Fangoria Publishing, LLC and is edited by Phil Nobile Jr. The magazine was originally released i ...
'' article, producer José Antonio Escrivá said that he wrote the film's outline. The original version was set in space. According to Piquer Simón, he was the one who changed the setting to distinguish it from '' Alien''. He chose an underwater environment after coming across a news item about a rash of invasive seaweed caused by toxic waste in
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. The original draft was written by Mark Klein. Another was contributed by novelist
Colin Wilson Colin Henry Wilson (26 June 1931 – 5 December 2013) was an English existentialist philosopher-novelist. He also wrote widely on true crime, mysticism and the paranormal, eventually writing more than a hundred books. Wilson called his p ...
. As uncredited executive producer
Dino De Laurentiis Agostino "Dino" De Laurentiis (; 8 August 1919 – 10 November 2010) was an Italian film producer and businessman who held both Italian and American citizenship. Following a brief acting career in the late 1930s and early 1940s, he moved into f ...
was still not satisfied with the screenplay and contemplating cancellation, David Coleman was brought in shortly before filming to do a full rewrite which, day by day, was translated into Spanish for Juan Piquer Simón (who did not speak English) and faxed to De Laurentiis' in
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for approval. Piquer Simón and Escrivá claimed that they were unaware of other supernatural underwater films made around the same time, such as ''
The Abyss ''The Abyss'' is a 1989 American science fiction film written and directed by James Cameron and starring Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and Michael Biehn. When an American submarine sinks in the Caribbean, a US search and recovery tea ...
'', ''
Leviathan Leviathan ( ; ; ) is a sea serpent demon noted in theology and mythology. It is referenced in several books of the Hebrew Bible, including Psalms, the Book of Job, the Book of Isaiah, and the pseudepigraphical Book of Enoch. Leviathan is of ...
'', '' DeepStar Six'', ''
The Evil Below ''The Evil Below'' is a 1989 horror film directed by and starring Wayne Crawford and co-starring June Chadwick and Ted Le Plat. The film centers on Max Cash, an adventurer who goes hunting for treasure on a cursed shipwreck. It is one of many ...
'' and '' Lords of the Deep'', and denied that ''The Rift'' had been made to capitalize on them. However, this has been called into question, as Dino De Laurentiis had started development on ''Leviathan'' before DEG's mounting debts forced him to relinquish the project to his brother
Luigi Luigi (; ) is a character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Part of Nintendo's ''Mario'' franchise, he is a kind-hearted, cowardly Italian plumber, and the younger fraternal twin brother and sidekick of Mario. Like ...
's Filmauro in mid-1987. He then made ''The Rift'' with his daughter Francesca, who was also Escrivá's wife. According to Coleman, the Italian mogul told him he had made both ''Leviathan'' and the lower budgeted ''The Rift'' to pull the rug from under the B-movie producers who had ripped off his past blockbusters.


Casting

Leading man Jack Scalia had just suffered a setback after the sudden shutdown of a film he was shooting in Hong Kong, but received the offer to star in ''The Rift'' two days after he got back to the U.S. He was cast after a single meeting with De Laurentiis in his office. With De Laurentiis attached, the actors had certain expectations of quality about the project, and
Ray Wise Raymond Herbert Wise (born August 29, 1947) is an American actor best known for his role as Leland Palmer in ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991, Twin Peaks (season 3), 2017) and its prequel film ''Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'' (1992). He has appeared ...
felt that that they were not necessarily met.
R. Lee Ermey Ronald Lee Ermey (March 24, 1944 – April 15, 2018) was an American actor and United States Marine Corps, U.S. Marine drill instructor. He achieved fame for his role as Gunnery sergeant, Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in the 1987 film ''Full Met ...
was particularly negative. He named the film among those he most regretted doing, and indicated that he did not get along with Wise.


Production design and special effects

Escrivá and Simon originally wanted Sergio Stivaletti to work on the film, and he agreed to design at least one of the creatures, but a scheduling conflict with '' The Church'' arose and he had to pass. Fellow Italian Carlo de Marchis, who had worked on ''Leviathan'', was brought on board. Artist
Ron Cobb Ronald Ray Cobb (September 21, 1937 – September 21, 2020) was an American–Australian artist. In addition to his work as an editorial cartoonist, he contributed concept art to major films including '' Dark Star'' (1974), ''Star Wars'' (1977), ...
, an alumn of both ''Leviathan'' and ''The Abyss'', also contributed to the creature design. The special effects department was headed by Colin Arthur, an Englishman who had recently settled in Spain but did not yet have his own effects shop. As a result, much of the preparations were done inside the home where he lived with his wife and assistant María Luisa Pino. His team consisted of ten to twelve people, among them uncredited American technician Steve Humphrey, who had worked on previous De Laurentiis films.


Filming

Principal photography started on October 3, 1988, and lasted eight weeks. An additional fourteen weeks were necessary to capture the effects sequences. This was the longest shoot of Piquer Simón's career. Filming took place in
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
, but most of post-production took place in Los Angeles. During production, the film's budget was quoted as US$1.3 million. A retrospective interview with Piquer Simón pegged the final cost at Pta 225 million (around US$2 million), which was sizeable for a Spanish film at the time, but still too low for the director's aspirations. The Spanish helmer had a translator with him on set to relay his instructions to American cast members. He asked Scalia to smoke during takes, to which the latter reluctantly acquiesced as he had already quit. Because of this, the actor started smoking again in real life.


Release


Pre-release

''The Rift'' received an industry screening at Ciné Palafox in Madrid, Spain, on November 25, 1989. Domestic pre-release posters and the French press announced that the film would be shown at the Paris International Festival of Fantastic and Science-Fiction Film, held between September 29 and October 8, 1989, but there is no indication that this actually happened.


Theatrical

In Spain, the film was released to general audiences on March 9, 1990, although its opening in the capital city of Madrid came on April 15, 1990. It was distributed by Dister Group. and drew 157,158 admissions. It is claimed in some discussions that the film received a limited theatrical release in the U.S. via Vidmark Entertainment on October 5, 1990, but no formal source could be found for it at this time.


Home video

In the U.S., the film received a
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from
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on February 21, 1991, under the new title of ''Endless Descent''. In most international territories, video rights were acquired by RCA/Columbia Pictures International Video. It was re-issued on DVD and Blu-ray by
Kino Lorber Kino Lorber is an international film distribution company based in New York City. Founded in 1977, it was originally known as Kino International until it was acquired by and merged into Lorber HT Digital in 2009. It specializes in art film, art ho ...
on September 21, 2016, which was credited as its first appearance on either medium.


Reception

Mainstream reviews for ''The Rift'' have been largely negative, with constant criticism of its derivative nature but conflicting opinions about its special effects. William Green of ''
Sight and Sound ''Sight and Sound'' (formerly written ''Sight & Sound'') is a monthly film magazine published by the British Film Institute (BFI). Since 1952, it has conducted the well-known decennial ''Sight and Sound'' Poll of the Greatest Films of All Time. ...
'' excoriated the film, calling it a "lamentable ocean-floor thriller" populated by "desperate actors". Nigel Floyd of ''Fear'' magazine dismissed it as " by-the-numbers Spanish submarine adventure, whose belated entry into the nderwater horror cycleonly serves to emphasize its redundancy. He also noted that "the model work and creature effects plumb new depths of ineptitude."
Leonard Maltin Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic, film historian, and author. He is known for his book of film capsule reviews, '' Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide'', published from 1969 to 2014. Maltin was the film criti ...
gave the film his lowest rating, stating that " ybody who sticks around for the climax ought to be decorated for their trouble ..As usual, R. Lee Ermey acts circles around most of his co-stars; but, ultimately, even he cannot sell this bill of goods." The
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's ''
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'' called it "unfathomable junk with soggy suspense and damp drama" helmed by a "hack director" that "doesn’t have the budget, special effects know-how or acting smarts" to emulate its contemporaries. In his ''Creature Features'' book, John Stanley found it to be "an ineffective '' Aliens'' knock-off." James O'Neill, author of the book ''Sci-Fi on Tape'', called it "well cast" but "sunk by flat direction and unimpressive FX". In ''The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction Movies'', C.J. Henderson assessed that ''The Rift'' merely consisted of "monsters and page after page of bad dialogue", although it offered "a few good effects". In his ''Horror and Science Fiction Films'' compendium, Donald C. Willis was mixed, crediting "some okay makeup and scenic effects", but noting a "functional, cliched story". In trade publication ''
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'', a reviewer identified as Besa. wrote that "''The Rift'' comes just a little too late, since comparisons with ''The Abyss'' will be inevitable" but " e all-important effects are on the whole well handed." Mike Mayo of ''
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'' and '' VideoHound'' was perhaps most positive, writing that "it's actually not bad" as " e pace is brisk and the critter is fun". Since it resurfaced on modern media, the film has enjoyed a modest reevaluation by the enthusiast press. '' VideoScope'' wrote that, while it followed several underwater monster movies, Piquer Simón "succeeds in delivering what is probably the most enjoyable of the bunch", as he keeps the action "fast-moving" and "ladles on the gore" to get around his modest ressources.
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complimented the effects, considering them "at least as decent as ''Deep Star Six'' and ''Leviathan''" and concluded that despite being "full of action movie clichés", it was "a fun little ride". ''
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'' found that "''The Rift'' isn’t big, and it sure isn’t clever, but it’s jaw-droppingly entertaining."
Bloody Disgusting Bloody Disgusting is an American independent multi-media company, which began as a horror genre-focused news website specializing in information services that covered various horror media. The company expanded into other media including podcast ...
assessed that " unkiness aside, ''The Rift'' manages to be thoroughly enjoyable" thanks to "entertaining characters" and " e creatures looking pretty good, all things considered"."Blu-ray Review: 'The Rift' is a Fun, Knockoff of Better Movies"
''Bloody Disgusting'', by Chris Coffel. June 8, 2017


Accolades


See also

* List of underwater science fiction works


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rift 1990 films 1990 science fiction films 1990s English-language films English-language Spanish films Films scored by Joel Goldsmith Films directed by Juan Piquer Simon Films shot in Madrid Science fiction submarine films Spanish science fiction films American science fiction films 1990s American films 1990s Spanish films