Filming in Alaska, local challenges and successes
For obvious reasons of cost, the first fiction films taking place in Alaska were shot elsewhere. In Northern California in particular, if we are to believe film historians. Shooting in the territory was a challenge, but two producers decided to take up the challenge in the early 1920s. Although there were many obstacles, they hoped that the revenues and success of this unique film would exceed their expectations. Thus was born the feature film The Chechahcos, shot between Denali and Anchorage during 1923, narrating the adventures and misadventures of a group of prospectors during the Klondike Gold Rush. While the film was a hit in Alaska when it was released in 1924, it was not a great success in New York and in the other cities of the continent where it travelled afterwards. Nevertheless, it was the first fiction film made in Alaska, and others would soon follow.
Among the most outstanding are The Silver Horde (1930), filmed in Ketchikan, or The Harpoon (1948), the story of a rivalry between two whalers filmed between California and Kodiak Island, whose snowy peaks you will recognize. A film that was probably shown at the Fourth Avenue Theatre, a 1,000-seat theater that opened in 1947 and was the pride of Anchorage until it was converted into an event hall in the early 2000s. But perhaps the most popular Alaskan film is Ralph Liddle's Spirit of the Wind (1979), a biopic about sportsman and musher George Attla. The film recounts the difficult youth of this Athapaskan - the name of the Native American tribes of the region - who suffered from tuberculosis, and presents the rise to fame of this young trapper who became a sled dog driver. Filmed between Fairbanks, Stevens' Village, Fort Yukon and Rampart, Spirit of the Wind will take you through the fir trees and the great frozen expanses at full speed. This epic won the Grand Prix at the Sundance Film Festival and was selected in the Un Certain Regard category at the Cannes Film Festival.
More anecdotal but nevertheless intriguing, let's also mention the film Claws released two years earlier. Surfing on the success of Spielberg's Jaws, it features a man-killing grizzly bear. A B-movie not completely devoid of interest.
Recently, a film like Miracle in Alaska (2012) with Drew Barrymore and John Krasinski was able to draw attention to this state that is home to many animal species - just as Werner Herzog did a few years earlier with his film Grizzly Man (2005). Finally, in 2019, it is Willem Dafoe who takes the path of the mushers to tell the story of Togo, a heroic dog who - like Balto, a husky whose eponymous 1995 cartoon made a lasting impression - helped save the city of Nome from diphtheria in 1925. It should be noted, however, that this last feature film was mainly shot in Alberta, in neighboring Canada.
Outstanding national and international productions
Since the early 1980s, Alaska has been the playground of several great filmmakers. Thus, John Carpenter put his camera there in 1982 for The Thing, shot between Juneau and the nearby Tongass National Forest. If you're not afraid of parasites and aliens, go see this cult movie without delay. If, on the other hand, horror is not your cup of tea, you may find your happiness in science fiction with Star-Trek 6: Unknown Land (1991). In this opus, Captain Kirk (William Shatner) is exiled on the ice star Rura Penthe, following a serious accusation. The opportunity for the series to change scenery, and enjoy the landscapes of the Knik Glacier and the Chugach State Park, a few miles from Anchorage.
For action lovers, Runaway Train by Andreï Konchalovski (1985) will tell you the story of an escape that goes wrong on board an unstoppable train, shot between Montana and the coastal railroads of Alaska. Great scenery and thrills guaranteed. Next, Steven Seagal and Michael Caine in Underground (1994) by Steven Seagal himself. A strange film mixing action and ecology between the cities of Valdez and Nome, and on the banks of the Worthington glacier. Just as gripping, but fortunately less violent, Mystery, Alaska (1999) with Russel Crowe goes back to one of the favorite sports of the locals, ice hockey, to count the crazy adventure of the small town team of Mystery as it is about to face the New York Rangers. More cerebral, but definitely not to be missed, Christopher Nolan's Insomnia (2012) takes Al Pacino, Robin Williams and Hilary Swank to the edge of the Columbia Glacier, while some of the most striking scenes of this suspenseful thriller by the director of Memento and Inception are shot along the Richardson Highway, between Valdez and Fairbanks. Finally, it is impossible to talk about Alaska in the cinema without mentioning Into the Wild by Sean Penn (2007), the inspiring and tragic story of Christopher McCandless, a model student who decides overnight to leave everything behind and travel to Alaska. A work that leaves no stone unturned, filmed along the Copper River, in the heart of Denali National Park, and along the Stampede Trail where hikers can now find the famous Magic bus 142, at the bend in the trail.
Movie theaters in Alaska?
Spread throughout the major urban centers of the state, you will be spoiled for choice in Anchorage, where multiplexes welcome moviegoers every day. In total, there are 20 theaters in the state, an impressive number when you consider that the population does not exceed 740,000 inhabitants. Don't hesitate to stop at the Bear Tooth Theatre in Anchorage, a cinema and pub at the same time, or at the GoldTown Nickelodeon in Juneau. A movie theater born from the initiative of a local director, today managed by volunteers. It is an opportunity to warm up in front of a good movie, before facing the cold again.
