Orca (1977)
Orca aka Orca: The Killer Whale is an American thriller film from 1977 directed by Michael Anderson and produced by Dino De Laurentiis. Starring Richard Harris, Charlotte Rampling and Will Sampson.
Plot
becomes aware of the economical value of an orca whale alive through the lecture of the biologist Rachel Bedford and decides to capture one to pay the mortgage of his ship.However, the operation fails and he kills a pregnant female whale and its offspring.
The male mate orca seeks revenge against Captain Nolan and his crew, endangering the fishing community of the coastal town.Notable scenes
The encounter with the Orca.
Making of Orca
The main orcas used for filming were trained animals from Marineland of the Pacific and Marine World Africa (Six Flags Discovery Kingdom), though artificial whales of rubber were used also. These models were so lifelike, animal rights activists blocked trucks delivering the animatronic whales to the set, thinking real whales were in them.
Richard Harris, who was forty-six, performed his own stunts and was nearly killed on several occasions.
The word “Orca” is derived from the classic Latin language, a zoological term, “Orca orcinus” (as stated in the film), or more accurately, it is referred to as “Orcinus orca”. The phrase “Orca orcinus”, according to the film, translates into the English language as “bringer of death”.
Richard Harris turned down the opportunity to work with Ingmar Bergman on The Serpent’s Egg (1977) in order to make this film. This was a move he regretted deeply for years after.
Although this was the first film released featuring Bo Derek, her real acting debut was in Fantasies (1981), which was filmed in 1973 but not released until 1981.
Orca is of a cycle of eighties and late seventies movies that cash in on Jaws. Flix like Piranha (1978), Tentacles (1977), Killer Fish (1979), Barracuda (1978), Tintorera: Killer Shark (1977), Blood Beach (1980), Piranha II: The Spawning (1981), The Last Shark (1981), Up from the Depths (1979), Humanoids from the Deep (1980), The Island of the Fishmen (1979), Devil Fish (1984), and Mako: The Jaws of Death (1976).
Our view on Orca
Orca is another Jaws cash in. Dino De Laurentiis called writer Luciano Vincenzoni (from The Good, The Bad and the Ugly) and told him to find a fish tougher and more terrible than the great white to make a movie that could go up against Spielberg’s. Vincenzoni’s brother told him all about the killer whales and the rest is history. The story is better than expected.
Directed by Michael Anderson (Logan’s Run, Doc Savage). And the music was done by the great maestro Ennio Morricone. Exploitflix must see!
