by Jon Partridge
Earlier this year, Drafthouse Films, in partnership with Olive Films brought back to the screens one of the most deranged pieces of filmmaking ever committed to celluloid. I extolled its virtues, directed people to the theaters and now, with its home release, the word can be spread anew. Roar is gloriously insane and simply unmissable.
Its initial release back in 1981 was a financial and critical failure. Fresh off the success of The Exorcist, where he served as executive-producer, writer/director Noel Marshall spent $17 million and over 5 years to make the film which took only $2 million worldwide. The cost of the production was not only measured in dollars but in hospital visits, with both cast and crew picking up multiple injuries during a plagued shoot — unsurprising when your co-stars include over 150 panthers, cheetahs, tigers, lions, and one elephant named Timbo that has a serious dislike for boats.
Roar tells of the efforts of preservationist Hank (Marshall himself), who has established a wildlife sanctuary on the African plains and strives to live in harmony with the animals. His wife (actress Tippi Hedren), step-daughter (Melanie Griffith), and two sons (John and Terry Marshall) arrive for a visit to find Hank is away and tensions between the two largest lions vying for control of the pride to have reached breaking point. Hearing of their arrival, Hank begins his journey back home, a race against time to save his family as well to head off a pair of poachers who have decided his efforts to bring so many animals together is a threat to the locals.
The film’s existence stems from a project began on the 70s by Hedren. Together they began taking abandoned lions and tigers into their Beverly Hills who promptly bonded with the family. The numbers increased, requiring moving to a large ranch on the outskirts of LA, which is primarily where filming took place. The roots of the film are in conveying a message of protecting and respecting these magnificent creatures. While well-intended, he employed a horribly misguided approach, resulting in one of the most reckless slices of cinema in history.
This leads us to the real selling point of Roar, the sense of danger that permeates the entire film. It’s unintentionally hilarious in parts and utterly terrifying in others, veering from a feel-good family film to something more akin to a horror/slasher film, then right back to something of of a Disney playbook. It’s staggering that a man not only committed to such a venture but took his whole family into the fray. What stays with you is how terrifyingly real the whole thing is. There is no CGI disconnect; these are real animals, real people, and real situations. The sensations Roar stirs are only compounded by the knowledge that so many people were actually injured while filming. Big cats bounding around, leaping at Marshall as he walks by or speeds past on a motorbike. Panthers claw at clothing, an elephant destroys a boat and flings it at the recent occupants, a lion lies on top of Melanie Griffith and begins to gnaw at her while Tippi Hedren pulls at its tail. Yes, that is a thing that actually happened.
Despite its fast pace, Roar takes time to showcase some beautiful cinematography such as the African savanna or shots of elephants bathing in the river, often married to some beautiful musical compositions or a curiously catchy theme song. Despite the recklessness, baffling dialogue, and plot, it is strangely moving at times due to these remarkable creatures and how close you get to them. The animals are characters in their own right; personalities come across, and one of the most amazing things is getting the sense that they are joyfully fucking with the people involved in the film. It’s a beautiful setting, showing a connection with a land and its creatures and in a way offering an idyllic situation. There’s an exuberance and grandeur about Roar that brings a smile to your face, but constantly tinged by the possibility it could turn into something horrifying.
THE PACKAGE
The film looks great, deep colors, great details, you can make out the individual hairs in a lion’s mane as well as the expressions of terror etched onto the cast’s faces. There are a few exterior shots, notably ones in Africa, that look tad more grainy but in comparison to the footage in the “Making of” featurette, the film looks incredible.
Now for the good stuff. Roar is a film you will watch and want to know WAY more about, thankfully this release satiates those desires with a ton of special features. First up, The Making of ROAR, a old documentary from the original release of the film that features Tippi Hedren herself, someone noticeable in her absence in promotion for the films re-release. A behind the scenes look at the conception and execution of the film with cast and crew alike sharing stories. Some incredible insights can be garnered including how Hedren sold her coat from The Birds to help raise funds to keep the pre-production going and that the lions were anesthetized and rolled down hills to give them the dazed look when they were “shot and killed” in the film, or the salted meat trick to get them to drink water from a barrel in another scene. As makings of go, it’s surprising intimate and emotional.
Similar to this, there is a Q&A with cast and crew at the Roar re-Premiere at The CineFamily, Los Angeles, CA in March, 2015. It runs for nearly 40 minutes and again offers far too many insights to go into here. Also included as part of the re-release was a essay, The Grandeur of Roar, an essay penned by Drafthouse Films founder Tim League to lay out the sheer WTF-ery of the film and why they brought it back to the screens. Additionally, there’s a Photo Gallery featuring a series of images that John Marshall brought along to screenings of family life and filming of the film. Content deserving of being made into a coffee table book frankly.
Rounding everything off is a audio commentary with star John Marshall and Tim League. As usual with Alamo Drafthouse hosted events, League does an excellent job of conversing with his guest and letting the tales flow. I have met John Marshall on two occasions (one of which he demonstrated a flailing maneuver to scare away a lion on me) and can say the man is a born storyteller with a fascinating life to draw from. This commentary is among the most entertaining I’ve heard in a long time. Already a fan of Roar? This release offers so much more than the movie itself.
THE BOTTOM LINEHow does a filmmaker conjure up something like Roar? Well, you start by taking away reason and accountability. Marshall is the equivalent of some bizarro world Walt Disney, crafting the most reckless and insane of family films. Using phrase “wild abandon” has never been so apt. It’s a film to break out when hosting a movie night and want to astonish your guests or to show your grandchildren and disturb them forever. Frankly the only thing more insane than Roar itself is not owning a copy.
Utterly deranged filmmaking, unparalleled entertainment.
Roar is available from Olive Films on November 3rd.
Parts of this piece are taken from the review of the theatrical release which can be found here for more in depth commentary.