The Last Flight of Noah's Ark (1980)

Director:

Charles Jarrott

Writers:

George Arthur Bloom (writer)
Steven W. Carabatsos (writer)

Release Date:

25 June 1980 (USA)

Genre:

Family | Adventure | Fantasy

Tagline:

Lost. 2,000 miles at sea in a 40 year old bomber.

Plot:

When a plane carrying various animals makes a forced landing on a desert island, the only chance to escape is to convert the plane into a boat.

Plot Keywords:

Airplane Accident | Aviation | Castaway | Island | San Francisco California

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Elliott Gould	...	Noah Dugan
Geneviève Bujold	...	Bernadette Lafleur
Rick Schroder	...	Bobby (as Ricky Schroder)
Vincent Gardenia	...	Stoney
Tammy Lauren	...	Julie
John Fujioka	...	Cleveland
Yuki Shimoda	...	Hiro
John P. Ryan	...	Coslough
Dana Elcar	...	Benchley
Ruth Manning	...	Charlotte Braithwaite
Arthur Adams	...	Leipzig Manager
Austin Willis	...	Slabotsky
Peter Renaday	...	Irate Pilot (as Pete Renaday)
Bob Whiting	...	Chaplain

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Finland:K-8 | USA:G | Australia:G

Filming Locations:

Kaua`i, Hawaii, USA

Company:

Walt Disney Productions

Trivia:

The Boeing B-29 Superfortress featured in the flying sequences was Fertile Myrtle, Air Force 45-21787, Navy BuNo 84029, Civil Registration N91329. From 1951 to 1956 it was used by the Navy and NACA to launch the Douglas D-558-II Skyrocket at Edwards Air Force Base, California. It is currently in the collection of the International Sport Aviation Museum in Lakeland, Florida. Four other partial B-29 Superfortresses were acquired from the China Lake Naval Weapons Center, California. One was used for interior shots at the Disney studio. Another was used for night sequences afloat in MGM's outdoor tank. The third was used for the crash site on the island and the fourth was made into the floating Noah's Ark. They were returned to the Navy after filming concluded.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Murder, She Wrote: The Last Flight of the Dixie Damsel (#5.7)" (1988)

Soundtrack:

Half of Me

One of first Disney films with an edge

In fact, it wasn't Bette Midler who first brought new blood into the heavy-handed 7O's and 80's Disney productions. It was people like Elliott Gould who originally provided the shot in the arm that Disney needed. In this movie he lends his wise-cracking, go-to-hell character to the role of Noah Dugan and it's a joy to watch! The whole cast is great, and the whole movie is a delight from start to finish.