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The Clan of the Cave Bear (1986) More at IMDbPro »

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48 reviews in total

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56 out of 75 people found the following review useful:
all reviwers must be knee-jerk fundamentalists, 18 April 2003

Author: takatomon from where i am is where i am

so far, aside from the comments here at IMDB, i have not seen one positive review for this film. i just don't get it. i honestly think it's a political assault against a film that threatens reviewers jealously guarded dogmas.

for me the film is escapism at it's finest. it's a film about cave dwellers that doesn't condescend by having the characters speak in english, but instead in subtitled "neanderthal". it gives the film believability as far as i'm concerned.

it's not a film about great conflicts and battles in pre-history, it's merely a character study about the final days of the neanderthals and how they are threatened by cro-magnons (daryl hannah).

it isn't an overly flowery movie. a couple of times it gets down and dirty in it's portrayal of mob rules mentality and racism. maybe the film offends viewers because they see themselves in the characters and don't like the comparison. all of the unpleasant behaviors, although simplified in the movie, still happen today in "more civilized times". people are still threatened by anyone different, women still get raped, sexism hasn't gone away and populations are still ruled by ruthless dictators.

for me, clan of the cave bear is a totally believeable story of life as it may have been 50,000 years ago. it protrays primitive people with primitave language, laws and beliefs with an honest affection. it's more of a "documentary" about daryl hanna's trials and tribulations in her adopted tribe than it is a plotted story. it comes off more like real life.

while anyone is entitled not to like the movie for whatever reason, i find the movie highly entertaining and an excellent escape into the world as it might actually have been long ago. it easily holds a spot in my top 50 list for it's totally unique experience.

i give it a 10 for bravely going where few films dare to and succeeding admirably without following boring hollywood formulas. it just doesn't deserve it's bad reviews at all. i don't give 10's out to many films either.

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24 out of 29 people found the following review useful:
And we thought that cavemen yelled "yabba dabba doo!", 20 August 2002

Author: Skeletors_Hood (skeletors_hood@hotmail.com) from Kansas City

This is one of the films that I grew up watching, and even now, I love it and admire its beauty as much as I ever did.

First of all, comparing movies to their books isn't something we should do, because they are two different forms of entertainment, and can take different liabilities. What is important is if the movie still tells the basic story, and in the case of the Clan of the Cave Bear, it stuck to the original story in a very suitable fashion. I must admit that when I first saw this movie, I did not know that this was from a book. It wasn't until 15 years later that I read the book, and it confirmed my statement that the movie kept the story intact.

As far as the acting was concerned, I have to admire a cast that had to convey throughout an entire script in a totally different language, and manage to keep it consistent. Watching the film, you can see that certain gestures always mean the same thing, as well as certain grunts and sounds. Folks, that is the result of a lot of hard work, and to put down that part of the film is like looking at the Empire State Building as just the result of an erector set.

The basic story of the movie is to show prejudice against what is new and not understood. Ayla's presence is meant to show the Clan what the future holds, which is the underlying reason why they fear and hate her, though they are unaware of the reasons. Ayla endures many trials throughout the movie in order to gain their trust and approval, which ultimately prepare her for a journey into the world without the Clan.

A movie worth watching again and again. The book is great also, by the way, so I recommend them both.

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23 out of 29 people found the following review useful:
Why was this so coldly received?, 9 May 2002

Author: VivienLeighsnumber1fan (cocoababs1@lycos.com) from London, England, UK

I saw this little unknown gem two days ago, and I was just blown away by all the horrible reviews for it back in 1986. I just don't understand why people didn't want to see a healthy Darryl Hannah as the cave girl, Ayla. Maybe it's because, Darryl Hannah didn't appear nude, even though the costumes are scantily. All in all, It is a nice movie to watch. It tugs at your heartstings seeing all of the brutal honesty presented on screen. And that music! Oh, I was the Niagra Falls from the beautiful music. The most heart-breaking scene of this movie is when Ayla is separated from her mother at 2, from a vicious earthquake. The ghastly "R" rating is unecessary, altough the rape scene is horrible and graphic, they could have sacrificed for a PG or PG13.Watch this one if get the chance. You won't be disappointed!

1986 98 minutes Rated: R CC.

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17 out of 21 people found the following review useful:
Decent adaption of an epic novel, 19 September 2005

Author: thrix (thrix@hotmail.com) from Sweden

The movie version of 'Clan of the cave bear' isn't really a bad adaption - but the very fact that this is a movie, running less than two hours, forces it to be a very compact version of the book. A lot of the details are left out, which of course is unfortunate.

Overall, the acting is quite good. How are we really supposed to act so it will be like neanderthals? Can you really put all their knowledge and way of life and act it out when modern man is so much different (or are we?). Daryl Hannah is probably a good choice for Ayla at the time, and thanks to the 80's still Allowing 'rougher stuff' to be shown, or as I prefer it: more natural, the abuse described in Auel's novel is to most extent included.

To sum it up: an OK adaption, but a 2-hour movie does not make this novel justice.

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17 out of 23 people found the following review useful:
An intense story of a young woman's survival, 26 June 2004

Author: BB-15 from California

If the movie lacks anything it is the beauty of the photography in films like "Quest for Fire" and "Windwalker". Otherwise I can't find any serious flaws. It is rare to find a decent movie about prehistoric peoples. "Quest for Fire" is the best movie of this kind in my opinion but "Clan of the Cave Bear" is a close second.

I am not trying to compare "Cave Bear" to the books by Jean M. Auel. To me the film takes the best part of Auel's story and makes a pretty good movie. The later Auel stories become more romance novel fodder and to some that may be more entertaining. "Clan of the Cave Bear" is not romantic. It captures the brutality of prehistory very well for a fiction film. I've seen documentaries about the Neanderthal and was surprised how accurately "Cave Bear" showed that time. The flaws in human nature are shown in all their rawness in this movie. There is prejudice, oppression and abuse in full force. What makes it bearable for me is how the Darryl Hannah character is able to deal with this and eventually over come it.

"Cave Bear" also shows some of the ritual of stone age culture with the Shaman and the hunting rites of passage. There is some beauty in that culture. But the bottom line for these people is survival and that was a very difficult thing to accomplish. They were scratching and clawing (literally) just to eat and raise children. And sadly we know that they are doomed (except for a few Neanderthals who possibly interbred with Cro-Magnons).

This kind of documentary approach in "Cave Bear" will not thrill those who want a stone age comedy-romance, "Caveman", or a special effects absurdity of prehistoric people fighting lots of dinosaurs, "One Million BC", (which is historically impossible). But if you can appreciate an intense story of a young woman's survival in the wild and her experience with a lost stone age culture, then I recommend "Clan of the Cave Bear". 9/10

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12 out of 16 people found the following review useful:
Very entertaining, well worth the rent, 15 February 2001

Author: Jamie Clay from Northern California

If you liked Quest for Fire, you should enjoy this fictional visit to the origin's of civilization. I always loved the film's poster and my wife loved the book(s) but we missed the movie when it was in the theaters, partly because it wasn't receiving good reviews. When we rented this, we expected a turkey (we love to study bad film) but were pleasantly surprised.

Simply said, this made a good "Sunday Morning" film to wake up to with a hot cup of java. I was a little disappointed that the look Daryl Hanna sports in the film's poster never fully comes to fruition in the movie (it got close in one scene) but none the less it was fun.

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13 out of 18 people found the following review useful:
Out now on "budget" DVD, fun to watch after all these years., 4 August 2002
Author: TxMike from Houston, Tx, USA, Earth

The popularity of DVD has exploded the past couple of years like no new entertainment technology before. We are seeing more and more older films released on DVD for a pittance, like this one, "Clan of the Cave Bear", which I purchased for under $6US. There isn't much sound in this film, but the images, all shot in British Columbia, come through really well.

The setting in time is prehistoric, during the brief overlap of the Neanderthal and Cro-Magnon humans. Ayla (Daryl Hannah), a very blonde Cro-Magnon, was orphaned as a small girl, wounded, and found by the dark-haired Cave Bear Clan of Neanderthals. Against the wishes of the leader, she is taken in and nursed back to health by the medicine woman. As she grows up we see that she is innately smarter than her adopted family, learns things quickly, begins to innovate. The Neanderthals are portrayed as if they had perhaps an IQ of 80, while Ayla certainly has an IQ of 120 to 140.

This causes difficulties for her, because the women are totally subserviant, and one of them showing smarts or initiative is punished. A woman who even touches a hunting weapon is sentenced to die. But when Ayla does to defend a tribesman, she is only exiled in the winter and, if she survives, allowed to come back. She does, but finally realizes her "spirit" is different, and leaves to look for her own kind. After she fights and defeats the young "alpha male", who earlier had raped her thus giving her a child.

Some critics scoff at the primative community portrayed here, but it in fact is very accurate. In the DVD commentary we learn that much of the design for this film came from watching a few crude videotapes that were actually made by the Cro-Magnons during that prehistoric period and were discovered, well-preserved, in far northern sub-freezing caves in the 1960s. Not surprisingly, they were in the Beta format.

The whole film is about acceptance of someone different and of change. This is a common theme in many many films over the years, and is closely related to the popular "Pleasantville" of 1998. What makes this one different and enjoyable is the setting in time, the depiction of community values of these prehistoric peoples. I rate it highly overall.

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10 out of 14 people found the following review useful:
I watch it again - and again!, 19 June 2000
Author: (milady_1625@hotmail.com) from Herts, UK

When I saw it was on the TV I got up at 2 in the morning to watch this film! I just couldn't wait until the morning! I thought it was really good but advice to anyone is READ THE BOOK! The story is absolutely captivating and involving from the start. Darryl Hannah is a good Ayla (if not a little old - she is supposed to be 12!) and the film does well with the language problem. The hand signals are good and there aren't too many sub-titles. I really like the music as well. I think this is a good attempt at summarising Jean Auel's work (which is really very difficult to film successfully) - But summary is the right word so you are really missing out until you read the novel - there is so much more to it- I think the film could be a little longer - it is a 800 page book! Even though it doesn't live up to the book it's still really good fun to see. I also think that a film of her later books would be a success - especially as the language isn't a problem then. My sister watched it before reading the book and she was hooked, so it's definitely a success whether you are familiar or otherwise with this compelling story. I think it's a real shame that it's deleted in the UK! It should be on TV more often so people have a chance to watch it.

On the whole I would advise any fan who is prepared to be open-minded to watch it - you are in for a treat. If you are just going to nit-pick about the plot - Forget It!

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5 out of 6 people found the following review useful:
Could have been better, 26 February 2007

Author: Thoughts_in_Chaos from United States

I am not going to say it sucked because it was nothing like the book. I am merely going to say that if you have read the book, don't bother because it will only tick you off. And What ticks me off is not that it didn't follow the book closely enough, it didn't follow the book AT ALL. There are scenes that should have happened well after they did, and scenes that happened that would have explained other scenes that were in the movie that aren't. To the above commenter who said that the subsequent books were all romance fodder, first Valley was not, it wasn't until the end that most of the pleasures were added, with small intermittent scenes throughout. Yes, there are a lot of Pleasures scenes in the books, Yes, they could have been done without, but that doesn't mean that the rest of the story is not worth reading. That is not what I am writing a review on, however. I was more upset that the movie didn't even maintain a SEMBLANCE to the book, other than the character's name, almost as if the director skimmed the book, and took pieces from sections without thinking about how they would go together.

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10 out of 16 people found the following review useful:
It's OK, but somewhat commercial., 15 March 2004
Author: Blueghost from the San Francisco Bay Area

It ain't "Quest for Fire," but does an OK job of getting it's story across. I've seen this film a couple of times, and am not really thrilled by it, but I also don't have too many criticisms of it either.

If I were to point my finger at one aspect of the film, an aspect that I thought was holding back a better movie, I'd have to place my finger on its direction. The actors are in earnest of their performances, and do their absolute best to give us a paleolithic saga, but the director points both story and performances to a high energy commercial film. For myself the performances, though genuine, aren't natural. They're forced, and that's no fault of the actors.

This combined with poor light design and mediocre cinematography really torpedos what could've been a better film. And for a film supposedly shot in 70mm every viewing I've ever seen has the film shaking in the gate a great deal. Not to mention the number of hot spots from reflectors bouncing sunlight onto the actors. The nail in the visual coffin is the color timing. The upside is that the location selected was quite impressive, though the film never conveys the geographic location it's supposed to be.

The notion of a blond haired beauty adopted into, quite literally, a low-brow tribe is fair enough. But the fact that she's "superior" and blond puts a wry knowing smile on this viewer's face. Then again it is Hollywood, so the sappiness is probably there by design. It's also somewhat ironic that a woman narrator, one with a seemingly African accent, helps convey the story of a blond heroine. It just seems silly to me.

I've never read the book, so I can't comment on the adaptation. However, I will say this; I found many of the plot points implausible, contrived, and just plain outright wrong, as well as disconnected from what is known, or at least believed to be understood, about our ancestors.

If you must see a caveman epic, then do yourselves a favor and pop "Quest for Fire" into the video machine of your choice. "Clan of the Cavebear" is watchable, but not overly great. I might call it an above average flick, but by no means exceeding.

Watch at your own risk.

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