80,000 years ago, a tribe of early humans are etching out a meager existence
within a massive cave. But they have a major advantage: fire. The mouth of the
cave is protected from predators by a massive bonfire, which is constantly
tended to by one of the men. A special tribal elder is charged as the keeper of
the flame--literally, as he always keeps a small flame burning within a
protective casing made of bones and animal hide. All is going pretty good for
these humans until they suffer a massive attack from the wagabou, a more
ape-like group of primitives who drive them from their cave sanctuary. The tribe
retreats to an island in the middle of a mist-shrouded bog--where, to their
horror, they discover that they have lost the eternal flame when its caretaker
accidentally drops it in the water during his flight to safety.
Facing extinction without their precious fire, the tribe sends three of its best
hunters, Naoh (Everett McGill), Amoukar (Ron Perlman) and Gaw (Nameer El-Kadi,
a.k.a. Nicholas Kadi), out into the wilderness to seek out the life-giving flame.
But for a group of humans who don’t know how to make fire, finding it is easier
said than done. Along their way, the hunters encounter cannibals, a herd of
mastodons, and a strange young woman named Ika (Rae Dawn Chong). Directed by
Jean-Jacques Annaud, who also made The Name Of The Rose and Enemy At The Gates,
Quest For Fire may not be scientifically exact, but it’s still one of the best
movies ever made regarding primitive humans. The fact that it manages to tell
its story without the use of English--or any other modern day language--makes it
an even more impressive film, and adds to the gritty realism of its stark
landscape.
My one quibble with the film is that the "bad" tribes, such as the cannibals,
have cartoonish makeup which make them look troll-like. But then, this isn’t
supposed to be a documentary, anyway. The actors--McGill, Perlman (in his
big-screen debut), Kadi and Chong--are all marvelous, making you care for their
characters stictly through body language and facial expressions. After watching the film,
see it with the second commentary, with actors Ron Perlman and Rae Dawn Chong,
as well as executive producer Michael Gruskoff. This is genuinely funny, as well
as filled with fun facts about the production. You won’t find Rachel Welch
prancing around in a skimpy outfit here; instead Quest For Fire strives to
depict a dramatic story set in the faraway Stone Age as practically as possible.
And it succeeds.
--SF
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