Eureka

United States, United Kingdom

1983

130 Min

Color

1.85:1

English

Currently 3.3/5 Stars.
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SCR Mashall Houts, Paul Mayersberg

CAST Gene Hackman, Theresa Russell, Rutger Hauer, Jane Lapotaire, Mickey Rourke, Ed Lauter, Joe Pesci, Corin Redgrave, Helena Kallianiotes, Cavan Kendall

Arctic prospector Jack McCann, after fifteen years of solitary searching, becomes one of the world’s wealthiest men when he literally falls into a mountain of gold in 1925. Years later, in 1945, he lives in luxury on a Caribbean island that he owns. But his wealth brings him no peace of mind as he copes with Helen, his bored, alcoholic wife; Tracy, his dear, but headstrong, daughter who has married a dissolute, philandering social-climber; and Miami mobsters who want his island to build a casino. His life is entangled with the obsessions of those around him with greed, power, and debauchery against a background of occult symbolism. –IMDb

Director

Nicolas Roeg

London-born Nicolas Roeg served in the military as a projectionist, and entered the movie industry immediately after World War II as a gofer and apprentice editor. He joined MGM’s British studios in 1950, and eventually became a cinematographer in 1959, working on a multitude of films of all types, from second unit work on Lawrence of Arabia (1962) to primary photography on the rock & roll exploitation films Just for Fun (1963), Every Day’s a Holiday (1965), and The System (1966). He moved into the director’s chair with Performance (1970), which he co-directed with Donald Cammell, and made a major impression with the low-keyed, eerily compelling drama Walkabout (1971). By the mid-‘70s, Roeg was one of England’s most respected filmmakers, responsible for the unsettling thriller Don’t Look Now (1973), and the sci-fi drama The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976). With the possible exception Insignificance (1985) and the compellingly obscure Track 29 (1988) Roeg’s output throughout the 1980s unfortunately failed to maintain the inspired creativity of his output in the previous decade.
In 1990 Roeg showed promise for the new decade with what was perhaps his most successful film to date, the visually lavish family fantasy The Witches. A wonderfully creative take on acclaimed author Roald Dahl’s beloved children’s book, the film showcased Roeg’s remarkable visual flair in a format suitable for the whole family. Unfortunately the film wasn’t a true indicator for his output in the remainder of the decade. Despite the fact that his pace lagged somewhat after The Witches, 1994’s Heart of Darkness did offer an interesting take on Joseph Conrad’s novel, and those who suspected Full Body Massage was nothing more than made-for-cable softcore were actually treated to a thoughtful meditation on intimacy and human relations. In 2004 Roeg was set to make a return to the horror genre with the philosophical chiller Adina. Nicolas Roeg’s son has gained fame in the film industry in his own right as the producer of such efforts as The Matchmaker (1997) and Spider (2002).—allmovie guide

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Lights in the Dusk

23Apr12

I suppose, as with Neil Jordan's In Dreams, I'm more critical of it because the final act denied me the interpretation that I'd been working towards. Still, there's no denying the power of Roeg's filmmaking, his ellipses, his cross-cutting, his accumulation of moments, past and present - which turn the entire film into an old man's hysterical gold rush premonition at the moment of expiration... or so I thought! - and the absolute frenzied intensity of the first two acts. For me, it's not the long lost masterpiece that I'd always hoped for, but it is, in places, totally unforgettable.

trolley freak

6Dec11

The 70's was a decade of awards and acclaim for Nicolas Roeg but the 80's would prove to be altogether more troublesome. However, all of his films that I have seen are worthy of merit and this is no exception. Featuring an eclectic and intriguing cast, including early work from Pesci and Rourke, this rarely shown and very strange movie is beautiful to look at and captivating. I'd describe it as a magnificent mess...

Joseph Sylvers

19Nov11

Not Roeg's best film, but maybe his masterpiece in the way it incorporates all of his signature elements thematically and in it's editing. A man spends fifteen years looking for gold in Alaska and finally finds it, cut to decades later on his private island "Eureka", that a mobster wants to buy, and which he refuses to sell against all better judgement. Nature and desire, and the impossibility of owning either.