The Shadow of Chikara

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The Shadow of Chikara
The Shadow of Chikara.jpg
Directed byEarl E. Smith
Screenplay byEarl E. Smith
Produced byEarl E. Smith
Barbara Pryor
Starring Joe Don Baker
Sondra Locke
Ted Neeley
Dennis Fimple
John Davis Chandler
Linda Dano
Slim Pickens
Cinematography James W. Roberson
Edited by Tom Boutross
Music by Jaime Mendoza-Nava
Production
company
Farwinds Productions
Distributed by Howco International Pictures
Release date
  • June 10, 1977 (1977-06-10)
Running time
114 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Shadow of Chikara (also known as Demon Mountain, The Ballad of Virgil Cane, Thunder Mountain, Wishbone Cutter, and The Curse of Demon Mountain) is a 1977 American Western horror film written and directed by Earl E. Smith. The film stars Joe Don Baker, Sondra Locke, Ted Neeley, Dennis Fimple, John Davis Chandler, Linda Dano and Slim Pickens. It features the song The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down by The Band.

Contents

Plot

Confederate veterans of the last battle of the American Civil War team up with a geologist and set out to find a hidden treasure: diamonds hidden in a cave in an Arkansas mountain. However, the soldiers find they are being followed by a mysterious hunter (or hunters) who may have a connection to a mythic eagle spirit, Chikara.

Cast

Production

The Shadow of Chikara is the first feature film ever shot on the Buffalo National River. [1] Principal photography commenced on October 21, 1976, in Yellville, Arkansas. [2] Production moved to Bull Shoals-White River State Park by early November and continued in the area for seven weeks. [3] NBC affiliate KYTV of Springfield, Missouri aired a behind-the-scenes program on November 21, 1976. [3]

Locke's then-boyfriend Clint Eastwood flew in about three weeks into the shoot and spent his days touring the countryside and fishing while she worked. [4]

Release

It was released on June 10, 1977, by Howco International Pictures. [5] [6] [7]

Home media

The film was released on DVD by Mill Creek Entertainment on July 5, 2005. It was later released by Dead Of Night on February 20, 2006. It was re-released by Mill Creek on September 12, that same year. In 2015, it was released by Movies Unlimited and Willette Acquisition Corp. on July 10, and 20th respectively. [8]

References

  1. ↑ "Bloody warfare, mining renewed on Buffalo River". The Mountain Echo. November 4, 1976. p. 6.
  2. ↑ "Y" Knot News. The Mountain Echo. October 14, 1976. p. 17.
  3. 1 2 "Movie-makers come to the Buffalo". The Baxter Bulletin. November 18, 1976. Section B, p. 5.
  4. ↑ Locke, Sondra (1997). The Good, The Bad & The Very Ugly: A Hollywood Journey. William Morrow and Company. p. 145. ISBN   9780688154622.
  5. ↑ Print advertisement in the June 9, 1977 Reporter Times
  6. ↑ "The Shadow of Chikara". Internet archive. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  7. ↑ "The Shadow of Chikara film review". moria.co.nz. March 9, 2000. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  8. ↑ "Shadow of Chikara (1977) - Earl E. Smith". Allmovie.com. AllMovie. Retrieved June 20, 2018.
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