Ice Station Zebra

The commander (Rock Hudson) of an American sub takes on a British spy (Patrick McGoohan) and a Russian defector (Ernest Borgnine) and races the Soviets to a weather station at the North Pole.

Ice Station Zebra is a big budget, big-cast adventure film in the vein of director John Sturges’ earlier film, The Great Escape.

The film starts fine, with the plot picking up pretty quickly and Rock Hudson carrying things well. Once Patrick McGoohan arrives things really take off, as his character, something of a darker James Bond is easily the best of the film. Toss in some great special effects as the submarine tries to navigate an underwater ice-cavern, and you’ve got the making for a great movie.

Then the filmmakers go and blow it in the third act.

The weather station, up to this point just a McGuffin, takes center stage as the film shifts into mystery mode. The problem is that there’s no tension. The race to get there is over and they won. What now?

Well, there’s a little spy drama, and a standoff with some Soviets, but none of this is particularly engaging. Worst of all, the film’s effects budget seems to be spent, as the Polar scenes look very stagy, with the actors’ faces not even flushed in the supposed sub-zero temperatures.

Ice Station Zebra, could have, and should have been better, but, as is, you’d be better served turning it off at the two-hour mark. An anti-climatic ending, sure, but better then the last half hour’s meandering mess.