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List Price: $5.98 | | Label: Universal Studios
Salesrank: 98261
Released: February 23, 1999 |
| Our Price: $3.23 |
| Used Price: $1.74 |
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MPAA Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
Hang on tight for a suspense-filled action-thriller starring Oscar-winner Meryl Streep in a stunning performance that will take your breath away! Streep portrays a former river guide who arranges a white-water rafting trip to celebrate her son's birthday and salvage her shaky marriage. Her skills and courage are soon put to the test when three mysterious strangers threaten to turn their vacation into a living hell. Also starring Kevin Bacon and David Strathairn, this "pulse-pounding thrill ride" (Rolling Stone Magazine) explodes with action, suspense and unforgettable storytelling from the director of L.A. Confidential.
Description of The River Wild - DTS:
Meryl Streep tried her hand at action films with this Curtis Hanson film and proved herself quite credible, bringing emotion as well as the willingness to kick butt. She plays a suburban mom and former white-water rafting guide who is taking her family on a raft trip for summer vacation. But overworked Dad (David Strathairn) can't make the trip, so she and her son leave without him--and walk right into trouble. Killers on the run (Kevin Bacon, John C. Reilly) abduct them and force Streep to take them down the most dangerous stretch of river to elude the cops. Hanson understands how to pace and construct this kind of action fodder, but it's strictly formula stuff, enlivened only by the depth of Streep's portrayal and the viciousness of Bacon's character. --Marshall Fine
The River Wild - DTS Reviews:
Good! Good! Good! 
2009-10-16 - I saw this movie, and was in suspense the whole time! I don't think so many people should have been shot... But owell.
A Water-Logged Yuppie Action Flick 
2009-09-14 - If you are looking for a non-stop action flick with top notch suspense, vile villains and heroic leads....keep looking. "The River Wild" packs about the same punch as a Lifetime Network movie, but with an A-List cast.
I normally love Meryl Streep in just about anything, and she does a fine job here, but the material is just so tepid there really isn't anything to work with. David Straithairn looking as though he just stepped out of a power-lunch with the CEO also does a decent job as the city-boy lost in the wild, but again outside of being given the "too-busy-to-enjoy-my-family" schtick, they don't really give him anything to do here. His decent into "survivalist" mode consists of his clothes getting wet and his hair getting messy. The best role in the film is reserved for Kevin Bacon as the heel. Playing the smarmy, backwoodsy killer who takes Streep and family hostage, Bacon does a great job in the film, and is the only reason I recommend giving this movie a spin in the DVD player. But surrounding him with a whiny kid, a dorky co-bad-guy, inept river police etc. and any edge of danger is sucked right out of the character.
The ham-handed direction even sucks the beauty out of the landscape, and the menace out of the rapids. The musical score gets pumped up to ten and...blah. There is nothing surprising or inventive with the film. Take the dullest parts of "Deliverance", and expand them for an hour and half, and you have "The River Wild".
Family Counseling- The Hard Way... 
2009-08-17 - Meryl Streep plays a wife and mother who arranges a family white-water rafting trip. She is near to divorce, and her husband (David Strathairn from Dolores Claiborn) and son (Joseph Mazzello from Jurassic Park) are barely speaking. Enter a trio of ne'er-do-wells, led by the seemingly nice, Wade (Kevin Bacon from Stir Of Echoes, Tremors, Death Sentence, Hollow Man, etc.), and things start to get interesting. The family is forced to fight for their own survival, while seeing each other in whole new ways. Even the whimpy dad has his chance for redemption through heroic acts of bravery. Streep is magnificent as the former rafting guide mum, out to turn the tables on her nemesis and his remaining henchman (John C. Reilly). I love seeing actors do "out of character" material, especially stuff that no one would expect! If you love action / suspense / thrillers with adventure and kick, then THE RIVER WILD should hit you full-force... P.S.- Watch for Benjamin Bratt in a decent cameo as a ranger...
Wild River - NOT River Wild
2009-07-29 - This download page is for the 1960 Elia Kazan film WILD RIVER starring Montgomery Clift and Lee Remick. Beautiful film about the creation of the Tennessee Valley Authority and the changes it brought to the region - both economically and socially. Love Meryl Streep but this is not that movie.
excellent
2009-07-14 - i just watched this on cable tv and wow what a great movie. i had to purchase this right after i saw it. it blows deliverance away. this is a awesome movie. holds your interest from beginning to end. this is a must see for everyone.
