The Earthling

The Earthling
Directed by	Peter Collinson
Written by	Lanny Cotler
Produced by	Samuel Z. Arkoff Elliot Schick John Strong
Starring	William Holden Ricky Schroder
Cinematography	Donald McAlpine
Edited by	Nicholas Beauman
Music by	Dick DeBenedictis Bruce Smeaton
Distributed by	Filmways Pictures
Release date	24 July 1980
Running time	97 minutes
Countries	United States Australia
Language	English
Budget	$4.5 million[1]
Box office	A$72,000 (Australia)

The Earthling is a 1980 American-Australian adventure film directed by Peter Collinson, and starring William Holden and Ricky Schroder. It was filmed in Australia in 1979.

Plot[]

Patrick Foley goes to the outback while dying of cancer. He declines medicine and is at peace with his decision to die alone in the forest. As he sees a family camping, Shawn Daley discovers his parents losing control of the recreational vehicle and falling to their deaths. Despite having an ethical dilemma, Foley accompanies Shawn. After days of educating survival, they forgive each other. As Foley dies, Shawn continues travelling.

Production[]

The film was shot from September to October 1979 in the Blue Mountains, Barrington Forrest and Warrumbungle National Park. It was reported that Holden and Schroder got along while filming. Schroder named one of his children Holden in honour of his co-star.^[2]

was Assistant to the Director.^[3]

Reception[]

The film drew greatly mixed reviews, with some critics reviling it, while others praised it.^{[citation needed]} It played to little notice in theatres, but later became something of a daytime staple on HBO and other cable-movie channels in the 1980s. It grossed $72,000 for box office in Australia.^[4]

See also[]

• Cinema of Australia

References[]

External links[]

• The Earthling at IMDb
• The Earthling at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Earthling at Oz Movies
• The Earthling at the National Film and Sound Archive

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