Product Description

13-year-old Brian is the sole survivor of an unreported plane crash. Alone in the Yukon wilderness, Brian must learn to survive by his wits, find food and shelter, and brave wild, hungry animals until or if he is found.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #8436 in DVD
• Released on: 2000-06-27
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 82 minutes

Customer Reviews

" A Cry in the Wild"
"A Cry in the Wild" is a super film! The screenplay closely follows the plot found in Gary Paulsen's "Hatchet." The main character,Brian Robeson,is a kid who quickly is faced with the decision to adapt or perish in the beautiful wilds of the Canadian wilderness. The scenery is breathtaking in this movie. I was caught up with the thought, "What would I do?" The obstacles that Brian faces are demonstrated in a realistic fashion and keep the viewer wondering what is going to happen next. If you like the outdoors, challenges, and the triumph of the human spirit, see this movie!

Hatchet Vs. A Cry in the Wild
As a professor of Reading Education, I use the book, Hatchet, and this video to demonstrate to teachers-in training that books and videos can both serve a purpose in the classroom. First we read the book. With undergraduates, I read the book to them, one chapter per day. With graduate students, they read the book on their own. After we've read the book, we do a "compare and contrast" comprehension activity. Students are expected to write notes about how the two media are similar and different. Using an "H" compare and contrast page (one leg of the H is for Hatchet, one for A Cry in the Wild -- the horizontal leg is used for common items in the book and movie). Once students see and hear Paulsen's talent for crafting words, the movie always is ranked as a distant second. The video also illustrates what Hollywood must do to command a person's attention. For the modest price of the video, it's an excellent way to demonstrate to students of all ages, the power of books over video.

Cry vs. Cry
This movie is NOT the movie of the same title based on Gary Paulsen's book, "Hatchet". Despite the identical titles, this movie is based on a very real abduction and manhunt in 1963, in central Pennsylvania. Both were released on TV in 1990, but this movie had the subtitle "The Taking of Peggy Ann." It is a very accurate account of the kidnapping of teenager Peggy Ann Bradnick, and the ensuing search that cost the life of FBI agent Terry Anderson (played by David Soul) before the kidnapper, William Hollenbaugh, was killed by the police.

The "Hatchet" "Cry" is available in DVD from Amazon. The "Peggy Ann" "Cry" is only out in VHS.