Iguana

Synopsis

Feature film described by some as a cross between The Tempest and The Phantom of the Opera. A grotesquely disfigured harpooner named Iguana is severely mistreated by his fellow sailors on a whaling ship in the 19th century. One night he escapes and takes up residence on a remote island. He makes himself ruler of the island and declares war on mankind. Anyone unfortunate enough to land on the island with Iguana is subjected to his cruel tyranny. Judith Buchanan (op cit) writes’It is a grim, and grimly partial, allusion to The Tempest, offering not Gonzalo’s Utopian fantasy, or even Antonio’s sense of a land ripe for exploitation, but rather only Ariel - as Harpy’s ‘most desolate isle’ (III, iii, l80).

Language

English

Country

Switzerland; Italy

Medium

Film

Technical information

Colour / Sound

Year of release

1988

Duration

97 mins

Credits

Director

Monte Hellman

Producer

Franco di Nunzio

Cinematographer

Josep M. Civit

Screenplay

David M. Zehr; Monte Hellman; Steven Gaydos

Music

Franco Campanino

Costume

Leslie Peters Ballard

Art Direction

Gil Parrondo

Cast

Everett McGill

Oberlus (Iguana) (Prospero)

Additional Details

Production type

Fiction Films

Plays

Tempest, The

Subjects

Drama

Keywords

Shakespeare, William (1564-1616)

Notes

Notes

Released on DVD in 2001 (Region 1 only).

General

Based on the novel by Alberto Vazquez Figueroa.

Reviews

`Iguana’ in Buchanan, Judith, Shakespeare on Film (Harlow, Essex: Pearson Education, 2005) pp. 94-6.

Production Company

Name

Enterprise Iguana Film

Name

New Pentax Film

Online Retailer

Name

amazon.ca