FILM 1426: FEARLESS
TRIVIA: The airplane crash site was
recreated in a field in Northern California and was exactly modeled on a crash
that occurred outside Sioux City in Iowa in 1989. The "accident" was
reported by several flights flying over the scene. The field was first planted
with 85 acres of corn which was then bulldozed to recreate the gouge that a
crashing plane would have made. The adjoining cotton field was also purchased
to make the crash appear bigger. 140 extras were employed for the scene along
with 40 members of the Kern County and Bakersfield Fire Department. One of the
town's main roads was closed for a week, and the local electricity company was
persuaded to knock down several pylons and snarl up half a mile of electric
cable to create a scene of almost total devastation. The crash site took a
total of 10 days to prepare, and included throwing 600 suitcases and their
contents (all items purchased from local thrift stores) liberally around the
site. In total, the recreation cost $2 million.
To help him get to grips with his
character, Max, Jeff Bridges
spent some time with his good friend Gary Busey who, years
before, had been in a severe motorbike accident which had put him into a coma.
Ironically, director Peter Weir claimed that
making this film cured him of his fear of flying.
One of star Jeff Bridges' favorite
films of his own that he has appeared in.
