The film stars Kirk Douglas in a dual role as the brothers Harrison (a character who appeared frequently in Paterson's poems) and Spur, Jack Thompson as Clancy, Tom Burlinson as Jim Craig, Sigrid Thornton as Harrison's daughter Jessica, Terence Donovan as Jim's father, Henry Craig, and Chris Haywood as Curly.

Both Burlinson and Thornton later reprised their roles in the 1988 sequel, The Man from Snowy River II, which was distributed by Walt Disney Pictures.

All three men had worked together in television; another former TV colleague, Simon Wincer, became involved as executive producer with Michael Edgley and succeeded in raising the budget.

[1][4][5] The screenplay contains numerous references to Banjo Paterson, aside from using his poem "The Man from Snowy River" as the source material and his inclusion as a character in the film.

A Bible passage from Genesis 30:27, which talks about cattle, goats, and sheep is read aloud in a scene in the middle of the film.

The film was not shot in the actual Snowy Mountains but in the Victorian High Country near Mansfield, Victoria, where Burrowes' wife's family had lived for several generations, which was logistically easier.

He was taught to ride by mountain cattleman Charlie Lovick, who owned the buckskin horse Burlinson rode in the film.

Gerald Egan doubled for Burlinson for several riding shots in the film, including the jump into the "terrible descent".

Other moments in the film such as when Jim is thrown over the fence into the path of the brumbies were performed by professional stunt men.

The film "was released to a fair degree of critical acclaim" and "moviegoers found it to be a likable and highly entertaining piece of filmmaking that made no effort to hide its Australian roots, despite the presence of American star Kirk Douglas in one of the principal roles".

As the production notes say, the problem in making Banjo Paterson’s poem into a film was that while he provided a wonderful climax, he didn’t leave much in the way of exposition.

"[10] Roger Ebert said, "It's corny in places, and kind of dumb, and its subplot about the romance between the boy and the girl seems plundered from some long-shelved Roddy McDowall script.

But The Man from Snowy River has good qualities, too, including some great aerial photography of thundering herds of horses.

"[11] The Man from Snowy River was a box-office success, grossing A$17,228,160 at the box office in Australia[12] – the highest-grossing Australian film until Crocodile Dundee was released four years later.

[16] As indicated by its box-office takings, The Man from Snowy River gained a very large audience, popularising the story and Banjo Paterson's poem.

Located in Clear Hills, east of Mount Stirling, Victoria, the popular 4WD and hiking landmark was destroyed on 11 December 2006 in bushfires.