Gloriously shot in Panavision (disney’s first) on location in Tobago
It is a decent narrative- but there’s a bit of a trader horn travelogue “trip to the zoo in 1960” feel to it. Not nearly as bad as the 1931 film but still
Predictable peaks and valleys of the narrative- ship wreck to open, pirates 5 minutes later, sharks 5 mins after that, etc
John Mills and Dorothy McGuire are excellent in the leads and give the film instant credibility- Sessue Hawakawa from bridge on the river kwai is good here as are the kids. We have Janet Munro from darby o’gill, half the cast from old yeller (tommy irk, kevin cororan and mcguire)- this is disney’s stable of young talent at the time- very recognizable and mostly solid
60’s television differentiator—you can’t get this color and this photography on tv
Bit of a “home alone” booby-trapped great ending
Recommend but nowhere near the top 10 in any year let alone 1960 but still- in my archives and lots to appreciate when revisiting.
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