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Swiss Family Robinson (Vault Disney Collection) | Year: 1960 Classification: Feature Film Family Directed: - Ken Annakin Actors/Actresses: - John Mills - Dorothy McGuire FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY... You can't get much more wholesome than this. This film definitely has the Disney stamp all over it. The Swiss Family Robinson are on their way to New Guinea. Chased by pirates on the high seas, their ship runs up against a reef, and they find themselves shipwrecked by a deserted tropical island. They manage to get themselves and all their belongings and animals ashore, intact and none the worse for wear. They even survive a shark attack. The mother, played by the lovely Dorothy MaGuire, is always clean, perfectly groomed and coiffed. The father, played by the wonderful English actor, John Mills, is positively cheerful the entire film. Talk about optimism. His three sons, played by the hunky James MacArthur, the adorable Tommy Kirk, and the cute-as-a-button Kevin Corcoran, work tirelessly to make their new home into an island paradise. In record time, they build a multi-level house to die for, high up in the trees. Somehow, they manage to get a pipe organ off the wrecked ship, ashore, and up into their multi-level tree house, so that they can sing Christmas Carols at the appropriate time. Kevin Corcoran even has a baby elephant for a pet, and they parade around their sculpted lawn which is surrounded by what appears to be an English garden. After a while, two of the boys set out on a home made sail boat to check the terrain around the island. Their boat capsizes and crashes on the rocks, when they notice pirates ashore, the very same ones who had bothered them before. Now, the pirates appear to be holding two males captive, an old man and a young boy. The two Robinson boys help the young boy escape, while the older man tells them to leave him, as he will be ransomed. The boys go off with their young companion in tow, while chased by the pirates. They manage to thwart the pirates and get back to the safety of their home on the other side of the island. In the meantime, they discover that the "boy" is really a girl, delightfully played by Janet Munro, and the older man was her grandfather. The two older boys are sweet on her, which causes a little fun loving tension. As the pirates are now aware that they are on the island, they set up all sorts of ingenious defenses. When the pirates do come a calling, they capably battle off a horde of pirates without injury to themselves. Just as the pirates are in flight, a ship comes to the rescue led by the grandfather, who seems to have been ransomed and rescued in no time, and managed to get a sailing ship to the island to recue them, lickety split. Who in their right mind, however, would ever want to be rescued from this magical island, where nothing can possibly go wrong, and everyone loves each other. Pure Disney fantasy, this film is a lot of fun to watch and, better yet, can be enjoyed by the whole family. this LOADED dvd deserves more than 5 stars I strongly reccommend! This has to be one of the most fun family films Walt Disney ever made. And the 2 disc DVD treatment that Disney gave this film is perfect. It is Widescreen first of all, maybe it is the first widescreen release outside of theatres ever done for the film. And what a diffenrence in makes in the beautiful island vistas of the film. The DVD transfer itself is well done, with lush colors, great image and depth, great sound, it just sparkles. The movie was filmed on location on the tropical island of Tobago. While the production went way over budget, Walt did not get mad at the time since the film was worth it. Featuring loads of animals, comedy, action, suspense, pirates, and tropical scenery this was a hard adventure film to beat. And similar to the role the Nautilus filled in "20,000 Leagues Below the Sea", the treehouse becoems a star in it's own right. The invenetive home designed by the castaways from the ship salvage is incredible to behold. An audio commentary as an alternate track features comments from casr and crew. The extras on this DVD are what really make it a treasure, and they are not all listed here at Amazon or even on the packaging. You have to hunt it down and get creative with your remote. So let me help by telling you what to look for if you buy this... For starters they have the original cartoon that was released with the movie, "Sea Salts" allowing you to see this with the kids the way that it is meant to be seen. There is a 2 minute "1960 Disney Studio Album", a montage of projects, attractions, shows, and films being made and released that year. Next we have 23 minutes from an old Walt Disney television episode titled "Escape to Paradise", that includes the parts of that episode that show the making of the film. Up next is original 1960 movie theatre trailers for the film, and 1960 televison spots. Then there are "Storyboard to Scene Comparisons"; a seperate "Storyboard Gallery"; and a 2 minute "Production Gallery" of photo stills from behind the scenes at location. Another gallery of production stills; "Biographies" on 8 principle actors; and "Concept Art" on the film design work. A featurette titled "Adventure in the Making" was made just for this set, and at 49:00 minutes long it is very complete, with recent interviews of the original cast and crew. There is great behind the scenes footage in this piece, and the folks regale us with funny stories. Peter Elleshaw (matte artist), Ken Annakin (director), Danny Lee (special effects), and actors John Mills, Tommy Kirk, Kevin Corcoran are all here. ANOTHER short 4 minute featurette that was also made just for this set is "Swiss Family Treehouse" narrated by Hayley Mills, it is the pre-opening footage and the actual Opening Ceremony of the Swiss Family Robinson's Treehouse (now gone) at the Disneyland Park. Walt is really enjoying himself in this must see footage. Included on the set is a very nice 12 minute interview with James MacArth Good Movie. This is a really good movie. Especially for little kids.... but hey, we're all little kids at heart, except for scrooge, but it's still a good movie. Both versions, new and old. Buy Swiss Family Robinson at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.com Jamster - the latest ringtones for your phone!  Search with Walhello on the Internet on Swiss Family Robinson Search with the Priority Search Engine on Swiss Family Robinson This page in other languages: Suomeksi | Nederlands | Deutsch
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