Swiss Family Robinson (film)

Infobox Film
name = Swiss Family Robinson


caption = Original theatrical poster
director = Ken Annakin
producer = Bill Anderson
writer = Novel:
Johann David Wyss
Screenplay:
Lowell S. Hawley
starring = John Mills
Dorothy McGuire
James MacArthur
Janet Munro
Sessue Hayakawa
Tommy Kirk
Kevin Corcoran
Cecil Parker
music = William Alwyn
cinematography = Harry Waxman
film editing = Harry Waxman
distributor = Buena Vista Distribution
released = flagicon|USA 10 December 1960
runtime = 126 min.
rating = (rated 1968)
country = United States
language = English
imdb_id = 0054357

"Swiss Family Robinson" (1960) is a Walt Disney Productions feature film starring John Mills, Dorothy McGuire, and Sessue Hayakawa in a tale of a shipwrecked family building an island home. The screenplay by Lowell S. Hawley was loosely based upon the 1812 novel "Der Schweizerische Robinson" (literally, "The Swiss Robinson") by Johann David Wyss. The film was directed by Ken Annakin, shot in Trinidad and Tobago, and received both critical and public acclaim. It has been broadcast on television, and released to VHS and DVD. A remake is scheduled for 2009.

Plot and cast

A family is shipwrecked off an uninhabited isle. Father (John Mills) and his two eldest sons Fritz and Ernst (James MacArthur and Tommy Kirk) salvage as much as they can from the wreck including livestock, tools, and even an organ. The three men construct a tree-house home on the island while the youngest boy Francis (Kevin Corcoran) investigates the wildlife and Mother (Dorothy McGuire) prays to be rescued.

One day, Fritz and Ernst explore distant reaches of the island and discover a young pirate captive named Roberta (Janet Munro). The brothers rush her to the tree-house. Father realizes the pirates will try to reclaim her and decides to make a stand against them. Defenses are prepared by building booby-traps and fortifying a rocky outcropping.

Led by their captain (Sessue Hayakawa), the pirates storm the island. The family manages a brave defense but are sorely pressed. At a critical moment, a ship appears on the horizon captained by Roberta's grandfather (Cecil Parker). The pirates are routed. The islanders rejoice. Father, Mother, and Francis choose to remain on the island while Ernst departs for a European university with the rescuers. Fritz and Roberta plan to marry and make the island their home. A subplot involves the rivalry between Fritz and Ernst for the love of Roberta. Cast includes Andy Ho as Auban, and Milton Reid and Larry Taylor as Pirates.

Reception

In the "New York Times" (December 24, 1960) Howard Thompson lauded the film writing, "...it's hard to imagine how the picture could be better as a rousing, humorous and gentle-hearted tale of family love amid primitive isolation and dangers." [ [http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9C05E5DD1531EF3ABC4C51DFB467838B679EDE "New York Times: Swiss Family Robinson"] ]

At the box office, the film took roughly $40,000,000 [ [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=swissfamilyrobinson.htm Swiss Family Robinson (1960) ] ] (around $367,000,000 in today's money), [ [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/adjusted.htm All Time Box Office Adjusted for Ticket Price Inflation ] ] making it one of the most successful family films ever made.

The film was also well reviewed by critics, with a Rotten Tomatoes average of 85% fresh [ [http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1020736-swiss_family_robinson/?name_order=asc#mo Swiss Family Robinson Movie Reviews, Pictures - Rotten Tomatoes ] ] . Steven D. Graydanus, of the Decent films guide, said of the film: "Chock-full of exotic locations and animals, desert-island DIY ingenuity, and high-spirited excitement, with a poignant subplot involving the rivalry of the two elder sons." [ [http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1020736-swiss_family_robinson/ Swiss Family Robinson Movie Reviews, Pictures - Rotten Tomatoes ] ] .

Comparison with the book

The movie makes many substantial changes to the plot of the original book, among them:
*The pirates and Roberta do not appear in the novel. Another girl named Emily lives with the family instead.
*In the novel, the family builds a number of structures, including a much less elaborate tree house, but ultimately settles in a cave.
*The novel includes a fourth son named Jack who is the second in order of age.
*At the end of the novel, Fritz and Francis return to Europe while the rest of the family remains on the island.
*In the book the family is headed to Australia, in this film they are headed toward the German colony of New Guinea

References

External links

*
* [http://www.ultimatedisney.com/swissfamilyrobinson.html "Swiss Family Robinson" at UltimateDisney.com]