| Swiss Family Robinson | |
|---|---|
Original theatrical poster |
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| Directed by | Ken Annakin |
| Produced by | Bill Anderson Basil Keys Walt Disney (uncredited) |
| Written by | Lowell S. Hawley |
| Based on | The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss |
| Starring | John Mills Dorothy McGuire James MacArthur Tommy Kirk Janet Munro Kevin Corcoran Sessue Hayakawa Cecil Parker |
| Music by | William Alwyn |
| Cinematography | Harry Waxman |
| Editing by | Peter Boita |
| Studio | Walt Disney Productions |
| Distributed by | Buena Vista Distribution |
| Release date(s) | December 10, 1960 |
| Running time | 126 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $4 million |
| Box office | $40,000,000 |
Swiss Family Robinson is a 1960 American Technicolor feature film starring John Mills, Dorothy McGuire, and Sessue Hayakawa in a tale of a shipwrecked family building an island home.[1][2] 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 Tobago. It was the second feature film version of the story (the first film version was released by RKO in 1940) and was a commercial success.
Swiss Family Robinson was one of the rare wide screen Disney films shot with Panavision lenses. When shooting in wide screen, Disney had nearly always used a matted wide screen or filmed the movie in CinemaScope.
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A family on their way to New Guinea is chased by pirates into a storm. The captain and crew abandon the ship leaving the family shipwrecked off an uninhabited island. 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. As they gather what can be removed from the ship, the pirates return and begin shooting at the ship. Fritz and Ernst begin readying the ship's cannon, but they only have one shot. Suddenly, the pirates turn around; Father has put up a flag indicating the ship is under quarantine and that there is Black Death aboard. The three men construct a tree house home on the island while the youngest boy Francis (Kevin Corcoran) investigates the wildlife (and starts an impressive collection of animals) and Mother (Dorothy McGuire) prays to be rescued. The boys, particularly Ernst, also build inventions to provide modern amenities to the family such as drawing water and preserving food.
Fritz and Ernst head off to explore the island and try to see if anyone else lives on it or if it is connected to any other lands. While at a distant corner of the island, they again spot the pirates who originally drove them into the storm. The pirates have captured another ship and have the ship's captain and cabin boy "Bertie" captives for ransom. Fritz and Ernst rescue Bertie but the captain, Bertie's grandfather, stays behind. The three dodge the pirates and head back to the family's tree house. En route, they discover that Bertie is really Roberta (Janet Munro) and not a boy at all. The three fend off snakes and hyenas as they head home. They arrive back at the tree house at Christmas.
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. They blow up the ship's wreckage in an attempt to make it difficult for the pirates to remember where the family went aground. While prepping for the pirate attack, Fritz and Ernst vie for the affections of Roberta. Ernst is more studious and attempts to sway her with his knowledge and intelligence while Fritz, older and not studious, uses his charm and physical attributes to attract her. Fritz and Ernst eventually come to blows over her and are only stopped by the intervention of Father. He declares the next day the first holiday for "New Switzerland" in an attempt to divert everyone. While prepping for the race (everyone has an animal to ride: Francis has the elephant, Ernst the ostrich, Roberta the zebra, the monkey on Duke, etc.), Mother fires the gun to signal the start of the race; the pirates, who are at that time sailing the coast looking for the place they last saw the ship that brought the family to the island, hear the gun and know the family is near.
Led by their captain (Sessue Hayakawa), the pirates storm the island. The family manages a brave defense but are sorely pressed. Their defenses include pits with a tiger in one pit, rock piles, a log pile and coconut bombs (hollowed out coconuts filled with gunpowder with a fuse), all of which cause problems for the attacking pirates. When the pirate leader waves a white flag the family imagines they have routed the pirates, but the pirates instead are sneaking around the back of the fort. Francis' much-maligned "pirate alarm" is the only thing that warns them of the surprise attack. They begin defending the fortress but are soon down to only a few shots with their muskets. At this critical moment, a ship appears on the horizon captained by Roberta's grandfather (Cecil Parker) and fires its cannons at the pirates and their ship. The pirates retreat and make a desperate escape, and the family rejoices. Father, Mother and Francis choose to remain on the island while the Captain notes that Father will likely be recommended as Governor of the new colony. As for the rest of the family, Ernst chooses to return to Europe with the rescuers in order to enroll in a university to continue his studies while Fritz and Roberta plan to marry and make New Switzerland their home.
Swiss Family Robinson was released on December 10, 1960. The film received generally positive reviews by critics and gained large revenue at the box office. All together, the film grossed roughly $40,000,000,[3] making it the highest grossing film of 1960 and beating other hits of that year at the box office such as Psycho, Spartacus, and Exodus.[4] Adjusted for ticket price inflation, the box office revenue is $427,773,600, making it one of the biggest hits of all time. The film currently holds an 82% approval rating at the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes.[5]
Upon the film's initial release, New York Times film critic Howard Thompson lauded the film by 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."[6] In his Family Guide to Movies on Video, Henry Herx wrote: "[N]icely directed by Ken Annakin, much of the fun for children will come from the delightful and inventive conveniences the family builds and their relationships with the island's wildlife".[7]
The film makes many substantial changes to the plot of the original book, among them:
On December 12, 2004, Variety announced that a remake of Swiss Family Robinson was in development at Walt Disney Studios with Mandeville Films co-producing the film.[8] In June 2005, Variety confirmed that director Jonathan Mostow would helm the director's chair for the film.[9] It was to be produced by David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman.[9] Production on the film never began and the film was believed to be shelved until in early 2009 when it was announced by /Film that the remake was still in the works. By this time, the film was renamed The Robinsons and "designed to star Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith and all three of the Smith kids - Trey, Jaden and Willow."[10] As of 2011 there have been no official announcements, casting or setting of production dates.