Citizen Rules...Cinemaesque Chat-n-Review

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Sean, same for me. I hadn't seen it since the 70s. I wasn't into the pirate story so much this time around. But I was more into the overall adventure of a family working together. I was amazed at the location and sets.

I should have added to my review that I loved the DVD extras. There were several documentaries on making the film, showing just how elaborate it was. On a negative side they did some risky and questionable animals stunts.



You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
I don't remember if I saw Swiss Family Robinson when I was a kid or not. I think I saw The Adventures of the Wilderness Family, and maybe Mountain Family Robinson, but I get all those old "family" movies confused now that I'm old and my memory isn't what it used to be.

I'll have to watch all of them again when I have some time.

Is the more recent movie Meet the Robinsons a remake of any of those movies?



Meet the Robinsons doesn't sound like the same movie. There's been many films based on Swiss Family Robinson.

Swiss Family Robinson TV series from 75-76 with Martin Milner.

Also a 1975 movie with Helen Hunt.

The Adventures of Swiss Family Robinson 1998 with Richard Thomas aka John Boy

The New Swiss Family Robinson 1998 with Jane Seymour and David Carradine.

Swiss Family Robinson 1959 with Patty Duke and Dennis Hopper ( a scary combination)

Swiss Family Robinson 1940 with nobody who's name I recognize.

Finally a 1973 TV movie too.





I remember seeing this at school on a Saturday morning. We had to buy a ticket and then we watched it in the assembly hall. I think it started about 11:30am. I remember liking it, but apart for the big treehouse, I remember nothing about it.
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@Citizen. I loved the pirate stuff as well. I also remember really liking the love triangle, which is weird for a kid. I always felt so bad for the middle brother and his"silly hat". The final pirate show down was epic for a kid. Home Alone is just a pretender next to Swiss Family.
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You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
Meet the Robinsons doesn't sound like the same movie. There's been many films based on Swiss Family Robinson.

Swiss Family Robinson TV series from 75-76 with Martin Milner.

Also a 1975 movie with Helen Hunt.

The Adventures of Swiss Family Robinson 1998 with Richard Thomas aka John Boy

The New Swiss Family Robinson 1998 with Jane Seymour and David Carradine.

Swiss Family Robinson 1959 with Patty Duke and Dennis Hopper ( a scary combination)

Swiss Family Robinson 1940 with nobody who's name I recognize.

Finally a 1973 TV movie too.




Wow, that's a lot of remakes. How many of those versions have you seen?



Honey Kid....me too, I remembered only one thing, the tree house!

Sean...yup, it was a bit sad for the middle brother who had a crush on the girl, while the older brother had the girls attention.

GBG...I've only seen this one. But I want to see the others. Especially the Jane Seymour one.



You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
Meet the Robinsons has nothing to do with Swiss Family Robinson.

It's about an orphan boy who time travels.

Meet the Robinsons is on my animation watchlist. I bought the DVD at a garage sale last year, but I haven't watched it yet.





South Pacific (1958) Based on the wildly successful Rodgers & Hammerstein stage play of the same name. This set a record for a newly released movie, playing contentiously at the same theater in London for 4 1/2 years.

One of only 20 films that was made in Super Wide Screen, Todd AO 70mm print.

One of the most unique aspects of South Pacific is the usage of colored lens filters to give various scenes a monochromatic look. Reportedly after the film was processed the effects of the filters became more pronounced which disappointed the director, Joshua Logan. Prompting him to call the filters his worst idea ever.

Shot on location at Kauai Hawaii and set during WWII on a small South Pacific Island that is surrounded by Japanese Troops. In the distance looms the magical island of Bali Hai.

South Pacific was a big budget film that utilized leads that weren't familiar to mainstream American audiences at the time:

Rossano Brazzi a respected Italian stage actor, played a Frenchman who has escaped criminal charges in France, seeking refuge as a plantation owner in the South Pacific.

Mitzi Gaynor a relatively unknown actress, is an army nurse from a small town trying to see the world for the first time, while having to deal with her prejudices and love.

John Kerr is a Lieutenant sent on a dangerous mission to land on a nearby Japanese held island. He falls in love with a young native girl from Bali Hai, played by newcomer France Nuyen. He too must deal with his own prejudices and the choices he makes for love.

Juanita Hall plays a colorful character, 'Bloody Mary' who profits from selling grass skirts to the Americans and is looking for a husband for her young beautiful daughter.

Character actor Ray Walston also has a small but fun roll, playing a rogue who profits from the war.

South Pacific has one of the greatest Rodgers and Hammerstein score of any musical film. And is the only movie based on one of their plays to retain all of the original music numbers.

The film works on many levels. A great cast of talented actors. It's exotic, real world locations. An almost dreamy, cinematic look. The idea of a mystical island called Bali Hai, where life is idyllic and the native girls are friendly. In sharp juxtaposition is the prejudices and the deadliness of war.

If you haven't seen South Pacific, give it a try. You too might what to visit Bali Hai.

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OK, so I guess my review of South Pacific is too long or nobody likes musicals...

For my next review I'll make it shorter, I promise!

I want to thank Christine for recommending to me the next movie...





The Innocents (1961)
Film Process CinemaScope 2.35:1 Black and White
Directed by Jack Clayton
Cinematography by Freddie Francis
Screenplay by William Archibald and Truman Capote
Film Editing by James Clark

Based loosely on the 1898 classic novella, The Turn of the Screw by Henry James. The movie is inaccurately referred to as a horror film. It's a Gothic story, with either a psychological twist or a supernatural one. The film cleverly allows the viewer to ultimately decide if the ghost are real or a figment of the young governesses imagination. The Innocents has more in common with films like Rebecca (1940) or Wuthering Heights (1939) than it does with other early 1960s horror films.

Deborah Kerr is well suited to play the young governess hired to care for two young children at a 19th century British country estate. She seems like a proper British governess, cloistered and responsible, yet with a pensive more hidden side.

The cinematography of The Innocents is sublime. Each scene is composed like a work of art. The lighting is beautiful. The special effects and optical effects are remarkable. The story itself is intelligent and thought provoking, giving the viewer the chance to finalize the meaning of the story for themselves.


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You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
OK, so I guess my review of South Pacific is too long or nobody likes musicals...

For my next review I'll make it shorter, I promise!

I want to thank Christine for recommending to me the next movie...

Sorry Rules, somehow I missed your post about South Pacific yesterday.

I like the movie South Pacific, but it's not one of my favorite musicals. The songs are great, but the movie seems to lack something that most of the other musicals of that era seemed to have.

If you like the movie South Pacific, you should watch the concert version with Reba McEntire and Brian Stokes Mitchell. It was part of the PBS series "Great Performances". It's called "South Pacific in Concert from Carnegie Hall", and it's available on DVD.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0798459/reference



Citizen, glad you liked The Innocents
I always thought that the bit where

WARNING: "plot spoilers" spoilers below
The kid kisses her on the lips was really shocking, and when she does it to him at the end - something very disturbing about that



GBG, I haven't seen South Pacific in Concert from Carnegie Hall but I have seen the remake with Glen Close. The remake was a better story line, but I really liked Mitzi Gaynor in the original. She was fresh faced and real. I liked her so much that I watched all of her 1970s TV specials.

Christine
, that scene in the spoiler was a bit shocking! And gave the movie more ambiance. I didn't realize I had seen another version of this until I stared watching the movie last night. I've seen twice The Turn of the Screw (1999) with Colin Firth. I liked that version pretty well too. Did anybody else think Deborah Kerr looked liked a young Agnes Moorehead in this?



You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
GBG, I haven't seen South Pacific in Concert from Carnegie Hall but I have seen the remake with Glen Close. The remake was a better story line, but I really liked Mitzi Gaynor in the original. She was fresh faced and real. I liked her so much that I watched all of her 1970s TV specials.
I saw the remake with Glenn Close, but it wasn't as good as the original movie, or the version with Reba. I thought that most of the voices were too weak for the music, and I didn't like that they removed the song "Happy Talk". Also, I usually like Harry Connick Jr, but he didn't shine in that part like I thought he would have.

The version with Reba is on YouTube. The whole show is in parts, but it's there. Here's a link to part one. (You should be able to find the rest from there.)




This is my favorite song:




This is another highlight from that version. Reba and Alec Baldwin singing "Honey Bun":




Thanks! I'll have to check out the entire show. Happy Talk and Honey Bun were both great numbers.

Did you know that the young native girl in the original movie, France Nuyen was also Elaan of Troyius

And the next night I seen her in another movie that I should do a mini review for, it's from 1962 and set in Hawaii.



You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
Did you know that the young native girl in the original movie, France Nuyen was also Elaan of Troyius
No, I didn't know that she was in South Pacific. ("Elaan of Troyius" is not one if the better "Star Trek" episodes.)



Not a fan of musicals, however, when I saw this thread had updated yesterday the last post I could see was mine. Maybe it was the same for others?

Anyway, The Innocents is a wonderful film. So atmospheric and I love that with a horror/creepy thriller.