Yachtsman Steve Drexel bets his friends that he can swim ashore on a remote south-seas island with nothing but a toothbrush and be 'living the life of Riley' when they return. With handmade... See full summary »
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Yachtsman Steve Drexel bets his friends that he can swim ashore on a remote south-seas island with nothing but a toothbrush and be 'living the life of Riley' when they return. With handmade implements the lighthearted, athletic Steve improbably builds a comfortable home with all amenities...and local fauna trained to help him! Meanwhile, a grass-skirted young lady flees an unwelcome wedding on a nearby island. Steve calls her Saturday, but what is he to do with her? Written by
Rod Crawford <puffinus@u.washington.edu>
Watching this film, I was struck at the small similarities to Shakespeare's Tempest. A western figure of intelligence is cast into a distant land, and makes the spirits (here it is animals) his servants, constructing his own order. And just as the issue of race was present then, so it is here. The islanders are presented in a simplistic and racist manner, and the film's conception of gender is rather chauvinist. Witness how naturally the beautiful, nubile and innocent island girl, fleeing an arranged marriage to a boorish muscle-bound youth, takes to doing our Westerner's dishes! However, this fellow, portrayed ebulliently by an aging Douglas Fairbanks Sr., brings now books. Indeed, there is very little in his head apart from his principal goal. The single-mindedness and vapid goals of the film make the whole exercise into a chore. The cinematography is competent at best, but entirely dull most of the time. The humor is weak. A film for Fairbanks completists only. Turns out his voice, at least as shown here, was disappointingly squeaky. He didn't stand a chance, the poor soul.
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Watching this film, I was struck at the small similarities to Shakespeare's Tempest. A western figure of intelligence is cast into a distant land, and makes the spirits (here it is animals) his servants, constructing his own order. And just as the issue of race was present then, so it is here. The islanders are presented in a simplistic and racist manner, and the film's conception of gender is rather chauvinist. Witness how naturally the beautiful, nubile and innocent island girl, fleeing an arranged marriage to a boorish muscle-bound youth, takes to doing our Westerner's dishes! However, this fellow, portrayed ebulliently by an aging Douglas Fairbanks Sr., brings now books. Indeed, there is very little in his head apart from his principal goal. The single-mindedness and vapid goals of the film make the whole exercise into a chore. The cinematography is competent at best, but entirely dull most of the time. The humor is weak. A film for Fairbanks completists only. Turns out his voice, at least as shown here, was disappointingly squeaky. He didn't stand a chance, the poor soul.