Swiss Family Robinson (1960)

A Swiss family must survive being shipwrecked on a deserted island.

Director:

Ken Annakin

Writers:

Lowell S. Hawley (screenplay), Johann David Wyss (novel) (as Johann Wyss)

Stars:

John Mills, Dorothy McGuire, James MacArthur

Cast

Complete credited cast:
John Mills	...	Father Robinson
Dorothy McGuire	...	Mother Robinson
James MacArthur	...	Fritz Robinson
Janet Munro	...	Roberta
Sessue Hayakawa	...	Kuala - Pirate Chief
Tommy Kirk	...	Ernst Robinson
Kevin Corcoran	...	Francis Robinson
Cecil Parker	...	Captain Moreland
Andy Ho	...	Auban - Pirate
Milton Reid	...	Big Pirate
Larry Taylor	...	Battoo - Pirate

Storyline

A family in route to New Guinea is shipwrecked on a deserted tropical island. They are forced to remain on the island because of the damage to the ship and the pirates that are roaming the islands. They create a home on the island (centering around a huge tree house) and explore the island and its wildlife. Plenty of adventure ensues as the family deals with issues of survival and pirates, and the brothers must learn how to live on the island with an uncertain future.

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Plot Keywords:

tropical island | survival | stranded on an island | tropical island paradise | remake | 

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Taglines:

THE GREATEST ADVENTURE STORY OF THEM ALL! (original print ad - all caps)

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Genres:

Adventure | Family

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 December 1960 (USA)

Also Known As:

La ciudadela de los Robinson

Filming Locations:

Bacolet Beach, Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$40,356,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

126 min

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The anaconda was actually pregnant during filming.

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Goofs

The crew is said to have abandoned the ship during the storm. This seems highly illogical. In the days before inflatable life rafts, the only escape vessels on board would have been small wooden life boats, similar to a canoe. It's hard to imagine a canoe fairing any better in a storm at sea than a large sailing vessel.

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Quotes

Ernst: It's better to use your head than break your back, I always say.

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Connections

Featured in The Barefoot Executive (1971)

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Soundtracks

Swisskapolka
(uncredited)
Music by Bob Jackman and Buddy Baker

User Reviews

An Action Packed Adventure For the Family

Filled with action, adventure and romance, this classic tale of a swiss family trying to escape the suppression of their native land and wind up ship wrecked on a tropical island, is nicely adapted on the big screen. The acting is nothing to go woof over but what it lacks in that department it surely makes up for in scenery. You get the impression that the cast was just to breath taken to perhaps concentrate on their lines, being surrounded in paradise. The entire movie was shot on location, in the lavish South Seas. Dorothy McGuire does a nice job playing the mother of three sons, struggling to raise them "properly" although they are in the middle-of-nowhere; while James MacArthur gets loads of screen time with just him and his bare chest. And yes, just as you think you were safe...that annoying kid who was in EVERY DISNEY MOVIE IMAGINABLE...pops up as the youngest (and whiniest) of the brood, Francis. Don't let his stupid remarks, ruin the movie for you. Disney compensated us with many slick plot twists involving: pirates, wild animals and a love interest for Fritz (chest boy) and his punier brother, Ernest. This is a movie EVERYONE can watch munching on popcorn and having a few laughs. My score: 6