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:

THRILL TO The Fabled Tree-House! -- The Wild Animal Race! -- The Great Pirate Attack!

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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

Walt Disney Pictures bought the rights to the 1940 version produced and distributed by RKO, then Walt Disney confiscated all known prints of RKO Radio Pictures' version, so there wouldn't be comparisons to the Disney version.

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Goofs

Elephants, Siberian tigers, zebras, emus and other zoo animals on a South Pacific island is hard to believe regardless of the explanation offered in the film; the fact that only a single tiger and a single elephant is observed, only makes their appearance more questionable.

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Quotes

Roberta: Do you read a lot, Fritz?
Ernst: Who, him? He practically doesn't ever read at all!
Fritz: Never really needed to. Sooner or later, Ernst tells me everything he knows.

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Connections

Referenced in Gone Home (2013)

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Soundtracks

Swisskapolka
(uncredited)
Music by Bob Jackman and Buddy Baker

User Reviews

Get me to a tree house!!!...tremendous family fun...

SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON is the ultimate family adventure film from Disney, photographed on the island of Tobago for some lush scenery and exotic settings. But that tree house rules!! Everyone's favorite fantasy is this sort of adventure whereby a shipwrecked family finds refuge on what appears to be a deserted island, only to find that they're not exactly alone.

DOROTHY McGUIRE and JOHN MILLS play the parent roles (played originally by Thomas Mitchell and Edna Best in the B&W '40 version), and the kids are played with equal skill by Kevin Corcoran, Tommy Kirk and JAMES MacARTHUR, who excels as the oldest son.

There's some rough going when the pirates invade, but it's all done in true Disney style and you know there's going to be a happy ending.

Summing up: The kind of film the whole family can enjoy. A lot more visually appealing than the old B&W version filmed on RKO sound stages.