Main Cast: Thomas Mitchell, Edna Best, Freddie Bartholomew, Terry Kilburn, Tim Holt
Release Year: 1940
Country: US
Run Time: 92 minutes
Plot
Johan David Wyss' novel Swiss Family Robinson had been in print for nearly fifty years before the first film version was made by RKO in 1940. Thomas Mitchell is top-billed as the patriarch of the Robinson family, who, as in the book, are shipwrecked on a tropical island and compelled to bring the edicts and values of civilization to their tiny patch of the world. To give the story a bit of topicality, screenwriters Walter Ferris, Gene Towne and Graham Baker contrive to depict the Robinsons as refugees from a foreign war (Napoleonic rather than Hitler-inspired). Produced independently by The Play's the Thing Productions and released by RKO, Swiss Family Robinson was completely withdrawn from circulation on the occasion of the 1960 Disney remake. Side note: The 1940 version represented the feature film debut of Orson Welles, who functioned as offscreen narrator. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
Although long overshadowed by the famous 1960 Disney version, the 1940 Swiss Family Robinson is an exciting and very different take on the story, well worth watching -- if one can manage to track down a copy. (Walt Disney is rumored to have bought up all copies of the film and had them destroyed when his version came out, but there are some VHS transfers available -- usually of rather poor quality.) The biggest difference is the total absence of the crucial pirates-and-kidnapped-girl subplot that takes up the entire last half of the Disney version. In its place, this Family faces more dangerous forces of nature -- a series of damaging storms, a poisonous spider bite, etc. There's also much more attention to detail paid to exactly how the castaways survive in this uncivilized wilderness; instead of the treehouse just appearing before the audience's eyes, the viewer gets to see how it is created. There's also more backstory before the family arrives on the island, as well as an additional (infant) child. Equally important, there's more internal conflict than in the Disney version, with a wife who is not as enthralled with the new home and children who are concerned about how they can get off the island and get on with their lives. This gives Family a very different tone, adding new layers that give depth to the film and make it more than just an adventure story -- not that it stints on that score, however! While the special effects will seem dated to modern viewers, Family still has plenty of excitement to keep pulses racing. The fine cast is headed by Thomas Mitchell and Edna Best, with able support from Freddie Bartholomoew, Terry Kilburn and Tim Holt -- and, of course, the unmistakable voice of Orson Welles providing narration. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Swiss Family Robinson was one of the rare widescreen Disney films shot with Panavision lenses. When shooting in widescreen, Disney had nearly always used a matted widescreen or filmed the movie in Cinemascope.
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. 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. While on the ship, gathering what can be removed, 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.
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 treehouse. 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 treehouse 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.) When 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 a pit with a tiger in it, 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). The pirates retreat and the islanders rejoice. Father, Mother, and Francis choose to remain on the island while Ernst chooses to return to Europe with the rescuers in order to enroll in a university to continue his studies. Fritz and Roberta plan to marry and make New Switzerland their home.
In the New York Times (December 24, 1960) Howard Thompson lauded the film 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."[1]
At the box office, the film took roughly $40,000,000[2] (around $367,000,000 in today's money),[3] making it one of the most successful family films ever made.
The film was also well reviewed by critics, with a Rotten Tomatoes average of 85% fresh[4]. Steven D. Graydanus, of the Decent films guide, said of the film: "Chock-full of exotic locations and animals, desert-island DIY ingenuity, and high-spirited excitement, with a poignant subplot involving the rivalry of the two elder sons." [5].
Comparison with the book
The movie makes many substantial changes to the plot of the original book, among them:
The pirates and Roberta do not appear in the novel. Another girl named Jenny lives with the family instead.
In the novel, the family builds a number of structures, including a much less elaborate tree house, but ultimately settles in a cave.
The novel includes a fourth son named Jack who is the third in order of age.
At the end of the novel, Fritz and Francis return to Europe while the rest of the family remains on the island.
In the book the family is headed to Australia, in this film they are headed toward the German colony of New Guinea
Remake
Disney has officially announced that a remake is in development with Mandeville Films co-producing the movie. It is scheduled to be released in 2012.
