Swiss Family Robinson (Vault Disney Collection)

Swiss Family Robinson (Vault Disney Collection) Review

Swiss Family Robinson (Vault Disney Collection) Feature

• With a shipwreck, the Robinson family becomes castaways on a lush tropical island. While the mother (Dorothy McGuire) isn't too happy about this fact, the father (John Mills) and the sons (James MacArthur, Tommy Kirk, Kevin Corcoran) are thrilled at the prospect of carving out a new life for themselves. In short order, the industrious Robinsons have constructed a treehouse with all the creatur

The Disney touch is all over this grand, colorful version of the Johann Wyss adventure of a European family set off for the new world of New Guinea. The film opens on a ship jostled and torn by a raging storm while a family struggles to make it through alive. Tossed into a reef near a deserted tropical island, father John Mills takes charge and the family soon turns their island prison into a veritable paradise. Their multilevel tree house, built in record time, is complete with running water and a working pipe organ scavenged from the ship, while their grand yard is abloom in English roses. As a tale of hardship and pioneer pluck, the tale is pure fantasy, but as entertainment it's energetic and appealing. The island is impossibly populated by ostriches, zebras, lions, and elephants, a private zoo that delights the youngest boy and offers plenty of comic relief. The two older brothers discover even wilder life when they rescue the prisoner of oriental pirates (led by hard-bitten Sessue Hayakawa). There's little real danger anywhere in the film--even the climactic battle with the pirates is a cartoonish affair, with coconut bombs and nonlethal booby traps, until the final desperate, deadly moments. Hardly a faithful adaptation of the novel, but a lush, beautifully photographed film and an entertaining adventure safe for all ages. Dorothy McGuire costars as the proper, worry-prone mother. (Ages 5 and older) --Sean Axmaker


The film was based on the book by Johann Wyss, written to preserve the tales he and his sons made up while imagining themselves in Robinson Crusoe's predicament. Not originally intended for publication, the narrative was later edited and illustrated by Wyss' descendants.

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Pollyanna (Vault Disney Collection)

Pollyanna (Vault Disney Collection) Review

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Pollyanna (Vault Disney Collection) Feature

• Hayley Mills received a special Academy Award for her performance as Pollyanna in this timeless Walt Disney tapestry of small-town Americana. Featuring an impressive all-star cast and a story filled with fun, laughter, and tears, Pollyanna will inspire your entire family and prove that the art of positive thinking is just as delightful today as it was at the turn of the century! System Requirem

Optimism shines in this classic 1960 Disney film starring Hayley Mills. When the newly orphaned Pollyanna comes to live with her wealthy aunt in Harrington Town, life looks promising. Despite her aunt's insistence on propriety and modesty, Pollyanna's cheerful, optimistic ways spread throughout the town--converting even a cantankerous recluse and a whining hypochondriac. Only Aunt Polly has trouble welcoming her young niece into her heart. In a clash between the townspeople and Aunt Polly over local politics, it's Pollyanna's influence that helps individual townspeople find the inner strength to stand up for their own beliefs. When Pollyanna is involved in a serious accident, Aunt Polly finally realizes how much she loves her niece. Can Aunt Polly and the entire town somehow restore Polly's optimism and ensure a full recovery? Pollyanna is wholesome entertainment that will leave the entire family eager to play the "glad game." --Tami Horiuchi


This was Hayley Mills' first film for Disney, and she immediately became the Studio's newest star. She won an Academy Award(R) for the most outstanding juvenile performance of 1960.

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