For those of us parents who worry about their kids walking around the block by themselves, “Treasure Island” is a bracing breath of sea air.
Young Jim Hawkins not only has to man the world’s loneliest pub on a rocky crag of England near the pirates’ favorite routes, but he’s also sent halfway around the world with the scurviest bunch of salty scalawags ever assembled on a Walt Disney ship, braving guns and constant death threats in search of a fortune.
The 1950 Disney version of “Treasure Island” lets Hawkins run wild, and it’s a terrific adventure for your 6- to 10-year-olds. Yes, they may wonder afterward why you ever worried about them crossing the street by themselves, but it’s worth the adventure.
There have been many movie adaptations of the classic Robert Louis Stevenson pirate story. The Disney version, the company’s first movie using only live action, is the most fun because it never loses that wondering-child’s point of view. Hawkins is both exhilarated and terrified by these lying, cheating, murderous adults so bent on getting to the treasure chest first.
People also love the Disney version because of its fantastic “Long John Silver,” played with cunning charm by Robert Newton. Newton proved so good at the role that they made a sequel focused on the swashbuckler, and then a TV series. Clearly the raffish Newton had more than one leg to stand on when it came to browbeating his fellow buccaneers.
Bobby Driscoll as Jim Hawkins made me look up his Wikipedia entry to find out what happened to his promising career. He was a shooting star as a child, also showcased in “Song of the South” and as the voice of “Peter Pan.” But his adulthood could serve as the model for a chilling documentary, with his fame fading and drug use ending his life at only 31.
Apparently, child stardom is much more dangerous than consorting with pirates.
“Treasure Island”
Rated: G, with some pirate-fighting violence and threats to young Jim Hawkins
Best suited for: Wild boys of 6 to 10, or wild girls who want to learn how to speak pirate.
