It's hard for an Aussie to listen to the dubbed voices of Alwyn Kurts, Olivia Hammett and Jack Thompson. It does pack an emotional wallop to witness Ricky Schroeder watching his parents going over a cliff crying out "daddy"... but even that has comical moments with the accident being caused by Thompson's bad driving (he just has to reverse doesn't he?) and dubbed yelling.
William Holden is a good actor though not terribly convincing as an outdoorsman and certainly not as someone who grew up in Australia. Maybe Robert Mitchum could have been more convincing with his Sundowners heritage. (Poor old Rod Taylor clearly wasn't a big enough star).
The film could have done with baddies out to get Schroeder.
Sam Arkoff presented this - it's a Filmaways movie rather than an AIP one.
The locations and cinematography are beautiful. It has an impact on me as a dad because Schroder cries for his parents. There's resonance in that director Peter Collinson died of cancer shortly after filming ended age only 44 - and Holden died shortly after too.
But it's a poor movie. Ambling along. Holden miscast. Too many Americans.
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