The Island at the Top of the World
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List Price: $19.98
Features
• Color
• DVD-Video
• Full Screen
• Letterboxed
• Widescreen
• NTSC
In Theaters : 20 December, 1974
DVD Release : 18 May, 1999 |
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The Island at the Top of the World Customer Reviews
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♥♥♥♥♥ |
Nice Idea; Weak Execution
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I have always been a big fan of Disney movies. When this movie came out in the 1970s I chose to spend my money on this movie rather than other (better, as I found out later) movies. I was somewhat disappointed at that time that the movie was relatively cheesy in the special effects department. I had to wonder whether my perceptions had changed in 30+ years.
The story begins with a lot of promise. Sir Anthony Ross (Donald Sinden) is on a mission to find his son, who was lost on an Artic expedition. He "recruits" Professor John Ivarsson (David Hartman) to go on the trip. Ivarsson is an American archeologist who also happens to speak the language of the Vikings. Sorry. He has read the language of the ancient Vikings.
Sir Anthony has commissioned a motorized balloon to take his search to the Arctic. While there are a few places where the balloon is readily discernible as a model, the balloon was one of the most charming features of this movie, and one of the best special effects.
Sir Anthony's modes of operation include all manner of highhanded and arrogant activities. In addition to coercing Ivarsson, he is dictatorial with Captain Brieux, the pilot of the balloon, he kidnaps Oomiak (Mako), an Eskimo who was with Donald Ross (David Gwillim) when the great blizzard struck, and generally acts like an arrogant jerk through most of the movie. I began to cringe every time he opened his mouth, and I suspect you will too.
Sir Anthony's expedition reaches a lost colony of Vikings on an island they call Astragard. Fortunately, Professor Ivarsson speaks the language. Of course, Sir Anthony's son would have learned the language by then as well, not to mention having fallen for Freyja (Agneta Eckmeyr), a local blonde lass. Of course there are obligatory moments of tension as the adventurers are accused of being invaders, the mandatory execution, the escape, and all the excitement that goes with a Disney showdown between the bad guys and the good guys.
The movie has high moments. I was fascinated when a propeller broke over the ocean. Nearly every scene with the balloon was a winner. Some of the scenes on the lost island of Astragard were very good, including portions that looked suspiciously like they were "inspired" by "In Search of the Castaways."
The acting was uniformly poor. David Hartman's face was deadpan through the entire movie. His face actually showed emotion in the final scene for the first time. I found Sir Anthony to be obnoxious. I wondered whether the director was poking fun at the English by having the American counsel caution and attempt to be tactful while Sir Anthony was worse than a bull in a china shop. Many of the supporting actors were just as weak, often looking like they were waiting for their cue to speak, standing in place unnaturally. However, the cast had two characters I enjoyed. Mako was good as long-haired Oomiak. The movie was much more interesting because of the addition of Oomiak. I also liked Captain Brieux. Of course, Oomiak and Captain Brieux appeared to have honest emotions, and the two of them together had more emotions that the rest of the cast put together.
There were many places in the movie where the special effects were obvious. The mattes, lava flows and blue screen effects were nearly always painfully obvious. Each time I watch one of the running scenes against a blue screen I wonder how the actors kept from being completely embarrassed. I will refrain from describing how poor the killer whales appeared in their attack scene.
This 1974 movie had a chance of being as good as Disney's adventure movies of the 60s. However, there were too many things going against it. The acting was weak, the plot was excessively derivative, and the special effects were poor even by Disney's standards. In spite of all the bashing, I am actually fond of this movie. It has a certain cheesy charm that allows me to watch it after having seen it several times over the years. I am hesitant to recommend this movie because of its weaknesses, but if you are looking for another movie in the style of "In Search of the Castaways" and the Disney version of "Swiss Family Robinson," then you may want to give this one a try.
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The Island at the Top of the World dvd movie.