In Search of the Castaways

"A Thousand Thrills, And Hayley Mills!"

1962 1h 38m EN

👍

6.5

SOLID

★6.5TMDB · 86

AdventureFamily

Synopsis

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Two teenagers, Mary (Hayley Mills) and Robert (Keith Hamshere) are lead by Professor Paganel (Maurice Chevalier) on a search expedition for the children's shipwrecked sea captain father. This Disney film was based upon Jules Verne's 1868 adventure novel Captain Grant's Children.

“A Thousand Thrills, And Hayley Mills!”

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Cast

Maurice Chevalier
Jacques Paganel
Hayley Mills
Mary Grant
George Sanders
Thomas Ayerton
Wilfrid Hyde-White
Lord Glenarvan
Michael Anderson Jr.
John Glenarvan
Antonio Cifariello
Indian Chief
Wilfrid Brambell
Bill Gaye
Jack Gwillim
Captain Grant

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Robert Stevenson
Writers: Lowell S. Hawley
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

64 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Robert Stevenson, shot by Paul Beeson. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by William Alwyn. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Gordon Stone shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Maurice Chevalier and Hayley Mills and George Sanders carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "A Thousand Thrills, And Hayley Mills!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0056095 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 86 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Robert Stevenson directs. Paul Beeson behind the camera. William Alwyn scores. Gordon Stone cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

164 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Directed by Robert Stevenson, shot by Paul Beeson. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by William Alwyn. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Gordon Stone shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Maurice Chevalier and Hayley Mills and George Sanders carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "A Thousand Thrills, And Hayley Mills!".
7IMDB entry: tt0056095 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 86 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
9Classified under 9 themes, including "based on novel or book", "jules verne", "shipwreck", "volcano".

The technical file

Cinematography: Paul Beeson
Original score: William Alwyn
Editing: Gordon Stone
Costume design: Margaret Furse
Makeup / hair: Harry Frampton
Runtime: 98 min · 1h 38m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): G
IMDB: In Search of the Castaways (1962)

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Robert Stevenson

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Community reviews

What people are saying

r96sk2020-07-16
★ 6/10
Maurice Chevalier and Wilfrid Hyde-White are very good, but <em>'In Search of the Castaways'</em> didn't quite capture my imagination. I mostly like the adventure elements, as they cross land and sea in search of castaways. Despite that, I never properly felt attached to the story as the aforementioned isn't stitched together well with the characters and their motives/feelings. It's also paced too slow, at least for me. As noted, Chevalier (Paganel) and Hyde-White (Lord Glenarvan) are solid in their respective roles, if only due to their amusing moments both together and on their own with the younger cast members; who aren't all that memorable, Hayley Mills (Mary) is the standout if I had to pick one. The film hasn't aged beautifully in regards to the effects, a load of the scenes look rather awful nowadays but I can always let that pass in these older films; it's still worth noting, that's all. Away from that you have a few musical numbers, the ones featuring Paganel are pretty good. I feel giving it less than this rating would be harsh, I definitely didn't enjoy it but I can see how others might.
Wuchak2020-12-12
★ 4/10
Ridiculous set-bound Disney adventure with Hayley Mills In Scotland, a sister (Hayley Mills) and her little brother team-up with a French professor (Maurice Chevalier), a shipping magnate (Wilfrid Hyde-White) and his son (Michael Anderson, Jr.) to search for the siblings’ missing father, a sea captain. Their journey first takes them to Patagonia, South America, where they have misadventures in the Andes of Chile and the Pampas of Argentina. But, eventually, they realize they must travel to Australia and New Zealand to find the missing castaways. "In Search of the Castaways" (1962) combines Hayley Mills with a Jules Verne adventure, which made me expect a combination of “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” (1954) or “Mysterious Island” (1961) with “The Parent Trap” (1961). Wrong. This movie is nowhere near the same league as those great films, even though it’s a Disney production like “20,000 Leagues” and “The Parent Trap.” One problem is the too-cutesy take on the material wherein the professor & others are beaming with giggly smiles during life-or-death situations. While this disappears for the most part after the first act it’s still an eye-rolling issue. Another hitch is that the whole flick is set-bound with F/X of the matte painting and miniature variety. Another problem is the preposterous nature of the journey and misadventures thereof, which I’m sure bears little resemblance to Verne’s original tale. Lousy writing is reflected in how several minutes are blown on tediously discussing the dubious message in the bottle. This idiotic element of the script could’ve been thrown out altogether with no harm done. On the positive side, bubbly Hayley Mills was 15 during filming and clearly blossoming into a winsome woman. She looks best in the first half with her semi-tight khaki pants. I liked the jaguar and Maoris too; and there are some fun moments but, otherwise, this is strictly for the 6-and-under crowd. The film runs 1 hour, 38 minutes, and was shot at Pinewood Studios, just west of London, England. GRADE: C-/C