Kidnapped *** (1971, Michael Caine, Trevor Howard, Jack Hawkins, Donald Pleasence, Lawrence Douglas, Gordon Jackson, Freddie Jones, Jack Watson, Vivien Heilbron) – Classic Movie Review 10,701

‘Robert Louis Stevenson’s Great Adventure Story… Now a Monumental Motion Picture!’

Director Delbert Mann’s 1971 British-made adventure Kidnapped is the fourth big movie attempt at the Robert Louis Stevenson tale of adventure and romance – a young boy David Balfour (Lawrence Douglas) is kidnapped, sold as a slave, sent to sea and cheated out of his rightful inheritance by his hissably bad uncle Ebenezer Balfour (Donald Pleasence) but meets Alan Breck (Michael Caine) who helps him to get back home to claim his estate and fortune.

This one is afflicted by longueurs in this sprawling adaptation by Jack Pulman that infiltrates elements from Stevenson’s book Catriona. The decent performances from a good cast (especially Caine, Douglas, Trevor Howard as Lord Advocate Grant and Vivien Heilbron as Catriona Stewart) carry it along engagingly, even if the zip and bravado of the best Boys Own adventures are missing.

The main cast are Michael Caine, Trevor Howard, Jack Hawkins, Donald Pleasence, Lawrence Douglas, Gordon Jackson, Freddie Jones, Jack Watson, Vivien Heilbron, Andrew McCulloch, Eric Woodburn, Russell Waters, John Hughes, Peter Jeffrey, Roger Booth, Geoffrey Whitehead, and Claire Nielson.

Kidnapped is directed by Delbert Mann, runs 107 minutes, is made by Omnibus-Biography Productions, is released by American International Pictures (1971) (US) and British Lion Film Corporation (1972) (UK), is written by Jack Pulman, is shot in Panavision by Paul Beeson, is produced by Frederick H Brogger and scored by Roy Budd.

It follows Kidnapped (1938), Kidnapped (1948) and Kidnapped (1960).

© Derek Winnert 2020 Classic Movie Review 10,701

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