A High Wind in Jamaica

Director: Alexander Mackendrick Alexander Mackendrick

Overview

In this adventure, a Spanish pirate captain attacks a ship in the Caribbean. As his men burn the hapless vessel, a plucky group of British children escape and hide out on the pirate ship. They are soon discovered, and it is the good-hearted captain who saves them from his ruthless crew. Unfortunately, he must also save himself as the crew attempts to mutiny.

Product Details

Release Date:	06/27/2017
UPC:	0024543315704
Original Release:	1965
Rating:	NR
Source:	ALLIED VAUGHN
Language:	English
Time:	1:43:00
Sales rank:	31,237

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Anthony Quinn	Capt. Chavez
James Coburn	Zac
Lila Kedrova	Rosa
Deborah Baxter	Emily Thornton
Gert Frobe	Dutch Captain
Benito Carruthers	Alberto,Alberto
Viviane Ventura	Margaret Femandez
Nigel Davenport	Frederick Thornton
Isabel Dean	Mrs. Thornton
Kenneth J. Warren	Captain Marpole
Martin Amis	John Thornton
Roberta Tovey	Rachel Thornton
Jeffrey Chandler	Edward Thornton
Karen Flack	Laura Thornton
Henry Beltran	Harry
Brian Phelan	Curtis
Dan Jackson	The Big One
Trader Faulkner	The Dancer
Charles Lawrence	The Tallyman
Charles Hyatt	Little One
Kenji Takaki	The Cook
Danny Williams	Old Sam
Louise Bennett	Mamie
Marion Ward	Mrs. Femandez
Philip Madoc	Captain
Maude Fuller	Josephina
Elsie Benjamin Barsoe	Nurse
Gordon Richardson	Judge
Dennis Price	Mathias
Larry Adler	Composer

Technical Credits

Dennis Cannan

Ronald Harwood

Stanley Mann

John Croydon	Producer
Alexander Mackendrick	Director
Dennis Cannan	Screenwriter
Ronald Harwood	Screenwriter
Stanley Mann	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

A High Wind in Jamaica is a curiosity. It doesn't quite work, either as a pirate flick or as an adaptation of the Richard Hughes novel that is its source, but it's odd enough that one likes it in spite of its failings. In truth, it would probably have been a much better (and certainly more consistent) movie if it had either been much more or much less faithful to the book. Had it kept nothing more than the general premise of kids stuck on a pirate ship, it could have mad ea glorious, superficial adventure-on-the-seas story. Had it stay more faithful, it could have been an engrossing, involving exploration of the peculiar moral system that comes with childhood and the dangers that system can bring to adults. In its present form, Jamaica falls between those two stools. There's certainly plenty of action and adventure, but not enough to float the whole film. And the plot and characterizations that have been retained lack the depth and the commitment necessary: we SEE the characters behave in certain ways, but the film never really examines or delves into the motivation behind the behavior. In spite of this, director Alexander MacKendrick has given the film a beautiful look and directs the action and the character scenes quite well -- but without making them mesh together. The leads are splendid, with Anthony Quinn and James Coburn adding dimension to their roles while displaying a chemistry befitting this duo. Best of all is Deborah Baxter as Emily, whose performance rings true from start to finish. The audience may never understand exactly why she behaves the way she dos, but there's no doubt that the actress does.