The Moon-Spinners

Based on Mary Stuart's novel, The Moon-Spinners is a nice and amusing adventure comedy. Constructed a little bit like an Hitchcock movie, where tension is building up slowly but surely and where many characters are not always what they seem to be, it is filled with memorable scenes (the escape from the windmill, for example) and good humor. Although she may not be as sparkling as in Pollyanna or The Parent Trap, Hayley Mills is nevertheless still the star of the show, both charming and endearing. Furthermore, as a beautiful grown up, she is portraying a modern heroin, not afraid to take charge of her own detective work. As the villain, Eli Wallach is also particularly brilliant. Eventually, the music and, especially, the title song by Terry Gilkyson are lively and enchanting.

No classic, but very pleasing, old-fashioned, middlebrow entertainment of a kind we used to take for granted. A little comedy, a little romance, a lot of action, plenty of eye-filling locations, and, in particular, a trio of wonderful women. Hayley's charming in one of her first puppy-love roles; Joan Greenwood, of the delicious voice, is, as always, indispensable; and Pola Negri does some spirited scenery-chewing in a prominent cameo. They thoroughly outclass the men, including a hammy Eli Wallach and a pallid Peter McEnery.

Nothing about it is exceptional, but everything about it is at least competent. The direction is a little obvious: Every time a Maguffin appears in the script, Neilson pulls in for a close-up. Perhaps that's a sop to help the kiddies follow the story, though, despite the Disney imprimatur, it's not really a little-kids' film. On the contrary, it's one of Disney's least cloying, and one of the most appealing for grownups.

I saw the film in 1964 when I was 11 and loved it then. I feel the old Disney films are still the best. As I know many of my students are not familiar with the old films, I showed it to my fifth-graders recently, and they loved it (and asked to see it again). For youth viewing, the film still holds up. I still love it.

The Moon-Spinners is by far a classic movie for your video collection. Besides great actors, this movie has every little speck of something for everyone. A fortune in stolen jewels, add a dash of danger, a pinch of romance, and season this movie with Alfred Hitchcock-like intrigue and comic flair, and you have a helluva movie for the entire family! 8 out of 10.

I guess the script wasn't top-notch... Okay, it wasn't, but there are plenty of other things to concentrate on here. Pretty good performances from Eli Wallach as the villian, Hayley Mills and Peter McEnery as the detectives/romantic leads, and Irene Papas as the villian's nervous sister, who dosen't have much to do but makes an impression. Also, funny comic performances from Joan Greenwood as Mills' aunt and the appearence of Pola Negri, the silent screen star, as the jewel collector Madame Habib. The gorgeous scenery of Crete is also a big asset. I found the film to be pretty suspenseful and engaging throughout. I really wasn't sure just what was going to happen next. It did keep me on the edge of my seat in some spots. The only weak link was a very rushed and uneventful conclusion, but otherwise very well-done. This was Disney's answer to Hitchcock, and also an apparent attempt to get his young star, Miss Mills, into more adult roles after four years of excellent but very "kiddie" films for the studio. Unfortunately, she didn't get any more roles like this at Disney; her next and last was in "That Darn Cat!", a very enjoyable and funny film but still aimed more at kids. She ended up having to leave the studio, do a nude scene in another film, and have an affair with an older man in order to become more adult in the eyes of the world. Still, this was her starting point, and while Hitchcock could easily have topped this and any other suspense/mystery film, it's still fun to watch and suspenseful, never boring. See it; you won't be sorry.