The Truth About Spring

I saw this film when I still had a crush on Halley Mills (I was 14,in 1964) So what if I'm a romantic? It was a nice Feel good Movie, set it the Caribbean when even pirates seemed a little less lethal. It was a clean right of passage / Baby leaves the nest film. Cleverly written not overdone, while showing the acting talents of Halley and her father John. When I finaly made my way to the Caribbean where this film was shot ten years later,I found I wasn't alone in my love for this film. Now I which I had this film on DVD.

Small-budget Universal film stars John Mills as the salty skipper of his own ramshackle fishing vessel whose teenage daughter finds romance for the first time with a law-school graduate on vacation; all three coast into trouble when modern-day pirates vie for a treasure map Mills has in his possession. Sub-Disney nonsense is brash and frantic, yet the high adventure we anticipate never quite arrives. Hayley Mills as Spring isn't allowed to act her age--she's too old to still be playing the kissless teenager--however her quieter moments with James MacArthur are sweetly done, and the film is certainly airy and lively, if not especially memorable. ** from ****

Hayley was 18 years old when she filmed The Truth About Spring. They had to cut her hair to make her appear grown up. Hayley plays Spring Tyler. She has spent her entire life on a boat growing up away from civilization. Her real life Father Sir John Mills plys Tommy Tyler her Dad. All is well on the small boat until she meets Ashton. Ashton is the handsome young lawyer who spends a week on the boat with Spring and Tommy. Tom boyish Spring does not understand the new emotions she feels for Ashton. Ashton is played by James McArthur. A delightful movie which should be on DVD and video. Unfortunately it rarely is aired on television anymore. It was last seen on A&E.

During the 1960s, a Caribbean sailor and his likeable daughter search for a buried treasure throughout the perilous Caribbean sea, being full of unsavory pirates. A tolerable agreeable juvenile adventure romp which cast a beautiful teen, Hayley Mills, as a tomboy daughter of a rogue sea drifter performed by her actual daddy John Mills. Along the way Hayley Mills falls for a cute young advocate at law, James MacArthur. Here hurricane Hayley whirling her way through a tropical romantic adventure. Kiss her and she will make your head swim... If she does not knock of you block..Hayley a tomboy.. With delicious curves..

Freely based on a novel titled : Satan , a romance of the Bahamas, written by Henry Vere and enjoyable script by James L Barret . Well paced in Walt Disney style and competently starred by the sympathetic Hayley Mills as the obstinate daughter , John Mills as the roguish old sea dog and James MacArthur who is after romance with Hayley. All stars providing fine interpretations while working holiday in the Spanish sun. The film boasts such English stalwarts as Lionel Jeffries, Harry Andrews, Nial MacGinnis, all of them pretending to be peculiar pirates and have a high old time rolling their eyes. Most actors have all been in Walt Disney movies, including Hayley Mills, John Mills, David Tomlinson. In fact, Hayley Mills and John Mills performed 7 films together : So well remembered, Tiger bay, The parent trap, The chalk garden, The family way, The truth about Spring and a Tv episode of Love Boat. Furthermore, John Mills and James MacArthur starred as daddy and child in Swiss Family Robinson 1960 by Ken Annakin and produced by Walt Disney. In spite of being set in the Caribbean, this picture was actually shot off the coast of Spain, Brava Coast, Girona.

It displays a colorful and sunny cinematography by Edward Scaife, filmed on location in Costa Brava, Mediterranean coast, Spain . And adequate, evocative production design by Gil Parrondo, Oscar winner for Patton and Nicholas and Alexandra. As well as a rousing and thrilling musical score by Robert Farnon. This motion picture, The truth about Spring, was professionally directed by Richard Thorpe. The Hollywood veteran director Thorpe made all kinds of genres such as, Tarzan adventure : Tarzan finds a son, Tarzan escapes, Tarzan secret creature, Tarzan in NY. Musical : Athena, The student prince . Romantic comedy : On an island with you, Thrill of a romance, A date with July, Horizon lieutenant. Elvis Presley Movies :Fun in Acapulco, Jailhouse rock . Western : Vengeance valley. Adventures : Challenge to Lassie, The prodigal, All the brothers were valiant, Ivanhoe, Prisoner of Zenda, Malaya, Knights of the Round Table. Noir and intrigue : Above suspicion, Black hand, The tin man goes home. Rating 6/10. Nice film for the whole family.

I saw this on tv many times while growing up in the 70s. Strange it has never been released on home video of any kind and even stranger it doesn't show up on tv or cable or satellite much these days. The film stars father and daughter John and Haley Mills about a crusty old 'sea captain' with a teen daughter whose plum for leaving the nest. The girl has grown up basically as a Tomboy crew cut and all, plying the sea lanes in and around the Florida Keys and living a sea-going nomads life with her father, but is now physically looking more like a woman. She's rounding out and is about 17 or 18 years old, Mills's true age in 1964. A young man called Ashton(played by James MacArthur) comes into their lives and he is taken with and falls in love with Spring(Haley's character). As all birds do young Spring must leave the nest which means Spring and Tommy(John Mills) have to separate. This is touching as the only life this girl has known has been living on one derelict boat after another in and out of the Florida Keys. After pondering her decisions, Spring decides to accept Ashton's marriage proposal and Tommy gives his blessing as he approves of Ashton.

The movie is well photographed with bright rich easy colors and could almost pass off as any of the Disney movies Haley Mills is best remembered for. Very family friendly even though modern day pirate action is supposed to denote a touch of menace to the picture. Tommy and his cohorts are much too lovable for any 'Yo Ho Ho'. A cast of well-known British character actors add to the fun of this 'pseudo' pirate adventure ie: Harry Andrews, Niall MacGinnis, Lionel Jeffries as Tommy's cronies. This is a fun-for-all tale of a girl coming of age and for me it reminds of the tv show Flipper. It takes place in the same area that Flipper does(Florida Keys vicinity) and was released around the same time Flipper premiered on t.v. in the mid-60s. Yep a good fable about coming of age for the children to sit down and watch.