Review: A High Wind in Jamaica

In the mid-19^th Century, parents Nigel Davenport and Isabel Dean are raising their family in hurricane-afflicted Jamaica. After the latest storm, the parents decide that perhaps their children (including young Deborah Baxter) would be better off back home in the more ‘civilised’ England. So they put them on a ship captained by Kenneth J. Warren, and off the kids sail. Unfortunately, the vessel is taken over by grubby pirates led by Anthony Quinn, with James Coburn his bemused First Mate. After they realise there’s not much of value to take from the ship, the pirates board their own vessel, only to find that the children have ended up aboard. The pirates don’t wish to be caught kidnapping a bunch of kids, so they plan to pass them off onto a brothel madam acquaintance of theirs, played by Lila Kedrova. However, along the way the kids start to rub off on gruff Quinn, which starts to irritate Coburn and the other men.

 

There were differing views on how to adapt Richard Hughes’ novel for the silver screen, and it would appear that for this 1965 Alexander Mackendrick (“The Ladykillers”, “Sweet Smell of Success”), the less interesting Disney-ish flick treatment won out. That’s not what I had read, but looking at the film as is, I see Disney all over it, despite not actually being from The House of Mouse. Still, for me all of the entertainment value of this high seas adventure for the juvenile set is in the adult cast: Anthony Quinn, James Coburn, Nigel Davenport, Dennis Price, Lila Kedrova etc., all interesting performers appearing in a film that would rather spend more time on a bunch of samey kids in a non-musical blend of “The Sound of Music” and “Swiss Family Robinson” with pirates. It’s far from a bad film, it’s just that it’s not really my kind of things and I wasn’t overly invested in it.

 

I didn’t think much of young Deborah Baxter (she has one ‘duhhh’-looking facial expression throughout), the only member of the young set who gets even half a personality, whilst the rest of the little urchins are completely nondescript. A blustery Anthony Quinn is well-cast, and James Coburn is able to switch between amused and cool to fed-up and frankly mutinous very easily. Kenneth J. Warren is very fine as the captain as well. For my money, Lila Kedrova steals the show. She’s not in the film much, but when she is, she’s a hoot. It’s a shame that she, Nigel Davenport, Dennis Price (who only turns up at the end), and a thoroughly wasted Gert Frobe (a year after “Goldfinger”) are given such short shrift as they’re all very interesting and charismatic actors. The kids…not so much. It’s a pleasant film and well enough made for what it is, but of intermittent appeal for me. The courtroom finale is completely deflating and rather odd for the genre and target audience.

 

Look, I’m viewing this as an adult and it’s clearly not a film aimed at adults. It’s for children, and although I’m not sure how the children of 2021 would take to the film, I imagine that the children of the 1960s would take to the film a heck of a lot more than I did (will they care about the courtroom stuff at the end though?). I’m going to grade it based on my own reaction to the film, but with the caveat that I’m aware I’m not the target audience here. Besides, it’s not like there aren’t kids films I don’t love, albeit mostly ones I first watched when I was a kid myself. All I can say is I found it disposable, and it would’ve been even less appealing to me without the adult cast members. Adapted from Hughes’ novel by the trio of Stanley Mann (“The Silent Flute”, “Eye of the Needle”, “Sky Riders”), Ronald Harwood (“The Pianist”, “The Dresser”, “Australia”, “Quartet”, “Being Julia”) and TV writer Denis Cannan, it’s an OK film at best, nothing more.

 

Rating: C+