Customer Reviews

The Moon Spinners (The Hayley Mills Collection, Vol. 4)

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

This classic Walt Disney movie is very unique and fun mystery adventure, and I really enjoyed the unique setting on the beautiful Island of Crete of the mid-1960's. Directed by James Neilson, produced by Bill Anderson. Released in theatres in 1964, it starred Hayley Mills, Eli Wallach, Joan Greenwood, and Peter McErney. It is the fast paced story of two tourists that accidently tangle with some murderous jewel thieves. Hayley plays Nikky, on vacation with her Aunt Frances in a small Greek fishing village. They stay at a remote sleepy little inn, and note that a dashing young man that Nikky is falling for from England suddenly dissappears. Romance, drama, mystery, action, and humor are in this film. The actors all work hard to make the film believable and do a great job. Pola Negri who had not made a film in 20 years was convinced to come out of retirement, and does a wonderful job as the treacherous Madame Habib. She lives on a yacht and has a cheetah on a leash for a pet. Young MCEnery went on to appear in "the Fighting Prince of Donegal" for Disney.

There is some good cultural stuff, the greek wedding dancers costumes were from a musuem, and the dancers were local professionals. Filming on location, Disney spent a fortune rebuilding the village that had been ravaged by WWII. They used 25,000 feet of lumber and 2,000 sheets of plywood. The story was taken from a book by Mary Stewart, suggested to become a movie by Mrs. Lillian Disney, but the finished film is pretty far from it's original story. Good mucical score by Ron Grainer, title song written by Terry Gilkyson.

It eventually aired on "the Wonderful World of Disney", in 1966, '67, and '82. It even aired in 1975 in conjunction with the "Saturday Night at the Movies with Disney" specials. Released on video the first time time in 1985. If you like Disney films of the period, you will enjoy this one too. It is nice to see Hayley Mills in her more mature role.

The DVD pictured on the page lacked any improvements over my VHS copy, no widescreen, extras, or picture enhancement.

Once again, Disney misses the mark with an inferior DVD release. Why do we crave seeing our favorite stars on DVD? Picture clarity, extra features, restored prints, optional commentary... none of which are evident on this poor release of a wonderful Hayley Mills film. Disney's inexplicable inconsistency becomes evident when poor efforts such as this one are compared to stellar, awe-inspired efforts such as "The Parent Trap" and "Pollyanna", multi-disk sets released with quality and features on par with Criterion Collection releases. I give up on buying Disney. Next time, I'm going to rent the DVD first. Why waste money on new Disney DVD's that are inferior in quality to the VHS versions I already have! Hey Disney, wake up!

I have just acquired the new Disney DVD release of The Moonspinners. What is the matter with those people? Last year, they released three excellent, high quality DVD sets of The Swiss Family Robinson, Pollyanna and The Parent Trap. I can understand not producing two disks each time - there is only so much extraneous material available, but this new DVD is inexcusable. It looks like it's been recorded straight off a video tape - the quality is appalling; indeed, I have an old video that is superior in quality. And not to issue the film in it's original screen format (or both!) is just insulting. After all, one of the main attributes of DVD is that it can reproduce film quality for the TV screen, and it seems very silly of Disney not to take advantage of that. It seems to be impossible to contact Disney to express my disappointment, and if I could get a refund I would.....

This is so sad! When will the Disney people understand that it is NOT the young kids of today who want to buy this movie? The willing consumers for a film like "Moon Spinners" are those who were kids when this film opened in theatres. I'm one! And I want my fond memories to look they way they did then! Which means sharp, fresh, colorful, and in the correct aspect ratios! This DVD is colorful! The rest is lacking! As a matter of fact, this disc is an exact copy of the old laserdisc issue. The Disney folks have not lifted a finger to clean dirt or scratches from the earlier transfer. Very annoying, not to mention the tight and ugly framing we get when the widescreen original is ignored. This is not a "scope" film, but there are still quite a lot of picture information missing on the sides. That also explains the foggy look. I often get the impression that the Disney organization care about their consumer products. But then I watch DVD:s like this one, "The Absent Minded Professor" and several others, and completely loose my faith. We fans want ALL Disney films on DVD to look like theatrical screenings. If not, we will simply refuse to buy any more. Period!

For the life of me, I'll never understand Disney. Buying DVD's from them is worse than gambling. One time I get a beautiful widescreen version of "Pollyanna", "Swiss Family Robinson", and "The Parent Trap" and the next time I get this piece of garbage with a disgusting transfer in the hated full screen format. This is not the first time I've been fooled by Disney, but rest assured it will be the last. I should have known better after being burned in the past when I ordered "Castaway Cowboy" and "Blackbeard's Ghost". Both of those two also came dressed like this version of Moon-Spinners. Disney, I have ordered my LAST DVD from you until you get your act together.

Fullscreen edition but a good price. This is one of several wonderful movies Hayley Mills made during her stint with Disney. Here she plays Nikky, a young woman visiting Crete with her Aunt Francis, played by Joan Greenwood. During their stay she meets a young man named Mark that has been snorkeling near Porpoise Island. He seems to have his mind on other things and when she tries to find out what, he is secretive. When he becomes injured she finds out he is looking for stolen emeralds and is being hunted by Stratos the man that stole them. The adventure becomes deadly, but has a happy ending as in most Disney movies.

The cast

Hayley Mills ... Nikky Ferris
Eli Wallach ... Stratos
Peter McEnery ... Mark Camford
Pola Negri ... Madame Habib
Joan Greenwood ... Aunt Frances Ferris

is superb and the scenery is beautiful. The directing is good, and the music is appropriate. The DVD does not include any extras, but it is well worth owning. The picture and sound quality are great. I recommend this to any classic Disney or Hayley Mills fans.

Hayley Mills is a truly brilliant actress, and her enthusiasm is contagious. She will have you laughing at her personality, and I guarantee that you will love her. Set on the island of Crete in Greece, Nikki (Hayley) and her aunt visit the inn called the Moon-Spinners and become involved in a mystery. It is quite an adventure, but I really can't say more for fear of giving away part of the climax. But this is truly a great movie! I highly recommend it. I was thrilled to see that amazom had it because many movie stores don't. I love it! P.S. This is a children's movie, but I am 15. Some might say I am odd, but I truly think that this movie can be enjoyed by all ages. My 13 year old brother just makes fun of me though, so perhaps you ought to rent it before purchasing. I wouldn't want to have the pressure of misleading you and having you buy a movie that wouldn't fit your standards.

I like many people had seen quite a few Disney and Hayley Mills movies but somehow I missed this one until I saw it on the Disney Channel while vacationing on Maui. In its own way this is such a great movie. Anyone who grew up on Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew mysteries will love this film. Action and adventure set in this wonderful setting of Crete. Plus Hayley Mills... how can you go wrong. If you have never seen it and are a thirty-something now, buy it, you'll enjoy it.

The Moon-Spinners has to be one of my favorite movies of all time. Hayley Mills is the all-american girl....err...except for the fact that she's English (it makes no sense, but it is completely true). She gives a genuine performance and most girls can relate to her. I will not deny that this movie is completely cheesy, but it is all in the best way. This movie has everything; adventure, romance, drama, mystery, and is set in the beautiful isle of Crete. The love story is unique and original and will make you smile all over. This movie was acclaimed for being Hayley Mill's first onscreen kiss and I have to admit that it's a good one. I love how this movie embodies the essence of crete, with the beautiful beaches and little villages. I recommend this movie to people of all ages.

"The Moon-Spinners" is a great treat. It blends Hitchcockian mystery and suspense (Disney style) with light humor and romance in an exotic, beautiful locale (the island of Crete). It reminds me of some of the other better Disney mysteries like "Escapade in Florence" with Annette Funcinello that also mix appealing teen-aged protagonists with delicious mystery in a scenic location. All elements work well and I appreciate that they intertwine authentic local culture into the mix. Hayley Mills is also at her best. She was one of the most engaging young actresses of the 60's -- pretty, spirited, fun. I like the guest appearance by Pola Negri in an over-the-top role. That is also very common to the 60's -- older stars appeared in many of the Funicello "beach party" flicks and in Doris Day comedies like "The Glass-Bottom Boat." That was a nice aspect to these films -- that older stars were honored and given a place among the popular young stars. Like some of the other reviewers here, I saw this film first as a kid probably on "Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color" and I was not at all disappointed in revisiting it. As a Hayley and mystery fan, it fills the bill admirably with any cloying aspects (like the Greek boy who misuses American expressions) kept to a minimum. And I adore Hayley's wardrobe with the big headbands, "I Dream of Jeanie" hair twists and falls, and cool clothes. The DVD itself has no extras, but many times I find extras gratuituous and not of much value.