''Kidnapped'' is a 1960 American

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

. It is based on

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll a ...

's classic 1886 novel ''

Kidnapped Kidnapped may refer to: * subject to the crime of kidnapping Literature * ''Kidnapped'' (novel), an 1886 novel by Robert Louis Stevenson * ''Kidnapped'' (comics), a 2007 graphic novel adaptation of R. L. Stevenson's novel by Alan Grant and Ca ...

''. It stars Peter Finch and

James MacArthur James Gordon MacArthur (December 8, 1937 – October 28, 2010) was an American actor with a long career in both movies and television. MacArthur's early work was predominantly in supporting roles in films. Later, he had a starring role as ...

, and was Disney's second production based on a novel by Stevenson, the first being ''

Treasure Island ''Treasure Island'' (originally titled ''The Sea Cook: A Story for Boys''Hammond, J. R. 1984. "Treasure Island." In ''A Robert Louis Stevenson Companion'', Palgrave Macmillan Literary Companions. London: Palgrave Macmillan. .) is an adventure no ...

''. It also marked Peter O'Toole's feature-film debut.

Plot

In 18th-century Scotland, young David Balfour (

) takes a letter of introduction from his recently deceased father to the House of Shaws, where he is greeted without much enthusiasm by his miserly uncle Ebenezer (

John Laurie John Paton Laurie (25 March 1897 – 23 June 1980) was a Scottish actor. In the course of his career, Laurie performed on the stage and in films as well as television. He is perhaps best remembered for his role in the sitcom '' Dad's Army'' (19 ...

). David finds that Ebenezer is disliked by his neighbours and begins to ask questions about family affairs. Ebenezer tries to arrange a fatal accident for David. David accompanies Ebenezer to a meeting with a seafaring associate, Captain Hoseason (

Bernard Lee John Bernard Lee (10 January 190816 January 1981) was an English actor, best known for his role as M in the first eleven Eon-produced James Bond films. Lee's film career spanned the years 1934 to 1979, though he had appeared on stage from ...

). Hoseason lures David aboard his ship and shanghais him, at Ebenezer's instigation. At sea, David learns he is to be sold into indentured servitude. A fog comes up and the ship collides with a boat. Alan Breck Stewart ( Peter Finch), the only survivor of the boat, is brought aboard and pays for his passage, but the captain plots to kill him for the rest of his money. David warns Alan, and they overcome the crew. Alan coerces Hoseason into putting them ashore. The ship founders, but David manages to reach land. After several dangerous encounters, he is rescued by Alan, who turns out to be a Jacobite wanted by the authorities. Evading the soldiers, the two make their way back to the House of Shaws, where Alan tricks Ebenezer into admitting his crimes within the hearing of a hidden witness, allowing David to claim his inheritance.

Cast

* Peter Finch as

Allan Breck Stewart Alan Breck Stewart (Scottish Gaelic, Gaelic: ''Ailean Breac Stiùbhart''; c. 1711 – c. 1791) was a Scottish soldier and Jacobitism, Jacobite. He was also a central figure in a murder case that inspired novels by Sir Walter Scott and Robert Louis ...

as David Balfour *

as Captain Hoseason *

as Ebenezer Balfour *

Niall MacGinnis Patrick Niall MacGinnis (29 March 1913 – 6 January 1977) was an Irish actor who made around 80 screen appearances. Early life MacGinnis was born in Dublin in 1913.

as Mr. Shuan * Finlay Currie as

Cluny MacPherson Ewen MacPherson of Cluny, also known as "Cluny Macpherson" (11 February 1706 – 30 January 1764), was the Chief of Clan MacPherson during the Jacobite Rising of 1745. He took part as a leading supporter of Prince Charles Edward Stuart. After th ...

Miles Malleson William Miles Malleson (25 May 1888 – 15 March 1969) was an English actor and dramatist, particularly remembered for his appearances in British comedy films of the 1930s to 1960s. Towards the end of his career he also appeared in cameo roles i ...

as Mr. Rankeillor * Duncan Macrae as The Highlander * Andrew Cruickshank as Colin Campbell * Peter O'Toole as Robin MacGregor * Alex Mackenzie as The Ferryman * Oliver Johnston as Mr. Campbell * Norman Macowan as Tinker *

Eileen Way Eileen Mabel Elizabeth Way (2 September 1911 – 16 June 1994) was a British actress who appeared in film and television roles in a career dating back to the 1930s. She trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art from the age of 16. She was i ...

as Jennet Clouston *

Edie Martin Edie Martin (1 January 1880 – 22 February 1964) was a British actress. She was a ubiquitous performer, on stage from 1886, playing generally small parts but in high demand, appearing in scores of British films (although often uncredited). ...

as the woman on the bridge (from whom Alan Breck buys the pipe and tobacco) * Abe Barker as Donald Dhu MacLaren * Richard Evans (uncredited) as Ransome, the cabin boy

Production

Development

Robert Stevenson Robert Stevenson may refer to: * Robert Stevenson (actor and politician) (1915–1975), American actor and politician * Robert Stevenson (civil engineer) (1772–1850), Scottish lighthouse engineer * Robert Stevenson (director) (1905–1986), Engl ...

was making ''

Darby O'Gill and the Little People ''Darby O'Gill and the Little People'' is a 1959 American fantasy adventure film produced by Walt Disney Productions, adapted from the ''Darby O'Gill'' stories of Herminie Templeton Kavanagh. Directed by Robert Stevenson and written by Lawrence ...

'' (1959) for

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

in England when Disney visited the set and suggested they adapt

's novel ''

'' for their next project. Stevenson re-read the novel, was enthused, and wrote a treatment on a working holiday in Scotland. When another project he was working on fell through, Stevenson wrote a screenplay for ''Kidnapped''. (Despite the similarity of their names, director Robert Stevenson said that he was not related to author Robert Louis Stevenson.) Earlier film adaptations of the novel had been produced by Edison Studios in 1917 and by

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

in 1938 and in 1948. 20th Century Fox had registered rights to the title but waived them and the film was announced in December 1958. Stevenson says Disney was of great use when working on the script. Many people advised Stevenson to put a woman in the story, but Disney resisted, saying it was not true to the novel. By the time filming started, Stevenson estimated he had read the novel "eight to ten times."

Casting

The lead role was given to James MacArthur, who had just made ''

The Light in the Forest ''The Light in the Forest'' is a novel first published in 1953 by U.S. author Conrad Richter. Though it is a work of fiction and primarily features fictional characters, the novel incorporates historic figures and is based in historical fact rel ...

'' (1958) and ''

Third Man on the Mountain ''Third Man on the Mountain'' is a 1959 American family adventure film by Walt Disney Productions, directed by Ken Annakin and starring Michael Rennie, James MacArthur and Janet Munro. Set during the golden age of alpinism, its plot concerns a y ...

'' (1959) for Disney and been signed to a two-picture deal with the studio (the second film would be '' Swiss Family Robinson''). MacArthur would be the only American in the cast. Actor John Breslin coached his Scottish accent. The other lead role was given to Peter Finch who had just appeared in '' The Nun's Story'' (1959). Peter O'Toole was given a small role at the suggestion of Peter Finch. It was O'Toole's first movie; he would shortly become a sensation of the London stage with his performance in '' The Long and the Short and the Tall''.

Shooting

Filming started 27 April 1959 on location in Oban in Scotland, with studio work done at Pinewood in London. Stevenson wanted to film the assassination of

Colin Roy Campbell The Appin Murder () was the assassination of Colin Roy Campbell, the Clan Campbell tacksman of Glenure, on 14 May 1752 near Appin in the west of Scotland. The murder occurred in the aftermath of the Jacobite Rising of 1745 and led to the exec ...

in the actual locale, a few miles from Ballachulish, but the original spot was now the site of a forest of Norwegian pines, so he filmed it on the slopes of

Ardgour Ardgour () (, meaning ''Height of the goats'') is an area of the Scottish Highlands on the western shore of Loch Linnhe. It lies north of the district of Morvern and east of the district of Sunart. Administratively it is now part of the wa ...

, about twelve miles away.

Reception

Upon the film's original release, ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' film critic Eugene Archer gave the film a negative review by stating that, "Either Mr. Disney, who made a vigorous ''

'' ten years ago, has lost his touch in the intervening decade, or the kids have been spoiled by '' Gunsmoke'' and ''

Peter Gunn ''Peter Gunn'' is an American private eye television series, starring Craig Stevens as Peter Gunn with Lola Albright as his girlfriend, Edie Hart. The series aired on NBC from September 22, 1958, to 1960 and on ABC in 1960–1961. The seri ...

''. Yesterday's audience was definitely not amused."

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kidnapped (1960 film) British adventure films 1960 films American adventure films 1960 adventure films 1960s English-language films Walt Disney Pictures films Films based on Kidnapped (novel) Films directed by Robert Stevenson Films produced by Walt Disney Films shot at Pinewood Studios Films set in Scotland 1960s American films 1960s British films