Treasure Island (1972 film)

Treasure Island (1972 film)
Company type	Film
Industry	Motion picture
Founded	1972
Key people	Orson Welles (actor, screenwriter), John Hough (director), Wolf Mankowitz (screenwriter), Harry Alan Towers (producer)
Products	Historical adventure film

Treasure Island is a 1972 historical adventure motion picture adapted from the 1883 novel by Robert Louis Stevenson. The film features Orson Welles portraying Long John Silver (with his voice later dubbed by Robert Rietti without credit), Kim Burfield as Jim Hawkins, Walter Slezak in the role of Squire Trelawney, Rik Battaglia as Captain Smollett, and Ángel del Pozo playing Doctor Livesey.

This version was produced in several language editions, each crediting different directors.

Plot

Jim Hawkins (played by Kim Burfield), an inn employee, comes into possession of a treasure map belonging to the pirate Captain Flint following the demise of sailor Billy Bones. He seeks assistance from Squire Trelawney (Walter Slezak) and Dr. Livesey (Ángel del Pozo) to find the island. Together, they embark aboard Captain Smollett’s (Rik Battaglia) vessel.

The majority of the crew is assembled by Long John Silver (Orson Welles), the ship’s cook and a former pirate who intends to claim the treasure through mutiny. Upon reaching the island, they discover Ben Gunn, a marooned pirate who has already collected some of the loot. With his aid, Jim and his companions outmaneuver the mutineers, eliminating most during armed confrontations.

Although Silver is captured, he manages to flee once back in the West Indies. The storyline and Jim Hawkins’s narration remain closely aligned with Stevenson’s original work.

Cast

Development

The project originated from Orson Welles’s attempts to produce his Shakespeare adaptation Chimes at Midnight during the early 1960s, a film he had been developing since the late 1930s.

Unable to obtain funding, Welles drafted a screenplay for the more commercially appealing Treasure Island, proposing to shoot both films consecutively using identical sets and cast members for roughly the price of one production. He intended to direct Treasure Island and star as Long John Silver.

According to Welles’s assistant Juan Cobos, this approach aimed to mitigate financial risk associated with Chimes at Midnight by capitalizing on the widespread recognition of Stevenson’s novel.

Welles had long admired Treasure Island, having performed it on radio in 1938; his daughter Beatrice recalled it being a beloved story from his youth.

This strategy proved successful when Spanish producer Emiliano Piedra agreed to finance both movies.

Cast and crew

The plan was to optimize production by utilizing shared locations and actors, including scenes set within the inn.

The intended cast for Treasure Island comprised:

Keith Baxter as Doctor Livesey
John Gielgud as Squire Trelawney
Fraser McIntosh as Jim Hawkins
Orson Welles as Long John Silver

To secure local subsidies, involvement of a Spanish director and technical staff was necessary; Welles proposed that Jess Franco direct based on Welles’s own script. Welles highlighted that the screenplay remained faithful to Stevenson’s narrative while explicitly clarifying character positions on the island—details essential for filming though less apparent in the novel.

Filming

The production took place over the course of one week in 1964 along the Mediterranean shoreline near Alicante, utilizing a chartered vessel originally constructed for the Spanish production of John Paul Jones (1959) and subsequently employed in multiple other movies.

It has been reported that several sequences were directed by Welles himself. Franco supported Welles during a three-week period on Chimes at Midnight, but departed once financial backing from Piedra ceased. Franco later obtained funding from Harry Saltzman to finalize Chimes, although Welles expressed dissatisfaction with these financial arrangements.

Efforts to Restart the Project

In March 1966, while working on Casino Royale in England, Welles revealed intentions to commence filming Treasure Island the following month in Spain. The planned movie was to be shot in color with a budget of $1.5 million, partially funded by Seven Arts Productions, which would handle distribution in the United States and Canada. Fergus McIntosh was selected for the role of Jim Hawkins, with Hugh Griffith cast in an unspecified part. Despite these plans, progress had halted by December.

1972 Adaptation

In October 1971, producer Oliver Unger announced plans to remake Treasure Island with a screenplay by Wolf Mankowitz and featuring Mark Lester as the lead. Welles remained contractually involved as both actor and screenwriter. Nearly a decade later, producer Harry Alan Towers, who had collaborated with Welles on radio projects before, revived the endeavor. Although Welles wished to direct, Towers was unable to obtain a completion guarantee under his direction, leading to John Hough's appointment as director.

Welles portrayed Long John Silver, with filming conducted in Spain using a local crew. The role of Jim Hawkins was played by Kim Burnfield from England. Welles favored Spain over Greece due to political considerations and personal connections.

National General contributed partial funding and managed U.S. distribution. Towers procured a vessel for the Hispaniola on the Thames; however, it sank during transit to Spain. Another ship was secured just two weeks prior to filming commencement in June 1972 at Almeria.

Italian filmmaker Andrea Bianchi reportedly had a brief involvement on set, observing that Welles effectively directed scenes when present. Despite initial friction, Bianchi and Welles developed a professional rapport. According to Towers, Hough served as the official director but experienced a strained working relationship with Welles.

Welles rejected alterations made to his script and credited himself under the pseudonym "O.W. Jeeves." He asserted that his performance was dubbed without his consent; although he recorded dubbing sessions in Paris, these were considered unintelligible. The American theatrical release featured Welles' own voice, but versions broadcast on British and American television replaced it with voice actor Robert Rietty, following demands from Nat Cohen overseeing distribution.

Critical Response

The Los Angeles Times characterized the film as "not as dashing and lively as one might have wished."

External links

Treasure Island at TCMDB
Treasure Island at Letterbox DVD