Die Banditeninsel von Karabei

I will forever remember the director - German born director - Ewald Andre Dupont for the amazing STEEL LADY, his masterpiece for me and also for the amusing and not bad at all NEANDERTHAL MAN. I don't know the rest of his filmography, I guess mostly made in Europe. And this one was totally unknown to me. It is not that uninteresting but the directing is lousy, corny, despite Tab Hunter and Dawn Adams presences. Poor dudes, they do what they can to give some energy, some stamina to this poor script. The producers seem to have lost all inspiration. But I did not get really bored, just amused by the clumsy efforts to try getting this story exciting. I repeat, it's still worth watching for rare gems diggers. Maybe not treasure though, because this one is definitely not a treasure item. Just a cute little gem. Nothing else.

Here is a contemporary sequel to Robert Louis Stevenson's classic "Treasure Island" (1883). We begin with a brief flashback to the 1700s, which serves to link the old treasure map to the present. In 1954, the map is in the possession of beautiful Dawn Addams (as Jamesina "Jamie" Hawkins), a direct descendant of "Jim Hawkins" (the original story's young hero). The map's worth is suddenly realized, leading to the titular return. On the island, Ms. Addams meets handsome archaeologist Tab Hunter (as Clive Stone)...

Mr. Hunter is also the story's star and narrator. He shaves off his beard for Addams (and keeps his shirt off for viewers). She keeps her shirt on, except for a brief bath scene (which is modestly shot for the viewer). The attractive couple kiss and hold hands while battling Porter Hall (as Maximillian "Maxie" Harris) and his sadistic blind henchman James Seay (as Felix Newman). Everyone wants the treasure. Directed by veteran E.A. DuPont, this production relies mostly on the attractiveness of Hunter and Addams.

*** Return to Treasure Island (6/30/54) E.A. DuPont ~ Tab Hunter, Dawn Addams, Porter Hall, James Seay

Pretty awful picture. A descendant of Jack Hawkins named Jamie Hawkins (played by lovely Dawn Addams) is tricked into revealing where some hidden loot is hidden on a desert island. There happens to be hunky shirtless Clive Stone (Tab Hunter). She and him try to find the treasure and battle the bad guys.

The color is nice, Addams is beautiful and Hunter is hot...but the picture is TERRIBLE! It's slow, boring and horrendously acted. Even Hunter himself hates it! In his autobiography he says it's abysmal and a stinker and his acting was terrible. Even his MOTHER said it was bad! There's also a mildly kinky scene where Addams is tied to a tree and briefly whipped--but her shirt is on and no marks are shown. This type of picture was popular in the 1950s--it played as the second feature of double bills everywhere. Some patient kids might enjoy this but aside from the lovely color, Addams beauty and Hunter shirtless there's little here to enjoy. A 1 all the way.

I just saw this zero-entertainment-value time-waster on this. You'd think MGM had better films to fill the wee small hours of the morning.

The script is amateurish, with clumsy dialog and zero suspense or dramatic interest. (I don't think there's a single line that isn't expository.) At least the director keeps things moving along (probably because he wanted to get it all over with).

There is a single (unintentionally) amusing moment, when one of the villains tries to shoot another villain. The latter runs back and forth trying to avoid the bullets, resembling a ball bearing in a pinball machine.

The project seems to have been cooked up not only to take advantage of the success of the Disney film, but to let Mr Hunter walk around with his shirt off.

Unless you find either of the leads appealing, this is strictly Sominex cinema.

The Tab Hunter/Dawn Addams "Return to Treasure Island" (1954) is mildly entertaining, but banish all notions that it has anything to do with 1930s Hollywood swashbucklers. This low-budget flick used to appear on TV, but it has not made it to DVD (or even VHS, as far as I know). It disappeared from TV long ago, perhaps partly because of a scene in which Dawn Addams is tied to a tree and whipped to make her reveal some information (probably the whereabouts of the treasure, but I don't remember—I haven't seen this picture for decades).

Note that another (much better known) 1954 film, with Robert Newton as Long John Silver, now goes by the same title. I believe it was originally simply "Long John Silver." This is the picture whose DVD cover erroneously appears on the IMDb.com page.

Note: I see that IMDb has corrected the graphic. (Wow, nine years have flown by.)