Escapade au Japon

This is the Japan of my early childhood memories, brought to life by this film. I was a boy of 4 when I moved to Japan in 1956, so seeing this movie which was shot at the same time I lived there was a great thrill. It was the travelogue aspect of the movie that particularly interested me: the vignette in the geisha house; the vignette in the Japanese theater;street scenes; railroad stations; etc. The plot was relatively simple. Cameron Mitchell and Theresa Wright were convincing as the worried married couple desperately trying to find their missing son. But the flattering portrayal of the Japanese people and the reverence shown for Japanese landmarks and its cultural is the real eye opener. Since it was made in 1957, I'm assuming it was to show Americans how their perceptions of the Japanese may have been wrong. I know that having there for 4 years, we couldn't have been treated more kindly than we were by our Japanese friends, neighbors, and co-workers. I thank Turner Classic Movies for showing it.

One of the earliest roles of Clint Eastwood. A plane on its way to Japan is forced to land at sea just off the Japanese coast. A small American boy survives the ditching but is separated from the rest of the passengers and crew and is picked up by a Japanese fisherman, who takes the boy back to his village. The boy is befriended by the fisherman's son, but when they see Japanese police swarming over the village, they are afraid that they've done something wrong and run away, although the police are only searching for the missing boy. There's not much here to see but this is a decent action flick.

Just saw this again on the BBC.

There must be something horribly wrong with modern Hollywood that we get more enjoyment from 50-year-old movies. This little gem has lovely, bright colour (not the dungeon quality we get now), has super performances, particularly from the young leads, works well as a story and also as a very interesting travelogue of post-war Japan.

No foul language and you feel good afterwards.

I'm just so pleased that with TV and DVD we can see these wonderful older movies and introduce them to our own children. I would add this to the list of must-show-to-the-children movies like the Flicka ones and the old Joel McCrea "Cattle Drive" and "Saddle Tramp".

This movie is a great family movie and a trip through history when Japan was occupied by US Forces. No bad words, very little violence just two boys running away from the unknown in Post War Japan. Having grownup in Japan as Army brat during the 50's and 60's the movie rekindles memories of living in Japan while they were building their economy and maintaining their distinct culture and Identity. Its a warm hearted story of a foreign boy lost in totally different culture and country from what he knows yet accepts the friendship and assistance of a local boy as he is guided around Japan. He learns and sees things that would not have been possible had he not been crashed landed off the Japanese coast. I have watched and rewatched this movie with pleasure each time.

I agree with other reviewers of this film. It is quite good. You can watch it just to see what Japan looked like in the 1950's. You can watch it to see Jon Provost's first role; we remember him from "Lassie". You can enjoy the chase. Pretty cinematography too; filmed in very nice color. Worth watching if you ever see it on cable or dish. Nice movie.