La Liberté sauvage

I thought this movie was a fine, clean motion picture with action and adventure. I appreciated the high moral values portrayed in this entertaining film. If you are looking for a picture to enjoy with your family(small children included) for an evening, then I would recommend this one.

First off, I am very fond of these movies. They remind me of my childhood and how much I love the outdoors. These movies aren't stellar, Oscar types, but, hey, they work when you want young children to see different animals and people who want a better quality of life. Although the action scenes may startle young ones ( they probably WON'T with all the stuff they see in the "movies" today). And, yes, the movies DON'T show all the important stuff (like how they knew how to build a cabin, etc) but it's a MOVIE, not REAL LIFE. If you want REALITY, I would strongly suggest you watch PBS's "Frontier House". That was GREAT and it CHALLENGED 3 families to live an 1883 lifestyle. No easy way out here, folks! These people were REALLY doing it. Otherwise, I will ALWAYS cherish these movies and when I have children of my own, share them with them.

An urban family looking for getaway from the hassles and tiring of city life and rush-hour traffic , furthermore an ill daughter , for these reasons they turn into pioneers on the rugged Rocky mountains . The film depicts an agreeable family , formed by a father (Robert F Logan) , mother (Susan Damante Shaw) and sons (Holmes , Larsen) who leave civilization for the freedom of the Rocky wild . But they soon encounter troubles in paradise and that the wilderness may be more harsh than grumpy bosses and the difficulties of the city . As they must escape some violent animals and learn to survive .

This is an enjoyable film filled with adventures , familiar feeling , beautiful songs , wildlife and breathtaking landscapes with majestic scenarios . The movie is plenty of animals such as bears , moose or elk , mountain goats , deers , raccoon , wolves , some of them are uncultivated and other tamed as a dog that defends and saves them in several occasions . Sensible score with wonderful songs fitting to environment . Spectacular outdoors and acceptable photography , though being necessary an urgent remastering because the film-copy is worn-out .

This movie seems to be the first of a series , these are the following : ¨Further adventures Robinson family (1977)¨ by Frank Zuñiga from the producers of the first part and turns out to be a predictable retread ; ¨Mountain of Robinson family (1979)¨ in which the family is determined to return to wilderness and moves to the Rockies . In similar style and also offering a pleasant scenery are : ¨Sea gypsies ( 1978)¨ in that a sailing crew is shipwrecked off the Aleutian Islands and ¨Across the great divide (1976)¨ in which two orphans must cross the dangerous snow-covered Rocky mountain in order to claim their inheritance , being based on facts happened in 1876 . All films are mostly starred by Robert F. Logan , Susan Damante Shaw and usual appearance as secondary actor the likable George Buck Flowers and being produced by Joseph Raffill ( father of Stewart Raffill who habitually results to be the filmmaker of the series) and also financed by producer Arthur Dobbs . This family-oriented tale about modern-day pioneers who head for life in nature will appeal to wilderness buffs .

This movie was on repeat when I was a kid and shaped my dreams heavily. It was pure magic back then.

I just watched it for the first time as an adult (Who has spent a lot of energy on wilderness skills and lives in the woods) with my kids and... the magic definitely seems to be relegated to my childhood. Sadly, I spent the entire time poking holes in the plot.

That said, If anyone knows where exactly the lake where it filmed was, I would love to know. It would be a childhood dream to be able to make it out there. I saw somewhere that it's in Gunnison National Forest in CO but that's the most detail I've been able to get.

I saw this movie as a kid and loved it. Today, I saw it again with my wife and two kids and loved it.

There are aspects that are completely unrealistic (i.e. a welder knows how to build a very nice log cabin, a fast grizzly does not run down the little girl who happens to be ten feet away, the man is not seriously mangled by the mountain lion, the dog is not killed by the wolves, etc.), but what I loved about it was the fact that the family does what so many families long to do--get out of Dodge and head for the high country.

People weren't meant to be stuck in a box 24/7 because they are enslaved to a house payment, the monster SUV, and all the other trappings of civilization. Families were meant to hang together and kids were meant to learn from parents--not MTV, the druggies on the corner, or their friends at school. Parents, to your children love is spelled TIME. This film reinforces that notion and illustrates that this misguided idea of quality time being more important than quantity is ridiculous. The pragmatic message from this film is for parents to sell the BMW and buy a Chevy, sell the mansion on the hill and buy the house in the valley, chuck the ladder-climbing job and take the one that allows you to be home for dinner every night. After all, nobody every regretted not spending more time at work, but they did regret not spending more time with the kiddos.

I believe that it's a movie that was ahead of its time and I'd love to see a more modern (and more realistic) take on the subject. Besides, it's a good family film, which is a rarity these days. It's not a perfect film by any standard, but the scenery is beautiful and the plot is visionary. That's why I give it an 8 out of 10.