Les aventures de David Balfour

I saw this version of Kidnapped in 1979.I think it was the best one that was made. The theme music was really nice.It was called David's theme. It was very haunting and lonely. I would love to see a repeat of the show.I feel that Robert Louis Stevenson would be happy with this production.

I saw this when it was originally screened in 1978 or 1979 - I was just a little kid at the time. I was living in Argyll, Scotland - real Gaelic country/landscape, so the programme really resonated with me. It was repeated in 1980 or 1981 but after that i never heard anything about it until circa 1991 the first two or three episodes, edited together, were released on video briefly, by a company called VideoGem. I was surprised by its quality - I thought my childhood memories may have exaggerated its appeal. Some of the acting - particularly David Balfour - is slightly wooden; on the other hand , a lot of it is very good - notably David McCallum as Alan Breck Stewart. The episodes I saw on video included original material that doesn't feature in the book; but unlike typical Hollywood 'adaptations' some of this material is quite worthy - including a scene that suggests the relationship between the Scots tenants and the Stewarts-in-exile was more about extortion than loyalty. As for the video release, I don't think it sold very well, as I never saw any further releases of the remaining episodes, which was a great disappointment.

I agree that it was easily the best adaptation I've ever seen, and it would be great to see the whole series released on video. If I remember rightly, the series also adapted at least some of the sequel 'Catriona'.

I remember being glued to this miniseries when it was shown on TBS (Turner) in '78. It was wonderfully done, following the novel very faithfully and not trying to guild the lily the way so many other productions have done. More than that, it covered not only "Kidnapped" itself, but also that novel's sequel, "Catriona: (released as "David Balfour" in the United States) which I until then did not know even existed. It was an excellent idea, since it resolved all the hanging threads of the plot as Stevenson had intended.

What I recall most were all the on-location shots (I assumed they were such, anyway) and the beauty of the Scottish countryside as well as that of the Netherlands. David McCallum gave an excellent portrayal of the brash Alan Breck. I know some have accused the actor who portrayed David Balfour's performance wooden, but frankly, Stevenson writes the character that way—he saves all the panache for Alan, and so it is in this film, as well.

I particularly remember the haunting opening credits theme—I wish I could find a recording of it, as it, too, was excellent.

It's a great shame this is not shown more often. I understand it's been released on DVD, but so far I've not been able to find it, so I'm guess this was not done in the U.S., which is a shame. Perhaps someday

This version of Kidnapped was well acted and beautifully produced. I was pleased to find that other viewers enjoyed the production as much as I did. It has been a disappointment that it was never re-run. If I recall correctly it was broadcast in the United States by Turner Productions. It is also unfortunate that it was not released on video.

This is the most complete in story and best performance of any dramatized version of Kidnapped. It was shown on televion only once in the United States. That was back in 1981 or 82. It is a pity that it has never been shown again or released to home video.