Treasure Island Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		2.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		3.0

Treasure Island Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 19, 2017

With Black Sails having just wrapped up its four-season run on Blu-ray and building up to the events in Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island, it seemed as good a time as any to revisit Disney's 1950 live-action adaptation, which is currently only available on Blu-ray through the company's online movie club. To be sure, Black Sails and Treasure Island come about as disparate as is possible for two entertainment ventures so closely connected at the hip. Made more than six decades apart and all but tonal opposites, the show and this film nevertheless share a heritage and a character roster that were long indelible fixtures in Stevenson's book a few years before moviemaking even became a thing. This film is also historically significant as the first fully live-action film Disney ever made. In sixty-some-odd-years, the studio has come full-circle by remaking some of its animated treasures as live-action pictures.

Young Jim Hawkins (Bobby Driscoll) runs a small English coastal inn with his mother, and tonight, it's a hot location. He's visited by a pair of pirates in search of old Captain William Bones (Finlay Currie) who is believed to be in possession of a map to the fabled Treasure Island. Before dying that very night, Bones entrusts the map to Jim, who in turn seeks the council of Squire Trelawney (Walter Fitzgerald). Trelawney recognizes the map's value and authenticity and hires Captain Smollett (Basil Sydney) and Dr. Livesey (Dennis O'Deay) to spearhead an expedition to finds its treasure. Long John Silver (Robert Newton), a local one-legged pirate now working as a chef, talks his way into assembling a crew for the mission. But not soon after they shove off on the Hispaniola, word of Silver and his crew's mutinous intentions reach Jim's ears. He informs the captain and finds himself caught in between two would-be warring factions both on the ship and, eventually, throughout the treacherous island itself.

Treasure Island is less about its title location and more about the people who travel there and the conflicts that emerge along the way and on the island proper. It's a very deliberate film, even at under 100 minutes in length (the uncut version, of course, is the cut in question and the one included on this Blu-ray release) taking its time before setting sail to the fabled land. But the trade-off is a much more satisfyingly complex character roster. All of the primaries are richly explored and the story not only comes into greater focus, it benefits from the additional insight into how the characters operate, and why. The land becomes more deadly, the threats more real, the conflicts more textured. It's certainly a character film first and foremost, the story growing less through swashbuckling action and more through exposition, with visual support and some action furthering the cause. Director Byron Haskin smartly keeps the emphasis sharply on his characters, and he's rewarded with finely-honed efforts from all of his primaries, chiefly Robert Newton as the one-legged Long John Silver, the quintessential pirate and certainly the film's dramatic glue.

Treasure Island Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Treasure Island's 1080p Blu-ray presentation may as well be the island's fabled treasure. For the most part, it's a gorgeous presentation and a wonderful viewing experience. The 1.37:1 aspect ratio preserves the film's natural state and sees vertical "black bars" appear on either side of the 1.78:1 HD frame. The picture is beautifully filmic, retaining a consistently light and natural grain structure that accentuates the many beautiful textures seen on interior set pieces, island exteriors (many of which are themselves sets), and costumes. Period attire reveals incredible fabric complexity, density, and detail. Faces showcase every fine pore and bit of stubble and beard. Terrain, woods, and vegetation are naturally complex and sharp even at distance and throughout the frame. Colors are splendid, appearing accurate and lively, deeply saturated and never wanting for additional punch. Flesh tones do push a little warm, but black levels are pleasing within the movie's context, which includes some day-for-night scenes.

Treasure Island Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Treasure Island's Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack shows its age on Blu-ray, in contrast to the lovely 1080p transfer that often looks almost brand new. Music is scratchy, crunchy, and shows no real range, crammed in a center-imaged location. Atmospheric and action effects -- rolling waves, crashes, gunshots, gusty winds -- never take charge, offering only baseline definition and crude sonic support to any given scene. Dialogue finds its way to a center-imaged location, though it, too, lacks the detailed precision and, sometimes, even prioritization of superior tracks.

Treasure Island Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Disney Movie Club exclusive Blu-ray release of Treasure Island contains no supplemental content.

Treasure Island Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Treasure Island may be a bit structurally quaint by Black Sails and modern standards, but it's also a dense, richly layered character piece with good action and excellent performances throughout. The film's place in history alone makes it a timeless bit of cinema, but even beyond that notoriety is a movie worth treasuring for generations more to come. Disney's Blu-ray is disappointingly featureless -- the movie deserves a deep collection of added content -- but the studio's movie club exclusive release does boast tremendous 1080p video and adequate audio. This is a film that should be in every home video library. Highly recommended.