{"id":64234,"date":"2018-07-24T11:22:46","date_gmt":"2018-07-24T15:22:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/?p=64234"},"modified":"2022-02-05T23:09:07","modified_gmt":"2022-02-06T04:09:07","slug":"movie-review-treasure-of-matecumbe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/movie-review-treasure-of-matecumbe\/","title":{"rendered":"Movie Review: Treasure of Matecumbe"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Image Copyright Disney<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Based on Robert Lewis Taylor\u2019s 1961 novel A Journey to Matecumbe<\/em>, Disney\u2019s Treasure of Matecumbe<\/em> was theatrically released on July 1, 1976. The live action drama is 117 minutes in length.<\/p>\n

Plot Summary<\/strong><\/p>\n

In post-Civil War Kentucky, young Davie Burnie (Johnny Doran) and his aunts, Effie (Jane Wyatt) and Lou (Virginia Vincent), face the loss of the longtime family estate, Grassy, after Davie\u2019s father, Captain Clay Burnie, died during the war. Then, as so often happens in Disney movies, a light appears from the darkness\u2014the family\u2019s former slave, Ben (Robert DoQui), who accompanied Captain Burnie in the fighting, returns and reveals that the captain accumulated a substantial sum of gold while trading at Mobile, Alabama and that he hid said specie on Matecumbe island in Florida such as to prevent the villainous Captain Spangler (Vic Morrow) and his men from stealing the treasure. The family quickly uncovers the pertinent treasure map written in invisible ink in one of Captain Burnie\u2019s books, but just as the map is located, Spangler and his minions barge into the house, impelling Davie to flee. The lad joins with a friend, Thad (Billy Atmore), and embarks on a dangerous mission to recover the treasure and save Grassy. The odds of two youths successfully venturing from Kentucky to Florida alone are slim, but, fortunately, the duo gains a cast of unlikely friends, including a runaway bride named Lauriette Paxton (Joan Hackett), a faux doctor named Ewing T. Snodgrass (Peter Ustinov), and Davie\u2019s ne\u2019er-do-well uncle Jim (Robert Foxworth), along the way. Together, this group just might possess sufficient strength to repel Spangler\u2019s repeated attempts at ambush and recover the treasure. Will the group succeed in its endeavor?<\/p>\n

Conviction<\/strong><\/p>\n

As Treasure of Matecumbe<\/em> develops, Davie emerges as a fearless youth determined to secure his father\u2019s treasure at all costs to save Grassy for his aunts and for himself. Foolish though his resolution may appear, the lad is undoubtedly principled, willing to suffer death rather than to allow the treasure to fall into the hands of his father\u2019s enemies.<\/p>\n

Trust<\/strong><\/p>\n

In life, people often struggle to accurately gauge who is trustworthy and who is not. Said conundrum plays a major role in Treasure of Matecumbe<\/em> as Lauriette, Snodgrass, and Uncle Jim\u2014all seemingly self-interested people who do not much like each other\u2014amalgamate into a loyal force intent on aiding the boys in their quest.<\/p>\n

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Image Copyright The Mouse for Less<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Action<\/strong><\/p>\n

Treasure of Matecumbe <\/em>is loaded with action.<\/p>\n

Early in the film, Spangler\u2019s men abruptly break into Grassy in search of Ben and Captain Burnie\u2019s treasure. During several intense minutes, the front door is smashed, the bedroom door is barricaded, one of the burglars is repeatedly clocked in the head with a frying pan, Davie and Ben escape through a window, Davie and Thad gallop away on a horse, and numerous shots are fired.<\/p>\n

Thereafter, Spangler and his men engage in several intense battles with their opponents on land and sea; Davie\u2019s wallet is stolen aboard a riverboat; Lauriette is thrown overboard by the thief, and the boys voluntarily follow her into the water; Thad fakes a serious spider bite to help him and Davie escape a jail cell; members of the Ku Klux Klan attempt to lynch Jim Burnie at Friar\u2019s Point before Davie, Lauriette, Thad, and Snodgrass orchestrate a dazzling rescue; Jim, Lauriette, and Snodgrass manage to fight a group of rascals while dancing; and the players battle a hurricane and hostile Indians.<\/p>\n

Effects<\/strong><\/p>\n

The quality of the special effects in Treasure of Matecumbe <\/em>is inconsistent. The film contains some great visuals, mainly explosions, but also some lackluster sights, especially during the Everglades segments towards the end of the movie. Here, the characters paddle against blue screens with low-quality stock footage of animals interspersed, a distracting juxtaposition.<\/p>\n

Music<\/strong><\/p>\n

Played over the opening credits, \u201cMatecumbe\u201d is a smooth number that previews the rich benefits that will arise from the discovery of the treasure on Matecumbe. The song feels somewhat out of place\u2014with its frequent repetition of the title word and its heavy incorporation of drums, \u201cMatecumbe\u201d transported my mind to the Africa section of Disney\u2019s Animal Kingdom, not to the mid-nineteenth century American frontier\u2014but it is catchy, especially if you listen to it more than once.<\/p>\n

Additionally, suspenseful background music nicely augments the tension in the scene where Spangler\u2019s men break into Grassy, sober music complements the fatal shooting of Ben, and folksy frontier band music lightens the mood during a pitstop shortly after Uncle Jim makes his debut.<\/p>\n

Humor<\/strong><\/p>\n

The seriousness of many of Treasure of Matecumbe<\/em>\u2019s more intense moments is mitigated by severe overacting on the part of most of the cast. Said overacting is amusing to an extent, and I find the trait beneficial to Disney\u2019s many comedies of the late-1960s and 1970s, but Treasure of Matecumbe<\/em> is not a comedy at heart. Still, the film features its share of genuine laughs.<\/p>\n

Upon arriving at Grassy in the film\u2019s opening moments, Sheriff Coffey (Warde Donovan) momentarily masks the real purpose of his trip by telling Effie, Lou, and Davie that \u201cit\u2019s gonna be another hot one [day].\u201d Effie\u2019s response: \u201cYou made a mighty long ride to tell us something we already know, Sheriff Coffey.\u201d<\/p>\n

Effie surmises that a noise outside the house is \u201cjust the wind.\u201d Unfortunately for her and her family, without a moment passing following the remark, Spangler\u2019s men smash down the front door.<\/p>\n

Thad takes a whiff of Lauriette\u2019s wedding bouquet\u2026eww! Well, I guess that\u2019s what happens when flowers linger in a stable.<\/p>\n

Snodgrass impersonates an Indian doctor to try to swindle money from unsuspecting locals\u2014either that or his products really can cure every ailment known to mankind! In any event, the doctor soon shows both a moral compass and genuine intelligence.<\/p>\n

Jim is revealed to be a Renaissance man of sorts, albeit not the ideal type of Renaissance man: his salt factory was quickly destroyed by a dam burst, and his attempted railroad collapsed into a bog. Yikes!<\/p>\n

In leaving Davie, Thad, Lauriette, and Snodgrass without transportation in the Everglades, Spangler\u2019s minion Catrell (Mills Watson) comforts his enemies by noting that starvation should not be a concern because mosquitoes will do the damage first. Catrell has a point!<\/p>\n

Relationship to Other Disney Films<\/strong><\/p>\n

Treasure also plays a major role in Treasure Island <\/em>(1950), Tom and Huck <\/em>(1995), Atlantis: The Lost Empire<\/em> (2001), Treasure Planet<\/em> (2002), National Treasure<\/em> (2004), National Treasure: Book of Secrets<\/em> (2007), and the Pirates of the Caribbean<\/em> series (2003, 2006, 2007, 2011, 2017).<\/p>\n

Early in Treasure of Matecumbe<\/em>, Davie and Thad board a riverboat. Riverboats are also seen in The Rescuers <\/em>(1977) and The Princess and the Frog <\/em>(2009).<\/p>\n

Keelboats, utilized throughout Treasure of Matecumbe<\/em>, especially by Snodgrass, were prominently featured in Davy Crockett and the River Pirates<\/em> (1956).<\/p>\n

The American Civil War also factors into The Great Locomotive Chase <\/em>(1956) and The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band <\/em>(1968).<\/p>\n

Peter Ustinov had previously contributed to Blackbeard\u2019s Ghost <\/em>(1968), Robin Hood<\/em> (1973), and One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing<\/em> (1975) for Disney.<\/p>\n

Native Americans also feature prominently in Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier<\/em> (1955), Davy Crockett and the River Pirates<\/em>, Westward Ho, the Wagons!<\/em> (1956), The Light in the Forest<\/em> (1958), Tonka<\/em> (1958), Savage Sam<\/em> (1963), Those Calloways<\/em> (1965), The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again<\/em> (1979), and Pocahontas<\/em> (1995).<\/p>\n

Treasure of Matecumbe <\/em>was the fourth of seven Disney films to feature Dick Van Patten, who briefly appears as the host of the three-card monte game on the riverboat. Van Patten had previously appeared in Snowball Express<\/em> (1972), Superdad<\/em> (1973), and The Strongest Man in the World<\/em> (1975) for Disney; and he subsequently contributed to Gus<\/em> (1976), The Shaggy D.A.<\/em> (1976), and Freaky Friday<\/em> (1976) for the studio.<\/p>\n

George Lindsey, who briefly appears as the sheriff that locks the boys in the jail cell, had previously contributed to The Aristocats <\/em>(1970), Snowball Express<\/em>, Charley and the Angel <\/em>(1973), and Robin Hood<\/em> for Disney; and he subsequently contributed to The Rescuers <\/em>for the studio.<\/p>\n

In the Parks<\/strong><\/p>\n

The final scenes of Treasure of Matecumbe <\/em>were shot on Walt Disney World\u2019s original \u201cDiscovery Island,\u201d which is situated in Bay Lake behind the Contemporary Resort. From 1974 to 1999, guests could venture to this island to interact with wildlife. The island\u2019s purpose as an attraction was obviated by the debut of Disney\u2019s Animal Kingdom theme park in 1998. The current \u201cDiscovery Island\u201d section at the Animal Kingdom was termed \u201cSafari Village\u201d until the closure of Bay Lake\u2019s Discovery Island to guests.<\/p>\n

Riverboats at Disney theme parks include the \u201cLiberty Square Riverboat\u201d at Walt Disney World\u2019s Magic Kingdom, the \u201cMark Twain Riverboat\u201d at Disneyland Park and Tokyo Disneyland Park, and the \u201cThunder Mesa Riverboat Landing\u201d at Disneyland Park Paris.<\/p>\n

Respective keelboat attractions, both called \u201cMike Fink Keel Boats,\u201d were featured at Disneyland Park from 1955 to 1997 and at the Magic Kingdom from 1971 to 2001.<\/p>\n

In Treasure of Matecumbe<\/em>, the characters visit New Orleans. New Orleans-themed subsections are featured at Disneyland Park and Tokyo Disneyland Park; and two Louisiana-themed resort hotels, \u201cPort Orleans Riverside\u201d and \u201cPort Orleans French Quarter,\u201d are included at Walt Disney World.<\/p>\n

Overall<\/strong><\/p>\n

On the plus side, the plot of Treasure of Matecumbe <\/em>is suspenseful and engaging. On the downside, the acting is bad, and some scenes, especially that with the KKK, are out of place for a family movie. Treasure of Matecumbe <\/em>would have benefited had it been released by Disney in later years on a bigger budget under the Touchstone Pictures label, which Ron Miller, the executive producer of Treasure of Matecumbe<\/em>, created for Disney\u2019s more adult fare in 1984. In sum, the movie is enjoyable, but parents should watch it first before showing it to younger children.<\/p>\n

What do you think of Treasure of Matecumbe? Let me know in the comments!<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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