Quality Escapism

There were a fair few films as I grew up that grabbed my attention and sparked my imagination. Most however, were of the variety that while I loved them, I would not go out of my way to make sure I watched them every time they aired. This is one of the films that did so catch my attention, from the very first time I saw it at the cinema in 1975, and every time it came on the Wonderful World of Disney and later the Disney Channel. It is loosely based on a juvenile science fiction book of the same name by Alexander Key. It's about a pair of orphaned children, Tony and Tia, who have no idea about their origins and go on a journey to discover who they are and join their people.

Tony and Tia have lived with old Mrs Malone as long as they can remember. They know they are different; Tony has telekinetic powers and Tia is capable of mind speech and communicating with animals. Mrs Malone dies however, and they find themselves installed in a rather grim children's home. The trauma begins to stir long buried memories, seen as flashbacks, and leads Tia to look in her star case (a handbag with a star logo upon it), where they find an old road map hidden inside it. When a strange man appears at the children's home claiming to be their uncle, the children sense something is very off, and decide to make their escape. It's a wise decision, for the man is actually an employee of a millionaire named Aristotle Bolt. Despite them trying to keep their specialness hidden, Mr Bolt nonetheless had heard about what they could do, and is desperate to take custody of the children in order to exploit their gifts. On the run with the roadmap, they encounter a friendly old codger who is spending his retirement going about America in his RV. Worrying about their safety, he takes them in and becomes privy to their quest. Along the way they face the villains of the piece and must outwit them, as well as solve the puzzle of who they are via the flashbacks, and just to where the road map will truly take them.

It's an exiting bit of film that has some pretty decent special effects that while dated, stand up pretty well. It's a kids' film that is not dumbed down and has a well written script to go with the high production vales, making it appealing to watch with your children. The casting for the film was absolutely superb. Ike Eisenmann and Kim Richards were the child actors playing Tony and Tia, and deftly handle their roles. They are quite obviously precocious in their acting skills, giving the roles a sense of realism that most children and even several adult actors would have struggled to do. Eddie Albert is wonderful as the affable old guy in the RV (Jason O' Day), providing a warm grandfatherly or favourite older uncle flair to the piece. Donald Pleasance's turn as Mr Bolt's employee Deranian adds a touch of class, while Ray Milland's performance as the millionaire Bolt is given much needed depth, turning him from a cardboard villain to someone you can nonetheless have empathy with.

This movie is not to be confused by the poorly scripted and produced Disney remake for television back in 1995. That film was a train wreck, and quite frankly, Disney should have known better. This is a much better film, though admittedly, it's not a DVD release full of extra features. It's the movie, and just the movie, plus the usual copyright notices, previews, and menu screen. It's English only, and doesn't have subtitles or anything, making this a no frills release, Seeing as I bought it for the film and we are not hearing impaired, I was not bothered. With a great story line, terrific actors, a winking cat and flying Winnebago, this is one film in which the whole family will find something to like.