Flipper 1963 | Boys in movies [BiM]

Flipper (1963)

– Flipper 1963
– 1h 27 min. | Adventure, Drama, Family | 14 August 1963 (USA)

Storyline:

The Florida Keys have been hit by hard times of late. First, a red plague kills off much of the fish in the area. And second, Hurricane Hazel unexpectedly changes course to hit the Keys. Regardless, the Ricks family – fisherman father Po (short for Porter), wife Martha, their preteen son Sandy, and Sandy’s pet pelican Pete – live in all its aspects by the sea, even during these hard times. When Sandy witnesses the accidental spearing of a dolphin, he, on his own, decides to find the dolphin to put it out of its misery. Upon finding the injured dolphin, Sandy, not having the heart to shoot him, decides instead to tow the dolphin home. With some care and love, Sandy and Martha nurse the dolphin back to health. Sandy wants to keep the dolphin, who he’s named Flipper, but Po ultimately releases Flipper, who he sees as “the enemy”: a creature who is on the hunt for whatever short supply of fish there are around the Keys. But Po learns that friends – what Flipper and Sandy are to each other – help each other unconditionally.

User review:

Porter Ricks and his young son Sandy are fishing off the Florida coast. They scramble home ahead of a big hurricane. After the storm, they go spearfishing. Sandy saves a dolphin which got accidentally speared. He brings it back to health and becomes his best friend.

The legacy of this film has grown murky over the years. It created the space for SeaWorld and other water parks. As a movie, the story has limited tension. It’s a family picture and it doesn’t get more family than watching the dog swim with the dolphin. They seem to have used all the wind machines to create the hurricane. There is a lot of swimming with the dolphin which would have amazed everybody back in the day. The underwater adventure is good cinema. All in all, it’s a mixed bag.

Director: James B. Clark
Writers: Ricou Browning (story), Jack Cowden (story), Arthur Weiss
Stars: Chuck Connors, Luke Halpin, Connie Scott
Country of origin: United States
Language: English
Filming locations: Grassy Key, Florida, USA.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057063/