Summer Magic (1963)

"Summer Magic" is really strictly a younger kid's movie or a nostalgia for 1963 movie and I didn't think too much of it. The songs were silly, the snooty cousin was way way too cloyingly annoying, the supporting characters were just too stereo-typically Disney.It was fine seeing young Hayley Mills and Eddie Hodges and James Stacy and Peter Brown but the story , not so much.Then there's the odious Michael J. Pollard to consider. Why this guy is in so many pictures is a puzzlement!

The decade that brought us the First World War may seem an odd subject for nostalgia, but "Summer Magic", like "On Moonlight Bay" from a few years earlier, is a film which tries to persuade us that, whatever may have been happening on the battlefields of Europe, the 1910s (or the "Ragtime Era" as many Americans called them) really were the time of a kinder, gentler America. (It is, apparently, a remake of a 1938 film called "Mother Carey's Chickens", which I have never seen). Margaret Carey, a recently widowed mother from Boston, is forced to move out of the family home when she discovers that her late husband was the victim of a fraudulent investment scheme. She and her three children, Nancy, Gilly and Peter, relocate to the small town of Beulah, Maine, where they rent a large yellow house. (Gilly- pronounced with a hard "G"- is a boy, not a girl. The name is presumably short for Gilbert, but this is never actually made clear). There are two main plot lines. The first revolves around the family's friendship with Ossian ("Osh") Popham, the agent for their rather mysterious landlord Mr Hamilton. The kindly Osh is more than just a letting agent; he is also the town's storekeeper and general odd-job- man. The second plot line deals with the visit of the Careys' spoilt, snobbish cousin Julia and the mutual dislike which grows up between her and Nancy, especially when they fall for the same man. This was the fourth of six films which Hayley Mills made for Walt Disney Productions. Hayley was, of course, originally from England, but during this period of her career was most often cast (as here) as an American, even though she had trouble managing a convincing American accent. (Here she attempts to sound more American by shortening the long "a" vowels, but this only makes her sound closer to Boston, Lincolnshire than to Boston, Massachusetts). This did not, however, affect her popularity, and she became possibly the most popular teenage star of the sixties. In Britain she tended to be cast in more serious roles ("Tiger Bay", "Whistle Down the Wind", "The Chalk Garden"), but most of her American films were comedies, of which this is a good example. It is also a good example of just what made Hayley so popular in her day- her wonderful liveliness and vivaciousness, combined with a gift for conveying sweetness and innocence. By 1963, when she would have been seventeen, she performed a sort of dual role for Disney. To the older generation she was the daughter they wished they had. To boys, she was the girlfriend they wished they had, a sex symbol in the nicest possible way. Dorothy McGuire, looking much younger than her 47 years, is good as Margaret, as is Deborah Walley as the insufferable Julia. The other performance which stands out, however, is from Burl Ives as the warm- hearted, if occasionally devious, Osh. Ives had originally made his name as a folk-singer, but later became a successful actor, both on Broadway and in the cinema. I had previously associated him with serious dramas such as "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" and "The Big Country", but here he shows that he could do light comedy as well. The film is also a musical with several songs, although none of them rally stand out apart from "The Ugly Bug Ball", which was a favourite of mine as a child. (I had no idea at the time that it was from a film). The plot at times becomes a bit hard to follow, especially the various machinations involving Osh and Mr Hamilton, and the ending seems a bit too abrupt. Overall, however, the film's cheerful atmosphere and the contributions of Mills and Ives make this a watchable example of warm- hearted Disney family entertainment. 7/10

I absolutely love this movie. I saw it for the first time when I was about 5 or 6 and I am 27 now. It has some great songs and it is quite funny in some parts. Kids will especially love "The Ugly Bug Ball." It is entertaining enough to keep adults interested, but not too adult for young children. There are lots of actors that appear in other Disney movies from the same era, so most of the people are pretty recognizable. My husband is not a big fan of most "kid's" movies, but he really enjoyed Summer Magic when I made him watch it. I highly recommend this movie to anyone that likes old Disney movies or has children.

Summer Magic by Walt Disney is an awesome find. This is my all-time favorite Haley Mills movie. She is a tad more grown up since her Parent Trap & Pollyanna days, but still as sweet and innocent as ever! The all-start cast fits together perfectly. Burl Ives as Mr. Poppham was a perfect pick! I can honestly say, they don't make movies like this anymore. I have always enjoyed the classical Disney musicals, but this one is so much fun. The song "Pink of Perfection" gets in my head and I just want to sit down at a piano and sing away. Take my advice: if you want a clean, family movie, go out and rent it today...better yet, BUY IT! It will be worth your time and your money.