That's the first thing SCARY about this movie. No wonder everyone is cranky; moving long-distance in a rear-engine, 55 hp Renault Dauphine; two adults, one cranky kid (I'd be, too, if Mom and Dad made me leave the dog behind with a drunkard-like neighbor).
One thing that sort of amazes me is this movie seems to touch also upon racial intermarriage; Is Mom a blend of white/Asian-American while Dad's a white guy? Or did Mom get a fairly severe eyebrow trimming (like with a Weed-Wacker)?
And Dad's an ass to his wife! Seems like the wife-beater type (oh, yeah, I forgot -- it's the movies... and 1961).
And the music soundtrack is revolting. Even in sad or almost tragic scenes, the goofy happy soundtrack wears me down. Maybe for kids, it won't.
WHY EVER VIEW THIS MOVIE? Oh, yeah... it's for kids. Then no wonder they later rebelled a few years' later. This movie was the cause of the hippie movement, and every other problem that happened later on in the late '60s (sort-of kidding... sort of).
I'd recommend "The Incredible Journey" (the original one, even with the slightly-nagging narration). if one's going for an early- 60s story of similar "moving away, leaving the animals" nature, go with the Disney classic!
This kid's gonna be a thug, but at least he's got "long hair" before the Beatles hit our shores!"
