Strong and Moving!

Absolutely Fantastic

It's a mild crowd pleaser for people who are exhausted by blockbusters.

It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

The last of the 3 episodes of the Robinson Wilderness family. There's Dad or Skip, Mom or Pat, Jenny,the teenage girl, pre-teen Toby, and the Labrador Crust(an odd name). Also, there's the mountain man Boomer and his mule, as an occasional visitor. Episode 2 ended with the beginning of spring, after a long winter. This episode takes place in late spring and summer, rather similar to the first episode.A National Forest ranger arrives in a helicopter and tells them they are on property filed as a mining claim. They need to show the right papers and evidence of valuable minerals, or leave within 90 days. The ranger returns near the end of the film to sort things out. I won't reveal this episode, as the film ends with it. As in the previous episodes, we have disasters or fights interspersed between joyous times: a good format. Among the disasters: A rain brings a flash flood that washes away the chicken house and shed, not to mention the vegie garden. This is the last straw for Pat, who leaves to visit her sick mother. It's unclear if she will ever return. Then, little Toby climbs a very steep cliff to find the nest of a raven that stole his pencil. He finds some other missing items in the nest, as well. But he is afraid to climb down. Skip to the rescue. We have several encounters with wolves, cougars and bad bears as well as good bears, as we had in the previous episodes.The family tries panning for gold, but comes up empty. Boomer checks out an old mine shaft, gets into trouble, but finds something of possible importance. I will stop here.Skip appears to have great previous experience with wilderness animals and living. He always brushes off any injuries or traumas as nothing to worry about, surviving various falls and fights with minimal apparent injury. In contrast, Pat often feels stressed out by such events, and sometimes cries.I don't know what animals their 2' high stick fence around the garden is supposed to keep out. Deer seem like the most numerous herbivore around. I doubt it would discourage a determined rabbit or marmot.Some reviewers describe the mountain man Boomer as a creep. I didn't get that impression at all. He seems like a knowledgeable grandfather.Some reviewers complain that these episodes lack a significant plot, although this one has a bit more than the others. Well, there's enough interesting things happening so that a complicated plot isn't necessary. It seems like an adventurous vacation. The same is true of some raucous comedies and some musicals.

Why are people so hung up on reality in films? We have enough reality in the world, I say bring on more unreality please. I'm more intrigued by what they thought was okay to openly portray as okay in the seventies compared to now. A wholesome family squatting on federal land, dogs fighting wildcats, Whole families soaking nude in a hot tub (!). I'm watching this in 2016 and recognize all the non-real parts, but the scenery is beautiful and if I were a kid I would dream of living in the mountains and wilderness when I grew up. What's wrong with that? I'm watching the movie now and am entertained and think many younger children would be entertained. The only downside for me is the family singalongs-definitely not my kind of music.

Having not seen the two previous entries in the series I can't comment on how similar this film is to the rest of them, but what I can say is as someone who normally avoids sentimental family films like this it came as a very pleasant surprise. There were plenty of animal fights between the assorted bears/dogs/cats when the pace looked like dropping, and some moments in the film that were sweet without being corny. The acting was generally good too with the actor portraying Boomer (forget his name) being the highlight providing some welcome moments of comic relief.. love that accent too!! True, the music was universally poor (Did they have to play that damn chirpy title track 3 times? We get it.. they're happy!!) And there were some pretty unbelievable parts (Like when the father falls about 10 metres from a tree while being attacked by a bear and survives without a scratch?!) But ultimately this is a pretty decent movie for your whole clan to enjoy.. in fact its almost enough to make me want to give all my worldly possessions away to charity and go and live the simple life in the wilderness. Almost, but not quite.

Mountain Family Robinson is a beautiful family movie, with wonderful scenery and an adequate cast. The rugged Colorado Rockies are here with all their splendor. The Robinsons face many adversities in the film, but come through all of them as a family.