Simply A Masterpiece

Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

Memorable, crazy movie

Don't listen to the negative reviews

I saw this movie only once when I was somewhere between the ages of 7 and 10 years old. I remember this movie vividly and somehow feel that it has affected my life in a subconscious manner, as some other people have written on here.As I read the other reviews of this movie, I find it strange to see how many people also had the same impression of this film. I don't remember it as Sammy Going South or A Boy Ten Feet Tall, but as The Ten Foot Tall Boy. Funny that I remember it that way. I have mentioned this movie, with the title I remembered it by, to many people (many of whom are movie buffs) but no-one seems to remember it at all.I did a search online and found nothing and nowhere to purchase it. But, fortunately, I am a UCLA alumnus and did a search of The UCLA Film Archives and found it there. I think it is the American edited version, but I would be very glad to be able to see even that version (which is probably the one I did see about 35 years ago, once).It's amazing to see how many people have had the same experience with this film, having seen it only once. This movie must be released on DVD. How does one go about doing that? Who does one need to contact to have this done?

I showed this film ( U.S. version titled "A Boy Ten Feet Tall")at the base theater while stationed with the U.S. Navy in Asmara, Eritrea in 1973 and I thought it was one of Edward G. Robinson's finest. The basic premise of the movie, as I recall after all these years, is a boy is orphaned during an air raid in Egypt and then compelled to live with a foster parent. Having heard that he had an aunt living in South Africa he ran away from the foster parent and set out on his own to South Africa. The story tracks him through many adventures on his way and the best was when he came upon a diamond smuggler, Edward G. Robinson, who eventually befriends the boy and takes him under his wing. Of course this 'soft' gesture eventually leads to Edward G's demise and capture by authorities but he was able to instill a keen sense of responsibility and independence in the boy during their time together. The boy travels further across Africa and does eventually turn up at his Aunt's doorstep. I searched for this movie for years but no one seems to have heard of it. I think it would be a great candidate for a re-release or to come out on DVD.

We saw this movie (A Boy Ten Feet Tall) almost forty (40) years ago and have never forgotten it. Edward G. Robinson is fantastic in one of his best, yet least known roles. The boy Sammy (Fergus McClelland)is a hard worker and shows character growth throughout in his rugged adventure. The story line holds the viewer's attention from beginning to end. Although this has been described as a great children's movie, it is also definitely a movie for adult viewers. There is some violence, but it is pertinent to the story. I would recommend this movie highly to everyone. I have been searching for it for many years and recently obtained a video which I now prize among my favorites. I understand that it has been shown infrequently on television and would hope that more people would have the opportunity to see it!

A ten year-old English boy's parents are killed in Port Said during the 1956 Suez crisis, and so, in the British way, he sets off--alone and on foot--to travel the length of Africa to find his only relative, an aunt in Durban, South Africa. A children's picture filled with delights, especially the lovely location cinematography; the inspired casting of Edward G. Robinson as a wily soldier of fortune; and the engaging Fergus McClelland as the boy, Sammy, whose own innocence somehow mirrors an Africa which, even in 1956 (or 1963), was already quickly passing away.