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James Mason took on a rare swashbuckling role for Hero's Island, a 1962 labor of love,
co-produced with director-writer Leslie Stevens. He stars as a seaman
washed ashore on Bull Island in the colonial Carolinas who throws in his
lot and gives his heart to a widow fighting to protect her family. The
story gave him the opportunity for solid dramatic work, a stunning
climactic sword fight against mercenary Neville Brand and a surprising
last-reel revelation about his character. The film also gave him the
chance to work with his son, Morgan, who would go on to an adult career as
a producer.
Mason was at the height of his stardom in 1962, appearing the same year as
Humbert Humbert in the hit adaptation of Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita
for director Stanley Kubrick. The high would not last for long. Two years
after making Hero's Island, he would divorce his wife of 23 years,
Pamela Mason. The mountainous alimony and child support payments she won
would send him into a whirlwind of quickie films just to keep up with his
financial obligations. Despite a few solid productions, it would be years
before he re-established his position as one of the world's most respected
actors.
Hero's Island was the second directing credit for Stevens, a
playwright who had broken into films adapting his hit comedy The
Marriage-Go-Round to the screen as a vehicle for David Niven and Susan
Hayward. It also marked his second try at turning his wife, Kate Manx,
into a film star. Previously, he had directed her to strong critical
reaction in the adult drama Private Property. Although she was a
beautiful, naturally gifted actress, their turbulent marriage didn't
last. They divorced shortly thereafter, and she committed suicide in
1964.
Despite the misfortunes of the film's stars, Hero's Island also
proved a benefit to other members of the cast and crew. Child actor Darby Hinton, cast as one of Manx's three children, would move to small-screen stardom as Fess Parker's son on Daniel Boone before launching an adult career as a soap opera star (Days of Our Lives).
Veteran cinematographer Ted McCord, whose beautiful photography of the
film's Catalina locations won the picture's strongest reviews, had already
built a solid career with such beautifully shot films as Johnny
Belinda (1948) and the innovative East of Eden (1955). He would follow
Hero's Island with the box-office blockbuster The Sound of
Music (1965). And composer Dominic Frontiere would continue his association
with Stevens by scoring the cult classic TV series The Outer Limits
and the recently rediscovered horror film Incubus (1965), the only film
ever shot entirely in Esperanto.
Producer: Leslie Stevens, James Mason
Director & Screenplay: Leslie Stevens
Cinematography: Ted D. McCord
Music: Dominic Frontiere
Film Editing: Richard K. Brockway
Costume Design: Reeder P. Boss, Marjorie Wahl
Cast: James Mason (Jacob Webber), Kate Manx (Devon Mainwaring),
Neville Brand (Kingstree), Rip Torn (Nicholas), Warren Oates (Wayte), Harry
Dean Stanton (Dixey), Morgan Mason (Cullen), Darby Hinton (Jafar).
C-95m.
by Frank Miller
 
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31 Days of Oscar Highlights for Feb. 1
Barbra Streisand stars as Broadway musical legend Fanny Brice in Funny Girl (1968), co-starring Omar Sharif, who is also in the follow-up feature Lawrence of Arabia (1962). Check out the other star connections.
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