Mountain Family Robinson (1979)

Powerful

hyped garbage

Absolutely Fantastic

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

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.

For those who have seen the first two "Wilderness Family" movies, the opening of "Mountain Family Robinson" will come as a surprise. That's because the opening of the movie suggests that there will actually be some kind of plot, with the family being threatened with eviction. However, after this threat is introduced, it is promptly forgotten for the next hour or so! During this hour, there is absolutely nothing of consequence. Sure, the mother at one point leaves the family, but several minutes later she is back and her leaving is forgotten.When the plot does start up again, there is some interest, but it won't take long to quickly conclude what will happen in the end. But at least this series entry has SOME plot! Apart from this plot, there's nothing you haven't seen in the previous entries. There are cute animals, gorgeous scenery, and a dim-witted young son who does some stupid things that will make you want to slap him in the back of the head. If you want to see all this stuff again, fine. Myself, I was glad that the series came to an end at this point because frankly I was starting to get real tired of seeing the same old stuff again.

The family portrayed in this movie (and the two previous installments - yes, unbelievably, we watched all three) are a little smarter by the third movie, but overall should not be allowed to live in the wilderness - they are too stupid. True, this is wholesome and the small kids in our family enjoyed it, but it was truly annoying to watch the continuing stream of foolishness. I don't think the father ever shot a single wolf, even though his family was attacked on more than one occasion, but he was real good at shouting, "Get out of here!" and shooting into the air. These folks are lucky they have a dog - that dog has gotten them out of more scrapes, and put his life on the line innumerable times for his "family". I don't know what they would have done if the dog got killed. Oh, I forgot, there was always Samson the bear to save the day, if the dog wasn't around. Every time there was some kind of crisis (and there were plenty of those) the mother would end up crying and saying, "I can't take it anymore."You should understand, I am totally into family friendly movies, but this one was too much even for me, and it takes a lot to put me over that edge.

aka Wilderness Family, Part III: This movie is more of the same as presented in the first two. The most disturbing part to young children may be the attitude "Mom" has when she leaves to check on her ailing mother. Otherwise, if your children liked the first or second, they'll likely enjoy this one.