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Saturday Island
Saturday Island
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Stuart Heisler
Screenplay by	Stuart Heisler; Stephanie Nordli
Story by	Stuart Heisler
Based on	Saturday Island by Hugh Brook
Produced by	David Rose
Starring	Linda Darnell; Tab Hunter; Donald Gray
Cinematography	Oswald Morris
Edited by	Russell Lloyd
Music by	William Alwyn
Production; company	Coronado Productions
Distributed by	RKO Pictures ; United Artists (US)
Release date	20 March 1952;
Running time	94 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Box office	$1.5 million (North America)

Saturday Island is a 1952 British south seas adventure romance film directed by Stuart Heisler and starring Linda Darnell, Tab Hunter, and Donald Gray. The film was produced by independent company Coronado Productions with the financial backing of RKO Pictures who distributed it in Britain. It was released in America by United Artists under the alternative title Island of Desire.

Plot

When a hospital ship strikes a mine during the Second World War, the only survivors are Lieutenant Elizabeth Smythe and Corporal Michael Dugan, who become marooned on an island in the South Pacific, where they slowly bond. Their relationship is complicated by the arrival of a third person, a survivor of a plane crash.

Cast

Linda Darnell as Lieutenant Elizabeth Smythe
Tab Hunter as Marine Corporal Michael J. 'Chicken' Dugan
Donald Gray as Squadron Leader William Peck, RAF
John Laurie as Grimshaw
Sheila Chong as Tukua
Russell Waters as Dr. Snyder
MacDonald Parke as Ship's Captain
Michael Newell as Edie
Lloyd Lamble as Officer of the Watch
Peter Butterworth as Wounded Marine
Harold Ayer as Marine Sergeant
Diana Decker as Nurse
Hilda Fenemore as Nurse
Joan Benham as Nurse
Brenda Hogan as Nurse
Katharine Blake as Nurse

Production

The film was based on a novel by Hugh Brooke which was published in 1935. The New York Times called it "a delightful adventure".^[2] Variety called it "an amiably pleasant novel... Few are likely to remember It, but those who read It will enjoy It."^[3]

Film rights came into the hands of David E. Rose who set up the project in England under Warner Bros. Stuart Heisler signed to direct and Linda Darnell agreed to star, her first British film.^[4]^[5] Don Taylor was originally set to be Darnell's co star.^[6] Donald Gray signed to play the second male lead.^[7]

Location filming started in Jamaica on 1 July 1951.^[8]

The male lead eventually went to Tab Hunter. Hunter was recommended by Paul Guilfoyle a character actor who heard Heisler was looking for an unknown. Hunter went to see Heisler who asked the actor to take off his shirt. Hunter says screenwriter Stephanie Nordeli was enthusiastic about him. He tested on Saturday and by Monday was getting his passport to travel to Jamaica.^[9]

Interiors were shot at Walton Studios near London. The film's sets were designed by the art director John Howell.

Reception

Variety said the film was "pooled in a leisurely and conventional style, making the production a fair hokum entertainment set for modest returns... Neither the incident nor the dialog is sufficiently sharp to maintain the grip on the first hour. There are one or .two minor, contrived thrills, but largely 'the conversation between the two characters during this period maintains a persistent level of puerility. There is more life and action in the later sequences, but it takes far too long for the picture to get moving." The critic felt Darnell "plods through the role in an uninspired way, registering the requisite emotions but offering only a modicum of conviction" while Hunter "displays a healthy torso, but not a great deal of talent."^[10]

References

^ "Top Grossers of 1952". Variety. 7 January 1953. p. 61.
^ Happy Castaways: SATURDAY ISLAND. By Hugh Brooke. New York Times, 11 Aug 1935: BR6.
^ "Book reviews". Variety. 4 September 1935. p. 58.
^ OBSERVATION ON THE LONDON SCREEN SCENE By STEPHEN WATTS. New York Times 1 Apr 1951: 101
^ To Film 'Saturday Island' The Christian Science Monitor 23 June 1951: 11.
^ 'Drama: O'Keefe Writes White House Thriller; Chaplin Import Will Be Tested' Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times 21 Apr 1951: 11.
^ Drama: Mildred Dunnock Deals Multiply; Irish Clan Gathers for Ford Film Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times 4 June 1951: B9.
^ POWER'S ROLE GOES TO CONTRACT ACTOR: Dale Robertson Will Play Lead in Fox Film Adaptation of Roberts' 'Lydia Bailey' By THOMAS F. BRADY Special to THE NEW YORK TIMES 4 June 1951: 29.
^ A Critic's Remark and Hard Work Put Tab Hunter on Top: Critic and Work Spur Tab Hunter Hopper, Hedda. Los Angeles Times 13 Feb 1955: D1.
^ "Saturday Island". Variety. 26 March 1952. p. 6.