Treasure Island, the Sadly Terrible Film Adaptation of 1998
What Were They Thinking?
Treasure Island, one of many teachers’ favorite novels, has been given to students to read for decades. As a result, it has claimed a prominent place upon my bookshelf with my other classic novels of renown. This book is great for young folks as well as old, and allows the reader to journey back to the mid-1700s – to feel the thrill of sea adventure, the fear of mutiny, and the excitement of buried treasure. In this blog post, I will discuss the 1998 film adaptation and how the movie industry has continuously disappointed the decerning fans of Treasure Island over the years.
About Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson came into this world on November 13, 1850, and passed away on December 3, 1894. He was born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland. He was the son of Thomas Stevenson, a leading lighthouse engineer, and his wife, Margaret Isabella. Though his parents christened him Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson, when he was about 18 years old, he changed the spelling of “Lewis” to “Louis”, and he eventually dropped “Balfour” from his moniker in 1873.
Growing up Stevenson…
Stevenson remained an only child throughout his life. In his childhood he was both rather odd-looking and somewhat eccentric. These distinct attributes made it hard for him to fit in when he was sent to a local school at the tender age of 6. This issue was repeated when he turned 11 and was sent away to the Edinburgh Academy to further his education. However, he did mix in well with the more boisterous games that his cousins came up with during summer holidays at Colinton.
His frequent illnesses (for he suffered cruelly from serious bronchial illness) often interrupted his schooling causing him to be taught for long periods of time by private tutors. Even with this fluctuating education, Stevenson had learned enough to become a prolific writer. He traveled extensively as a result of his poor health, allowing him to visit many destinations and climates.
As a young adult, he found it easier to mix within the London literary circles. He received continual encouragement from such literary leaders as Andrew Lang, Leslie Stephen, Edmund Gosse, and W. E. Henley. In fact, it was actually W.E. Henley who inspired Stevenson and proved to be an excellent model for the character of Long John Silver in Treasure Island.
The inspiration and development…
The idea for Treasure Island was first conceived during the summer season in Braemar, Scotland in 1881. He began work on the famed novel by August 25th; originally titling it The Sea Cook, then later Treasure Island. A mere month preceding the conception of the book, the first chapters began to show up in the pages of a prominent periodical magazine of the time, Young Folks. He completed roughly seventeen chapters for the serialized publication but was suddenly interrupted by another bout of illness.
He quickly quit Scotland in favor of a healthier clime closer to London and continued working on the first draft from there. He also included his father in discussing the finer points of the story and was open to including the elements that his father suggested. The story ended up running in seventeen weekly installments from October 1, 1881, to January 28, 1882, and was later republished as the full book that we now know as Treasure Island. It also proved to be Stevenson’s first financial and critical success.
Raising in the ranks…
A critically acclaimed celebrity in his own lifetime, Stevenson’s reputation as a prominent fictional storyteller has vacillated sadly since his death. Today, however, his writings are back to being respectfully acclaimed, and in 2018, he took his place right behind Charles Dickens, ranking him as the 26th-most-translated author in the world.
Treasure Island is a fictional story set in the mid-18th century, the adventure being a hunt for hidden treasure. You see, it was rumored that the notorious pirate, Captain Flint, hid his massive wealth in an undisclosed, secret, location upon a deserted island.
When Jim Hawkins and his mother come across an old treasure map, Jim evades the pirates that want to take it from him and takes it to the Squire and Dr. Livesey.
An expedition is planned aboard the schooner the Hispaniola with a motley crew of both honest seamen and pirates. All seems to be going as planned as they sail over the vast ocean toward their destination until Jim unexpectedly unearths a diabolical plot headed up by none other than the ship’s cook, Long John Silver. With this information, Jim and the few honest men plan a counter offensive that brings them to question loyalties and their hopes for a favorable outcome.
Characters of Treasure Island at a Glance
MAIN CHARACTERS
Jim Hawkins: The son of the innkeeper of The Admiral Benbow.
Long John Silver: The one-legged cook aboard the Hispaniola.
Dr. David Livesey: A doctor and magistrate.
Captain Alexander Smollett: The captain of the Hispaniola.
Squire John Trelawney: A wealthy landowner who arranges the voyage to the island.
Billy Bones: An old seaman who resides at the Admiral Benbow Inn.
Ben Gunn: A former member of Captain Flint’s crew who was found on Treasure Island.
MINOR CHARACTERS
Alan: An honest sailor who is killed by the mutineers during the landing on the island.
Allardyce: One of the six members of Flint’s Crew who, after burying the treasure and silver and building the blockhouse on Treasure Island, are all killed by Flint.
Job Anderson: The ship’s boatswain and one of the leaders of the mutiny.
Mr. Arrow: The first mate of the Hispaniola.
Black Dog: Formerly a member of Flint’s pirate crew.
Pew: A vicious, deadly, and sinister blind beggar who served as a member of Flint’s crew.
Captain J. Flint: A pirate who was captain of a ship called the Walrus.
Abraham Gray: A ship’s carpenter’s mate on the Hispaniola.
Israel Hands: The ship’s coxswain and Flint’s old gunner.
Mr. and Mrs. Hawkins: The parents of Jim Hawkins. Mr. Hawkins dies early in the story.
John Hunter: A manservant of Squire Trelawney.
John: A mutineer who is injured while trying to storm the blockhouse.
Dick Johnson: The youngest of the mutineers, who has a Bible.
Richard Joyce: One of the manservants of Squire Trelawney who accompany the squire to the island, a mild-mannered valet inexperienced in firearms.
George Merry: A mutinous and hostile member of Silver’s crew.
Tom Morgan: An ex-pirate from Flint’s old crew.
O’Brien: A mutineer who survives the attack on the blockhouse and escapes.
Tom Redruth: The gamekeeper of Squire Trelawney.
Tom: An honest sailor who is killed by Silver for refusing to join the mutiny.
This is a Peter Rowe film, produced by John Buchannan through the Fries Film Group and Kingsborough Greenlight Pictures, in association with the Isle of Man Film Commission.
Screenplay adaptation written by Peter Rowe.
Starring: Jack Palance, Patrick Bergin, Kevin Zegers, Christopher Benjamin, David Robb, Malcolm Stoddard, Al Hunter Ashton, Cody Palance, Walter Sparrow, Anthony Booth, Dermot Keaney, and Philip Whitechurch.
Now that we have the opening credits out of the way, let’s delve into the movie and see how it compares to the original. I’m not going to go over every point where the film failed to deliver, just some key moments that must be addressed. So, grab a snack and something to drink while I get my thoughts in order.
Ready? Great! Let’s go!
The Beginning…
The opening scene has Long John Silver and several other pirates seeking the coveted treasure on the island before he lost his leg. Then the story picks up where the book begins; with Captain showing up at the Admiral Benbow Inn. This the screenwriter did fairly well except that they watered him down a bit and doctored the scene. Even with that weak start I had great hope that the rest of the film would only get better, but it was not to be.
When Captain enters the Inn, it is Jim who offers the old sea dog assistance. Captain orders a class of rum, swallows it down, and offers Jim a pieces of eight coin to keep an eye out for a one legged man or a blind beggar with a scarred face.
Really?
This isn’t exactly the way things went in the novel. First of all, Stevenson never discussed how Silver lost his leg in the beginning. In fact, Silver doesn’t come into the story until a bit later on. As for Jim assisting Captain when he first arrived, it was actually his father who help the old pirate. Captain did eventually offer to pay Jim for information, but he didn’t offer pieces of eight, it was a silver fourpenny that was offered, and only for information about the one-legged sailor. The blind beggar with a scar was not mentioned at that time.
Who’s That?
Yes, indeed. What a good question. You see, when Captain asks Jim if he is alone in the Inn, Jim replies that his ailing grandmother is there with him and is bedridden.
What!?
What happened to Jim’s parents? There was no grandmother in the book. Jim lived in the Inn with his mother and father. It was a bit after Captain made himself comfortable in the Admiral Benbow that Jim’s father became deathly ill. How could that be mixed up? I don’t know how, but it was. In fact, both of his parents were quite active in the first part of the book.
There is so much incorrect in the first part of the movie that I think it best for us to simply move on to the next important discrepancy.
Pew…
Let’s talk about the blind beggar, Pew, and skip ahead to after the pirates were ransacking the Inn. The warning is sounded and the pirates make a run for it. That part of the movie was partly correct, as well as when Pew was run down, but that’s where the consistency ends.
If we are to believe the movie, then Doctor Livesey was present when Pew was killed. But how can that be when the book clearly has him sharing a meal with Squire Trelawney when Pew dies, and Jim takes the map to them at the Squire’s home. Sure, the feel is there, but so much has been changed.
Black Dog…
How about the pirate, Black Dog. The scene in Silver’s tavern could not have been more misrepresented. It has Jim enter the tavern on a mission to deliver a message to Silver when he sees Black Dog. So far so good, though that part of the picture was shabbily done. What happens next is where it all goes awry. We watch as Black Dog chases Jim out of the tavern and through the streets with the threat to kill him. Where on earth did they get that? Not from the book, that’s for sure.
The book says that Jim saw Black Dog in Silver’s establishment and cries out the man’s moniker. Black Dog makes a run for it and Silver sends someone else after the man while he and Jim talk things over in the tavern. These two scenes do not mesh.
Onboard The Hispaniola?
Okay, so, we’ve made it aboard the ship heading for Treasure Island. Nothing is really how it is in the book. The liberties that were taken with dialogue and scenes are unbelievable, but the most glaring one is when a battle breaks out on the ship while Silver and a few of his men are ashore.
What a misuse of the pen. There was never a battle between the pirates and the honest crew on board the ship. The only fight on the ship took place between two lone pirates who were sopping drunk on rum – not grog. The book didn’t mention grog. It was always rum. And the battle in question? That took place on the island after Doctor Livesey’s group took over the log house.
Is That You Jim?
That’s what Long John Silver asked. So, what about Jim Hawkins? Yes, Jim did go to the island with the pirates but not on Captain Smollett’s command. He actually took it upon himself to hide in one of the jollyboats when the pirates left the ship, then ran into the trees as soon as they reached the shore. He was not “sacrificed” as the movie shows, and the scene of him and the pirates on the beach never happened.
He didn’t have a violent encounter with any of the pirates until much later in the book.
That about does it. I’m not going to beleaguer the point. So, let’s head toward the door.
Conclusion
As I mentioned before, this film was packed full of inaccuracies and changes. The sad thing is that this film adaptation is reputed to be one of the best out there. What a shame! If this is one of the best, I cringe to think what the worst must look like.
That being said, the film in and of itself was entertaining and worth watching if you don’t care about how it holds up to the book. I’m sure that all of the various adaptations (and there are a great many) are entertaining in their own ways.
Treasure Island has been made into several live action movies, a few animated films – one made by Disney, a musical or two, and even a Muppets presentation. If you’re just looking for a fun afternoon adventure film, grab a bag of popcorn and start streaming. A grand adventure awaits you.