Casey Brown (Jodie Foster) is a 14 year old delinquent in Los Angeles who is abrasive, curt, and trusts no one but herself. When her latest escapade lands her in trouble with her foster parents, a con artist named Harry Bundage (Leo McKern) presents an opportunity for her part in a scam: She will pretend to be the long lost granddaughter of Lady Gwendolyn St. Edmund (Helen Hayes) of Candleshoe and use the ruse as an opportunity to search for treasure hidden by Candleshoe's founder, Privateer Joshua St. Edmund. Casey agrees to take part in the scheme. When she arrives Casey convinces Lady St. Edmund and family butler, Priory (David Niven), that she's in fact the long lost daughter, but does not so easily win over the hearts of Lady St. Edmund's foster children. Now trying to keep up a lie while skulking the estate for clues to the treasure, Casey soon finds herself torn between her newfound family and the lie that started it all.
Based on the 1963 book Christmas at Candleshoe by J. I. M. Stewart under the pseudonym Michael Innes, Candleshoe is something of an outlier in the annals of the Ron Miller era of Walt Disney studios. At a time where the studio was predominantly known for gimmick comedies such as the Dexter Riley films and the Don Knotts/Tim Convoy comedies, while the studio did have other endeavors outside these formula comedies, they were typically played very safe with material like Island at the Top of the World or Bedknobs and Broomsticks bearing more than a passing resemblance to 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea or Mary Poppins. Candleshoe is no different in that it feels like had this been made 10 years earlier it would've been a sure bet Haley Mills would've headlined it. With that said, while Candleshoe doesn't break new ground, it's a well told impostor story that segues nicely between themes of family and a decent treasure hunt.
Jodie Foster fresh off her role from Taxi Driver is a more than capable actress for this level of material, and while some of the dialogue can seem somewhat hokey Foster makes it work with an effortless looking performance that sells the "Hardscrabble tomboy" image that defines her character. There's also a really good supporting cast featuring a bevy of really great talent with the always reliable David Niven playing faithful butler Priory has an amusing gag of wearing many hats (quite literally) because the financial situation at Candleshoe has made it so they can't afford more help and he dons various disguises as the gardener and various others to not worry Lady St. Edmund, Niven does a nice job of playing up the silliness of the situation without yuking it up and overdoing the joke. Leo McKern, whom I know for his appearances as Number 2 on The Prisoner, is also quite good as sleazy conman. His voice is as clear and commanding as ever and makes him an intimidating villain but also quite a good comic presence when he faces indignity or comeuppance. Last but not least is Helen Hayes (in what would sadly be her final performance) as Lady St. Edmund, and her performance hits all the right notes. From the skepticism we see when she's first introduced to Casey to the quiet sadness she carries in other scenes, it's clear Hayes is giving her all and if it had to be her last performance, then what a performance to go out on.
Candleshoe's plot is fairly predictable in terms of where the story is going and why, and as far as treasure hunts go it's okay, but it doesn't have the edge of something like the 1964 film The Moon-Spinners did. I personally felt the pacing was a bit too relaxed and maybe they could've played up the impostor aspect of the story a little bit more for some tension, but given this was 70s Disney that probably would've been nigh impossible and it's probably nothing short good fortune we got what we did. I also felt like the movie maybe brushed over the impostor plot point a bit faster than it should've and didn't allow it to carry the weight it should've, but again: that's just me.
Candleshoe isn't one of the Disney greats, but at a time when Disney was mainly recycling the gimmicks of Blackbeard's Ghost or The Love Bug to diminishing returns, it's nice that Disney tried to attempt a more traditional family adventure film that harkened back to the Walt led days of the studio, while it doesn't quite reach the gold standard set by the best Live-Action Disney fare, it does a good job and shows full commitment from all involved.
Based on the 1963 book Christmas at Candleshoe by J. I. M. Stewart under the pseudonym Michael Innes, Candleshoe is something of an outlier in the annals of the Ron Miller era of Walt Disney studios. At a time where the studio was predominantly known for gimmick comedies such as the Dexter Riley films and the Don Knotts/Tim Convoy comedies, while the studio did have other endeavors outside these formula comedies, they were typically played very safe with material like Island at the Top of the World or Bedknobs and Broomsticks bearing more than a passing resemblance to 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea or Mary Poppins. Candleshoe is no different in that it feels like had this been made 10 years earlier it would've been a sure bet Haley Mills would've headlined it. With that said, while Candleshoe doesn't break new ground, it's a well told impostor story that segues nicely between themes of family and a decent treasure hunt.
Jodie Foster fresh off her role from Taxi Driver is a more than capable actress for this level of material, and while some of the dialogue can seem somewhat hokey Foster makes it work with an effortless looking performance that sells the "Hardscrabble tomboy" image that defines her character. There's also a really good supporting cast featuring a bevy of really great talent with the always reliable David Niven playing faithful butler Priory has an amusing gag of wearing many hats (quite literally) because the financial situation at Candleshoe has made it so they can't afford more help and he dons various disguises as the gardener and various others to not worry Lady St. Edmund, Niven does a nice job of playing up the silliness of the situation without yuking it up and overdoing the joke. Leo McKern, whom I know for his appearances as Number 2 on The Prisoner, is also quite good as sleazy conman. His voice is as clear and commanding as ever and makes him an intimidating villain but also quite a good comic presence when he faces indignity or comeuppance. Last but not least is Helen Hayes (in what would sadly be her final performance) as Lady St. Edmund, and her performance hits all the right notes. From the skepticism we see when she's first introduced to Casey to the quiet sadness she carries in other scenes, it's clear Hayes is giving her all and if it had to be her last performance, then what a performance to go out on.
Candleshoe's plot is fairly predictable in terms of where the story is going and why, and as far as treasure hunts go it's okay, but it doesn't have the edge of something like the 1964 film The Moon-Spinners did. I personally felt the pacing was a bit too relaxed and maybe they could've played up the impostor aspect of the story a little bit more for some tension, but given this was 70s Disney that probably would've been nigh impossible and it's probably nothing short good fortune we got what we did. I also felt like the movie maybe brushed over the impostor plot point a bit faster than it should've and didn't allow it to carry the weight it should've, but again: that's just me.
Candleshoe isn't one of the Disney greats, but at a time when Disney was mainly recycling the gimmicks of Blackbeard's Ghost or The Love Bug to diminishing returns, it's nice that Disney tried to attempt a more traditional family adventure film that harkened back to the Walt led days of the studio, while it doesn't quite reach the gold standard set by the best Live-Action Disney fare, it does a good job and shows full commitment from all involved.