Real-life father and daughter John and Hayley Mills (co-stars of Tiger Bay and The Chalk Garden) headline the swashbuckling romp The Truth About Spring. Tommy Tyler (John Mills, Ryan’s Daughter), an easy-going Caribbean sailor, is searching for sunken treasure with his tomboy daughter, Spring (Hayley Mills, The Parent Trap). Things get complicated in their houseboat when a young, wealthy lawyer (James MacArthur, Swiss Family Robinson) sets sail with them in search of excitement, riches…and maybe even love. Breathtakingly filmed by veteran director Richard Thorpe (Ivanhoe, Jailhouse Rock), the family adventure The Truth About Spring co-stars English screen greats Lionel Jeffries (The Trials of Oscar Wilde), Harry Andrews (Modesty Blaise) and David Tomlinson (Mary Poppins).

For thoughts on The Truth About Spring, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:

[youtube https://youtu.be/8VuXnHIaTrw?t=2096]

Video Quality

Kino Classics presents The Truth About Spring with a really lovely Blu-Ray in 1.85:1 from what appears to be an older master that is in great shape. This transfer maintains the natural film grain of the presentation with nothing ever seeming overly thick or clumpy. The cinematography is served especially well with image stability and delineation being handled confidently. Black levels hold up nicely with little in the way of crush or banding.

The picture has occasional moments of softness, but the gorgeous tropical hues are saturated confidently with the bright colors popping off the screen. Skin tones are natural and consistent with some distinct facial features easily noticeable in closeup. Print damage such as nicks and lines occasionally show up, but it is evident that the source has been well maintained over the years with overall clarity and detail appearing strong. Kino Classics has delivered a visually pleasing presentation.

Audio Quality

The Blu-Ray comes with an agreeable DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio track that delivers what is needed. This track shows no significant age-related wear and tear such as dropouts, hissing or popping. Dialogue comes through without issues and is balanced well with all competing elements. The sound effects and the score appear to be accurate to the intent of the creative team. The fidelity of the score is unwavering as it brings a breezy tone to the narrative. Kino Classics delivers a fine audio track for this one. There are optional English (SDH) subtitles included for the feature film.

Special Features

Audio Commentary: Film Historian/Screenwriter Gary Gerani provides a very informative commentary track in which he discuss how this fits into the career of Hayley Mills, the evolution of various youth icons into adulthood, the tone of the film, the differences from the source material, the background of the ensemble players, the legacy of the film and much more.

Trailers: The two-and-a-half minute trailer is provided for The Truth About Spring. There are trailers provided for The Chalk Garden, Endless Night, Gambit, The Pink Jungle, What’s So Bad About Feeling Good?, Fitzwilly and The Secret War of Harry Frigg.

Final Thoughts

The Truth About Spring is a light and entertaining sea-faring adventure which thrives due to the amiable bond between John and Hayley Mills. The actual treasure hunting aspect of the narrative is nothing groundbreaking, but it offers some laughs and fleeting intrigue. The coming-of-age journey of Spring is a bit more engaging, more so due to Hayley Mills herself and not her inconsistent chemistry with James MacArthur. Kino Classics has released a new Blu-Ray featuring a really good A/V presentation and a nifty commentary track. If you want an easy-going tropical story, this is a fun watch. Recommended

The Truth About Spring is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Kino Classics has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.