SimonJack "Donovan's Reef" is one of the films I missed in the theater while I was serving in the Army in Germany. I didn't see it for many years – then, probably as a late night TV film. Today it's a film in my collection to play when family, friends, or I just want to relax with some good old-fashioned entertainment. Besides the last pairing of John Ford and John Wayne, this was near to the last movie that Ford made. The plot is a good one, and somewhat unusual. The characters are great, and the actors are just right for each role. The Duke was 56 years old when he made this film, but his Guns Donovan character doesn't seem to be much older than the 39-year-old Lee Marvin, as Gilhooley. All the cast are very good in this film. Cesar Romero is very funny as the Marquis Andre de Lage, the governor of the island. French actor Marcel Dalio is a hoot as Father Cluzeot. The setting on a South Pacific isle somewhere (filmed in Hawaii) is perfect. And the story is very good, and plausible. It reminded me just a tad of the musical "South Pacific," for the Americans and Europeans being on Polynesian islands. The story is a little serious but mostly funny and a lot of fun. I can imagine that the cast thoroughly enjoyed making this film. It's a very good, entertaining, adventure and comedy romance that the whole family should enjoy.

John H. Holliday This is one of my favorite John Wayne movies; and that's saying a lot considering I think almost all his movies are terrific.The one thing I wish to add to the various reviews that have been made is that this movie has nothing to do with racism, which many claim it does. I see it as Donovan, Gilhooley and Andre trying to hide from Amelia that her father has other children with a woman not her mother, after her mother's death. The mother of the three children was Polynesian, but that's not the point; the point was that he had other children than Amelia.It's lots of fun, lots of laughs, great music, great scenery. I think it's great.

kyrat Having just been to Hawai'i, I decided to watch movies filmed in Hawai'i. Even better (I thought) were that the films attempt to address racism and mixed race children. By was I wrong. In both cases I got a severely dated film that seems racist in it's attempt to counter racism. Last week was South Pacific= Woman learns to love "half breed" children & ends up with old guy. Donovan's Reef=YOUNG woman comes to meet her father, learns to care for her "half caste" siblings. And falls (for NO discernible reason) for her father's OLD friend. Lots of ethnic stereotypes. Lots of TOTALLY RANDOM fight scenes. Some discussions of god, random Christmas mass thrown in. Lovely views of Kauai, the Waimea canyon save about 10 minutes of it, but over all not worth watching.

iftikharkhokher Wonderful fun this movie but the miscasting is incredible!Wayne looks more like a grand-dad than an uncle to the kids.Lee Marvin steals the film with his superb cameo.Miss Allen is awfully mismatched with Wayne.In fact even Warden who played her father was many years Wayne's junior.Had he made this film 10 years earlier it might have been more plausible with the usual Maureen O'Hara.The story line is apt as well as the script.As usual Mr.Ford uses nature to good effect.A good roll-licking film for the die-hard Ford fans but no more than an escapist farewell to once an heroic star.John Ford probably was not aware of the tremendous changes there were going on.A younger,fresher actor to pair with Marvin would have done more justice.But in his lifetime there was only one man this director had in mind.John Wayne!