Alicia I love this movie so much

BeSummers Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

Humbersi The first must-see film of the year.

Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Vincent Spletinckx The Truth About Spring recounts the adventures of Tommy Tyler, a lazy sailor and his tomboy daughter, Spring, as they meet William Ashton, a young lawyer cruising the Caribbean. They soon join forces and engage in the search of a buried treasure also coveted by menacing pirates. This film, shot off the Costa Brava coast in Spain in the spring of 1964, is an excellent entertainment for the whole family and arguably one of Hayley Mills' best movies. Indeed, the 18 year-old British actress delivers one of her finest performances. Her on screen chemistry with both her father (John Mills) and James MacArthur is delightful. Most of the scenes are funny, witty, sweet and moving. Even our heroes' encounters with the competitive pirates are amusing rather than really violent. It's a shame this little gem of a movie has not been officially released on DVD. Nevertheless, if you happen to find it in any other format, do not hesitate! Enjoy it! And that's the truth about it!

maynardski This is a wonderful movie. It was played frequently during my teenage years and I always watched it. It is one of my favorite movies. Unfortunately, I haven't seen it on TV in years.There is something for all audiences in this movie. It might not have all the flashy special effects we find today, but is so entertaining. It is funny, romantic, and wholesome. Pirates add some action scenes for those who need to see battles. Also, most of the film takes place outside and the scenery is beautiful.Haley Mills is so charming and innocent. She is also quite humorous without trying to be. James MacArthur was also very entertaining. He was a gentleman. James portrayed someone so out of his element yet happy to be there. So many people are waiting for this movie to be released on DVD. Why hasn't Universal made this movie available? Come on Universal ... what gives?

ricochet67 This was my favorite movie when I was growing up. Even now, as a middle-aged mom, every time it's on I try to catch it. I haven't seen it on the tube or cable in years and my old VHS copy that I managed to tape the last time it was on (in the middle of the week at 2:00 a.m.) is deteriorating. There are some really good lines - the comic relief provided by Cark & Cleary is very well done - Lionel Jeffries was excellent. But on the cable showings, they put in so many commercials that some of the most memorable lines / clips are ruined by the crappy editing. Last time I saw it, there were 7 minutes of commercials and 7 minutes of movie in the two hour slot. Some of my favorite remembered lines were missing. I've got a bunch of James McArthur's and Hayley Mills' DVDs - I buy them all - whether they are produced by Disney or someone else - JM was my favorite actor as a teen - what's taking so long to issue this The Truth About Spring? We need more old family movies / classics to be available! Karen Davie, FL

vandino1 I, like most others in this forum, happen to love this little movie. There's something about its good-naturedness that is captivating, and its open-air-and-sea setting that gives it a timeless quality. The idea of being a capable young woman who travels around the Caribbean on a boat with a genial parent, leading an unstructured life with plenty of little adventures, must be quite attractive to young female viewers. And then there is Hayley Mills, the effortlessly charming English actress who forever inspires crushes. And why? Perhaps because she's pretty but not too pretty, English but not too English, quite lively but not brassy, and quite natural without the child actor show-offiness or affectations. Truly the girl you want to have next door. For fans of Hayley (note "HAYLEY": for some reason many in this forum can't spell her name correctly) this film has an air of poignancy about it because this is the last of her teen parts. After this she moved on to young adult parts ('That Darn Cat,' her next film, dolled her up and gave her a boyfriend right from the start --- and it was also her last Disney film). Here she'd just turned eighteen and co-star James MacArthur (son of Helen Hayes and famed screen & stage writer Charles MacArthur) was about 27. There had been a contest held by Hayley fans at the time as to who should co-star with her in this film and MacArthur (a Disney alumni) was given the top vote. He was married at the time so no off-screen romance developed. But they are cute together. In my opinion the scene where a trapped Hayley is teased with a rope that MacArthur drops down to her is a small showcase of Hayley's natural and economic comic timing: a kind of ability that Disney could never find again. And one of the pluses of this film is that it is NOT a Disney production, meaning that it has more of a laconic, low-key English flavor to it. It certainly could be mistaken for Disney, and might have made a bigger splash at the box office (it was a dud) and be easily available today on DVD or VHS if it had been, but as a trade-off, it has an easygoing charm without the Disney tendency to offer explosive, slapsticky finishes, or cartoony musical flourishes (e.g. 'In Search of the Castaways' or 'That Darn Cat'). There's also the pleasure of watching outstanding English character actors like Lionel Jeffries and Harry Andrews clearly enjoying themselves. And there's the obvious pleasure of watching the real father-daughter team of John and Hayley playing off each other. John Mills recounted how enjoyable it was making this movie because it was like one long holiday. And note that although the film's story takes place in the Caribbean, in fact, the movie itself was filmed along the southern coast of Spain. In addition, it was released in the UK as 'The Pirates of Spring Cove' and is available on video from England under that title (unfortunately, England uses the PAL video format, thus you have to have a video player that can play that format to view it). I agree that Universal Home Video has foolishly let this movie slip through the cracks, but sometimes movies have copyright problems, so it's possible that Universal would like to release this film but some rights issue is snagging things. Certainly this is not a lost masterpiece worthy of mass petitions or Congressional action, but I think it should be brought to Universal's attention that there ARE buyers out there waiting for a chance to own this little gem.