Windjammer: The Voyage of the Christian Radich (1958) + Extras

Directors: Bill Colleran, Louis De Rochemont III
Writers: A.J. Villiers (book) (as Captain Alan Villiers), James L. Shute (adaptation)
Stars: Bjørn Amvik, Arne Andersen, Per Antonsen

In this documentary, 50 teenage boys sign up for a unique journey on the ship "Christian Radich," following the route taken by Christopher Columbus to the New World. During the journey, four crew members form a singing group to entertain the boys, who are also engaged by the lively antics of their mascot dog, Stump. The ship stops at various places, including Madeira, the West Indies, Puerto Rico and Boston. Each stop exposes the travelers to different cultures and their traditional music.

Windjammer, the visual story of a cruise on the Norwegian school ship Christian Radich, is one of my favorite all time films. It combines a variety of elements, especially the sea and Norway into a piece of extraordinary entertainment. I have the book from the movie and I have the music, but neither I nor anyone else, as far as I know, can ever see it again. It was produced as three films by three cameras and shown with three projectors as the process Cinemiracle. From what I have found out, the originals are destroyed. Whether they could have been combined onto one video tape is also questionable. But from this film I developed a great interest in Norway. Even though I do not have any Norwegian blood in me, I am a member of Sons of Norway. I have visited Norway but missed the Christian Radich which was out to sea. I have friends in Norway and I love Norway even when it is cold and gray. Hopefully I shall return to Norway, step aboard the Christian Radich, or maybe even ride it before the wind. Of all the films I loved not available for viewing, this is definitely the one I miss the most.

Extras:
- The Windjammer Voyage: A Cinemiracle Adventure - in this long and very informative documentary, production technical advisor Alf Bjercke, actors Tore Bilet (Cadet #85), Jon Reistad (Cadet #16), Kaare Teerland (Cadet #2), Lasse Kolstad (Boatswain), and Sven Erik Libaek (Cadet #35), among others, recall their contribution to Windjammer: The Voyage of the Christian Radich and discuss the film's success. The documentary was directed by historian Dave Strohmaier (57 min, 1080p).
- Windjammer Gets a Facelift - a short but very illuminating video piece on the remastering of Windjammer: The Voyage of the Christian Radich. The specific comments on the color corrections are particularly interesting (13 min, 1080i).
- Christian Radich at the Aalbourg Denmark Tall Ships Festival, 2010 - a look at the great Christian Radich ship, which has been preserved for future generations. The ship has won over 37 tall ship races since 1956. With a short introduction by Einar Corwin, the present director of Christian Radich (7 min, 1080i).
- Windjammer Slideshow - behind-the-scenes images of the production, the original exhibition, and original publicity of the film (10 min, 1080p).
- Original Newspaper Ads Slideshow - a selection of vintage newspaper ads from the film's original release (2 min, 1080p).
- Trailer - original trailer for the film (3 min, 1080p).

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