Island in the Sun (1957)

Interesting facts

• Filmed in: Farley Hill

Island in the Sun is a 1957 American drama film produced by Darryl F. Zanuck and directed by Robert Rossen. It features an ensemble cast including James Mason, Harry Belafonte, Joan Fontaine, Joan Collins, Dorothy Dandridge, Michael Rennie, Stephen Boyd, Patricia Owens, John Justin, Diana Wynyard, John Williams, and Basil Sydney. The film is about race relations and interracial romance set in the fictitious island of Santa Marta. Barbados and Grenada were selected as the sites for the movie based on the 1955 novel by Alec Waugh. The film was controversial at the time of its release for its on-screen portrayal of interracial romance.

Production

The novel was published in January 1956. The New York Times called it an "absorbing good reading and a considerable achievement in its own right." The Los Angeles Times called it "strong, suspenseful." The book sold over 900,000 copies.

Darryl F. Zanuck purchased screen rights to the novel for 20th Century Fox in May 1955, prior to publication. However, by that stage it had already been accepted for serialization and was the Literary Guild and Reader's Digest Guild choice. Waugh received $140,000 for the rights.

Zanuck said he was attracted to the novel because it contained multiple stories. "I like multiple stories", he said. "Either a story should concentrate on two people or it should for me at least have a number of people dramatically integrated. I don't mean the Grand Hotel type of story but people whose lives and emotions – the drama of the story – are knit together."

He went on to say that there were fourteen major parts, "and six of them it would be difficult to say who was the most important." He also liked the fact the book had "a novel and attractive background" which would suit filming in color and CinemaScope, and that the novel tackled miscegenation.

"Our picture is highly controversial, but then I've made controversial pictures before", said Zanuck, who had made Grapes of Wrath, Gentleman's Agreement and Pinky. "I don't know whether I'll ever be able to show the film in the south and it may be objected to in other areas but I am taking my chances because I believe this great story...

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