Just saw it again. This has got to be Gregory Peck's best role. He manages to meld both charisma and a most forbidding mien. Oh, and a heaping helping of self-destructive obsession.
Whenever I see movies about the old sailing ships, mining, farming, and such, what strikes me is just how astoundingly hard and dangerous that work was.
Really ought to read the book some day.
The kids love it, especially my son. But, he has always been a bit of a hard case when it comes to literature/literary content. He is much more likely to enjoy the old-school classic kid's books or kid-oriented re-writes of adult classics. OTOH, you need to push & prod him to read some of the drek that passes for contemporary children's literature. "The Vibrant Twins and Their Multicultural Inoffensive Caper" is not going to keep his attention.