The film gets past its Disney-fied moments with a wonderfully burly performance by Kirk Douglas and the inherent intrigue of the Captain Nemo character. Set in the 19th century, rumors of a giant sea monster wrecking ships are flying fast and furious. Prof. Pierre Arronax (Paul Lukas, THE LADY VANISHES) is skeptical, but won’t write off the possibility of a sea monster existing. His dutiful assistant Conseil (Peter Lorre, CASABLANCA) is a little more reluctant to voice his opinion, especially in front of reporters. Ned Land (Douglas) is a veteran whale hunter, who is hired to look for the sea monster. He, however, does not believe in the monster at all.
The three set out to find the monster and what they find is a technologically advanced submarine, helmed by Capt. Nemo (Jason Mason, LOLITA). After Arronax’s ship is sunk by Nemo’s Nautilaus, Nemo takes Arronax, Conseil and Land on board. Nemo’s ethics and lack of faith in humanity disturb Cornseil and Land, but the Prof. falls under the Captain’s spell, intrigued by the science that Nemo has discovered.
The film is a rousing family adventure that captures the best of the Disney live-action films of the 1950s. The production values and set designs are top notch. However, the awe-shucks approach weakens any real menace the tale has to tell. When I mentioned the film was Disney-fied what I meant was that the film throws in some songs, a cute sealion and uses chipper, rousing adventure type music when more ominous tunes would have helped build tension.
However, the film is what it is and you have to take it at face value. It’s meant to be a grand adventure for the whole family, which it succeeds at doing. Mason does a great job, retaining the essence of the Nemo character, who values science and knowledge, but doesn’t feel the world in civilized enough to understand. He is fascinating. Then we have Douglas’ Land, which is a joy to see. He’s rough, tough and funny. He puts the salt in salty sailor. There’s enough here for everyone of any age. Nemo will fascinate the adult brain in you and Land will fascinate the kid brain in you.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
