Journey To The Center Of The Earth (1959)......remains as much of a richly imagined treat now as it was when it first dazzled us as a Jurassic-era little sci fi fanboy.......
Whenever a major movie studio decided to lavish its A-Plus treatment on a sci-fi/fantasy project, the film became a major event.......and it benefited from all the perks a prime studio offering......big stars, top-of-the-line special effects, expensive, lush production values and splashy publicity from the studio's marketing team......
As examples, consider MGM's 1956 "Forbidden Planet" and 20th Century Fox's 1951 "The Day The Earth Stood Still".
Fox went to the Jules Verne novel for its next spectacular and of course produced it in glorious Cinemascope and Color By Deluxe........and best of all, recruited one of the most gifted of all film composers, Bernard Herrmann to score the film.
Herrmann's pounding, majestic main title theme prepared audiences for the ambitiously produced adventure that follows.
In the usual style of 50's filmmaking, the movie takes its own sweet time to unfold its story of Professor Lindenbrook (James Mason), and his perilous descent into the center of the earth........along with his young student/assistant (Pat Boone, cast to attract teenagers), a contentious widow (Arlene Dahl, a generic diva) and the most fascinating expedition member, a towering Icelandic man-mountain (the extremely Nordic Peter Ronson, who went on to participate in the 1960 Olympics )
But wait! There's villainy afoot......in the form of a rival subterranean explorer, the evil Count Sarknussemm, an imperious toad perfectly embodied by Thayer David, a busy young character actor just starting his long career of playing similar oily reptiles......(you might remember him from 'Dark Shadows' or the sinister boxing promoter in 'Rocky')
Speaking of reptiles, this may be the one and only movie whose use of fin-festooned iguanas to play dinosaurs didn't make us cringe. The little lizards do a fine job pretending they're massive, slithering monsters......
The make-believe dinos and all of the rest of the film's special effects sequences are given a incalculable power boost by the Bernard Herrmann score, which heaves and growls and murmurs throughout the film.
Even with Herrmann accentuating the danger and wonder, we should point out the movie does maintain a healthy sense of humor, particularly in the scenes where Mason's pompous professor clashes with Dahl's practical but hot-tempered widow.........(not for a moment do you doubt these two will end up together before 'The End' appears on the screen)
As all the ongoing horrors of 2020 still run rampant among us (Covid-19, Trump, etc, etc) we highly recommend a comforting, thrilling and lively excursion to the center of the earth. (.....but beware that giant red chameleon hiding in the ruins of Atlantis.....)
4 stars (****)......BQ says book your trip soon.
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