20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)

A ship sent to investigate a wave of mysterious sinkings encounters the advanced submarine, the Nautilus, commanded by Captain Nemo.

Director:

Richard Fleischer

Writer:

Earl Felton (screenplay)

Stars:

Kirk Douglas, James Mason, Paul Lukas

Won 2 Oscars. Another 1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Kirk Douglas	...	Ned Land
James Mason	...	Captain Nemo
Paul Lukas	...	Prof. Pierre Aronnax
Peter Lorre	...	Conseil
Robert J. Wilke	...	First Mate of the Nautilus
Ted de Corsia	...	Capt. Farragut
Carleton Young	...	John Howard
J.M. Kerrigan	...	Old Billy
Percy Helton	...	Coach Driver
Ted Cooper	...	Mate on 'Lincoln'

Storyline

The oceans during the late 1860-92s are no longer safe; many ships have been lost. Sailors have returned to port with stories of a vicious narwhal (a giant whale with a long horn) which sinks their ships. A naturalist, Professor (Pierre) Aronnax, his assistant, Conseil, and a professional whaler, Ned Land, join an US expedition which attempts to unravel the mystery.

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Plot Keywords:

captain | sea | submarine | expedition | whale | 

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Taglines:

The mightiest motion picture of them all!

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Family | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Official Sites:

official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 December 1954 (USA)

Also Known As:

Jules Verne's 20000 Leagues Under the Sea

Filming Locations:

Negril, Jamaica

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

127 min

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

No fishing boat would (or will) carry bananas, considered bad luck by deep water fishermen.

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Goofs

When Nautilus is going through the underwater tunnel, there is some shots from inside the wheelhouse. One can see cliffs passing by directly under the windows. The wheelhouse is situated on top of the submarines hull, so there is no way that the cliffs can be so close to the windows.

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Quotes

Conseil: I want to escape, too! You said you had a plan.
Ned Land: I do have a plan. Trouble is, it won't work.

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Connections

Featured in L'ami public numéro un: L'aventure, c'est toujours l'aventure (1975)

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Soundtracks

Toccata and Fugue in D Minor
(uncredited)
Music by Johann Sebastian Bach
Played by Captain Nemo on organ

User Reviews

under the ocean...

Very simply, Richard Fleischer made a gorgeous adaptation of Jules Verne's famous novel. This is an excellent adventure movie told with quite a lot of humor. Fleischer introduced humor in a few sequences and especially in dialogs. But the movie also includes a sadistic side. This sadistic side is epitomized by the captain Nemo himself. You can describe him as a despotic man who's got a grudge against the earth that made him suffer. Moreover, he regards himself as a sort of governor of the ocean. In this way, Jules Verne's novel introduces a reflection about man and the extension of his power thanks to the machine (the Nautilus).

Of course, the movie is supported by a dazzling performance. James Mason is an unforgettable captain Nemo. As for Kirk Douglas, well he said once: "I've made a career of playing sons of bitches". It's probably true if you study his character of Ned Land. But in parallel, Douglas makes his character funny and likeable. Then, Paul Lukas and especially Peter Lorre are outstanding.

No matter that the movie was launched in 1954, the special effects aren't antiquated. Thanks to them, the movie could keep a certain charm and nowadays, it lets itself watch with pleasure.