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{{Short description|1954 film by Richard Fleischer}} | |||
{{Infobox Film | |||
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2012}} | |||
| name = 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea | |||
{{Infobox film | |||
| image =20000leaguesposter.jpg | |||
| name = 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea | |||
| director = ] | |||
| image = 20000leaguesposter.jpg | |||
| producer = ] (uncredited) | |||
| caption = Theatrical release poster | |||
| writer = ] (novel)<br>] (screenplay) | |||
| director = ] | |||
| starring = ]<br>]<br>]<br>] | |||
| producer = ] | |||
| music = ]<br>] | |||
| screenplay = ] | |||
| based_on = {{based on|'']''|]}} | |||
| editing = ] | |||
| starring = {{plainlist| | |||
| distributor = ] | |||
* ] | |||
| released = ] | |||
* ] | |||
| runtime = 2 hours, 1 minutes and 48 seconds | |||
* ] | |||
| language = ] | |||
* ] | |||
| budget = | |||
}} | }} | ||
| music = ] | |||
'''''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea''''' is a ] film starring ] as Ned Land, ] as ], ] as Professor Aronnax and ] as Conseil. The film has become the most well-known adaptation of ] by ]. | |||
| cinematography = ] | |||
| editing = ] | |||
| studio = ] | |||
| distributor = ] | |||
| released = {{Film date|1954|12|23}} | |||
| runtime = 127 minutes | |||
| country = United States | |||
| language = English | |||
| budget = $5 million<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/variety201-1956-01#page/n522/mode/1up|title=Disney's Fiscalities|date=January 11, 1956|page=5|work=]|access-date=August 25, 2019|via=]}}</ref> | |||
| gross = $28.2 million<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/1954/020LE.php|title=Box Office Information for '20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'|website=The Numbers|date=April 15, 2013}}</ref> | |||
}} | |||
'''''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea''''' is a 1954 American ] ] directed by ], from a screenplay by ]. Adapted from ]'s 1870 novel '']'', the film was produced by ]. It stars ], ], ], and ]. Photographed in ], the film was one of the first feature-length motion pictures to be filmed in ]. It was also the first feature-length Disney film to be distributed by ]. | |||
''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' was a critical and commercial success, being especially remembered for the fight with a giant squid, as well as Mason's definitive performance as the charismatic anti-hero ]. The film won two ] for its ] and ]. | |||
{{spoilers}} | |||
==Plot== | |||
In the year 1866, rumours of a devastating ] attacking ships in the ] have created apprehension and fear among sailors, disrupting shipping. Prof. Pierre M. Aronnax (Lukas) and his assistant, Conseil (Lorre), are on their way to ] but get stuck in ] by the halting of ships. News reporters twist Aronnax's statements and make up an article illustrating the monster. The U.S. Government invites Aronnax onto an expedition to either prove or disprove the monster's existence. | |||
<!-- Per WP:FILMPLOT, the plot summary should be 400-700 words. --> | |||
In 1866, rumors spread of a ] attacking ships in the ]. Professor Aronnax and his assistant, Conseil, are asked to investigate, and board a ] ]. They are joined by master ]er Ned Land. | |||
After months of patrolling, the monster is spotted. The frigate's guncrew open fire, but the monster rams the warship. Ned, Conseil, and Aronnax are thrown overboard while the disabled frigate drifts away. While clinging to wreckage, Aronnax and Conseil come upon a metal vessel and realize the monster is a man-made "submerging boat" that appears deserted. Below decks, Aronnax finds a large viewport and witnesses an underwater funeral, while Ned arrives on an overturned longboat from their ship. Spotted by the divers, Ned, Aronnax, and Conseil attempt to leave in the longboat, but they are captured. The vessel's captain introduces himself as ], master of the '']''. He returns Ned and Conseil to the deck while offering Aronnax, whose name he recognizes, the chance to stay. After Aronnax proves willing to die with his companions as the ship submerges, Nemo allows Ned and Conseil to remain aboard. | |||
The voyage on the U.S. warship is uneventful and frustrating at first, with only little boosts in crew morale thanks to singing and music of Ned Land (Douglas), who picked a fight at the beginning of the film, because he didn't believe in sea monsters. | |||
Nemo takes ''Nautilus'' to a ] island, where the prisoners are loading a munitions ship. Nemo, once a prisoner there as were many of his crew, rams the steamer, destroying it and its crew. Nemo tells Aronnax that he has just saved thousands from death in war, and that "this hated nation" tortured his wife and son to death while attempting to force him to reveal his discoveries. In Nemo's cabin, Ned and Conseil discover the map coordinates of Nemo's secret island base, Vulcania, where ''Nautilus'' is now heading. Ned throws messages with Vulcania's coordinates overboard in bottles in the hope of being rescued. | |||
Just after the captain cancels further searching, the "monster" is finally spotted. Trying to take it down with cannon fire, the ship is rammed, and Ned, Aronnax, and Conseil are thrown overboard. They find themselves abandoned as the warship, badly disabled and the crew struggling to save it, drifts away. All hope seems lost. | |||
Off the coast of ], ''Nautilus'' becomes stranded on a reef. Nemo allows Ned to go ashore with Conseil, ostensibly to collect specimens, while admonishing them to stay on the beach. Ned instead goes exploring for avenues of escape, and finds human skulls posted on stakes. Ned runs back to Conseil, and they row away pursued by cannibals. Aboard ''Nautilus'', the cannibals are repelled by electrical charges sent through its hull, and Nemo confines Ned for disobeying orders. | |||
The three drift into a strange-looking metal vessel, and realize the "monster" is a man-made "submerging boat", that seems to have been deserted. Inside they find all sorts of obscure and interesting objects. Aronnax then looks through a massive viewing window and sees the crew, wearing underwater-suits and breathing devices, holding an undersea funeral of a shipmate killed during the battle. | |||
A warship fires upon ''Nautilus'', which descends into the depths, attracting a ]. After an electric charge fails to repel the creature, Nemo and his men surface during a storm to dislodge it. Nemo is caught by one of its long tentacles, and Ned, having escaped from captivity, fatally harpoons the squid, and saves Nemo when he is pulled into the sea. Having had a change of heart, Nemo decides to make amends with the world. | |||
The crew spots the intruders aboard their ship. The three castaways try to escape, but end up being captured. The captain introduces himself as Nemo, master of the ''Nautilus'', and does not take kindly to visitors. "The sea brought you, the sea shall have you back", except Aronnax, whom he recognizes for his work and research. He tempts Aronnax to stay, but Aronnax prefers to share his companions' fate – thus passing a test of character. | |||
As ''Nautilus'' nears Vulcania, Nemo finds the island surrounded by warships, with marines having disembarked. The ''Nautilus'' enters his base through an underwater passage, and surfaces within its extinct volcano lagoon. Nemo rushes ashore to activate a time bomb in order to destroy any evidence of his discoveries but is shot and mortally wounded as he returns onboard. Navigating the submarine to a safe distance from Vulcania, Nemo announces that he will be "taking the ''Nautilus'' down for the last time". His crew declare that they will accompany their captain in death. | |||
Nemo's knowledge and technology make a strong impression on Aronnax. His companions, however, do not share his enthusiasm. Nemo takes them all on an underwater expedition to gather supplies, but Ned rather foolishly tries to salvage a treasure chest from a sunken wreck, almost getting attacked by a shark. Nemo lectures him, that he "cannot eat pieces of eight" and reminds him the greatest treasure of all is a "sound mind and a full belly". Aronnax gets more and more intrigued by Nemo's skills, especially what powers the Nautilus: atomic energy. Aronnax: "Such a secret could revolutionise the world!" Nemo: "Or destroy it". | |||
Aronnax, Conseil, and Ned are confined to their cabins, while ''Nautilus''<nowiki/>'s crew retreat to their own at Nemo's instructions. Ned, refusing to be part of the suicide pact, escapes and surfaces the submarine, striking a reef in the process, causing ''Nautilus'' to flood. Nemo dies while viewing his beloved undersea domain through the hull's viewport. | |||
After having travelled "10,000 ] under the sea" , Nemo takes Arronax to the ] island of Rorapandi, where inmates used as slaves load a ship with minerals to produce ammunition, so "the world will die a little more" (Nemo). Nemo reveals he was once a prisoner himself, as was the crew of the ''Nautilus''. At night, the ''Nautilus'' rams the ship and destroys it, killing the entire crew. Aronnax accuses Nemo of being a ], to which Nemo defends himself, stating his actions have just saved some thousand people from death in war. But it becomes obvious that revenge is also involved. | |||
] | |||
Ned, having seen fellow sailors murdered, has had his fill and spurs into action, sneaking into the captain's cabin to get the co-ordinates of Nemo's base of Vulcania. He puts messages in bottles, hoping somebody will pick these up and free him of his captivity. | |||
Aronnax tries retrieving his journal, but the urgency of their escape obliges Ned to knock him unconscious and carry him out. Aboard ''Nautilus''<nowiki/>'s skiff, the three companions, along with Esmeralda, Nemo’s pet sea lion, witness Vulcania explode. A large, billowing mushroom cloud rises above the island's destruction. Ned apologizes to Aronnax for striking him, but Aronnax concedes that the loss of his journal might have been for the best. As ''Nautilus'' sinks, Nemo's last words to Aronnax echo: "There is hope for the future. And when the world is ready for a new and better life, all this will someday come to pass... in God's good time." | |||
Off the coast of ], the ''Nautilus'' gets stranded on a reef. Under the pretense of wanting to participate in a scientific survey, Ned asks to go ashore with Conseil, but he attempts escape, only to be chased back to the Nautilus by cannibals, who are repelled from the ship by electrical charges circulated on the ''Nautilus'''s skin. Because Nemo had him warned, he now puts Ned in a cell. | |||
==Cast== | |||
The tide floats the ''Nautilus'' free, but a warship is fast approaching and opening fire, causing a hull breach and momentarily loss of control, sending and sinking the ''Nautilus'' deeper than ever before, where it attracts the attentions of a ]. | |||
], ], ], and ].]] | |||
* ] as Ned Land | |||
* ] as ] | |||
* ] as Professor Pierre Aronnax | |||
* ] as Conseil | |||
* ] as ''Nautilus''{{'s}} First Mate | |||
* ] as Captain Farragut | |||
* ] as John Howard | |||
* ] as Billy | |||
* ] as Coach driver | |||
* Ted Cooper as ''Abraham Lincoln''{{'s}} First Mate | |||
* ] as Casey (uncredited stuntman)<ref>{{cite book |last=Freese |first=Gene Scott |title=Hollywood Stunt Performers, 1910s–1970s: A Biographical Dictionary |edition=Second |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-786-47643-5 |page=|location=Jefferson, North Carolina|publisher=McFarland & Company}}</ref> | |||
* ] as Hooker (uncredited debut)<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/laurie-mitchell-obit-8476488/|title=Laurie Mitchell, Villainess in 'Queen of Outer Space,' Dies at 90|magazine=]|date=24 September 2018}}</ref> | |||
==Production== | |||
The electric charge fails to repel the monster squid, so Nemo is forced to fight the beast on the surface in a stormy night. During the battle, Nemo is caught in one of the squid's tentacles, but Ned – who has freed himself from his cell – jumps to his rescue and saves his captor's life. | |||
] first expressed interest in an adaptation of ]'s '']'' after seeing some marine footage and storyboards created by ] during the production of the '']'' series. At the time, the film rights were owned by ] and ].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=20,000 Leagues Under the Sea|url=https://catalog.afi.com/Film/51389-20000-LEAGUESUNDERTHESEA?sid=6d02b02d-d0ae-4e42-bdf6-c4af98dbe8f4&sr=14.847143&cp=1&pos=0|access-date=2022-02-09|website=]|publisher=]}}</ref> In November 1950, film producer ] announced he had acquired the screen rights to the novel, as well as a film adaptation prepared by ]'s production company. He had planned to start filming within a year at the ].<ref>{{cite news|last=Brady|first=Thomas F.|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1950/11/25/archives/court-dismisses-film-unions-suit-47000000-antitrust-action-against.html|title=Court Dismisses Film Unions' Work|url-access=subscription|newspaper=The New York Times|page=11|date=November 25, 1950}}</ref> However, in December 1951, it was reported that Disney had purchased the film rights from Rogell.<ref>{{cite news |last=Schallert |first=Edwin |url=https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/381065575/ |title=Neff Picked for 'Snows;' Caron, Angeli To Team; Disney to do Verne Film |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |at=Part I, p. 13 |date=December 28, 1951 |via=] |url-access=subscription}}</ref> Goff's storyboards and art designs formed the film's basis, but he was not credited because he was not a member of the ].<ref name=":0" /> | |||
''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' was filmed at various locations in ] and ], with the cave scenes filmed beneath what is now the ] Resort on the cliffs of ].<ref name=":0" /> Other scenes were photographed in ], ], and ]. Filming took place between January 11 and June 19, 1954.<ref name=":0" /><ref name="d23">{{cite web |last=Smith |first=Dave |author-link=Dave Smith (archivist) |title=In a league of its own |url=http://d23.disney.go.com/articles/120309_NF_FEAT_20000LeaguesDaveSmithD23.html |website=] |date=December 3, 2009 |access-date=January 9, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100906042231/http://d23.disney.go.com/articles/120309_NF_FEAT_20000LeaguesDaveSmithD23.html |archive-date=September 6, 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref> According to the two-disc DVD documentary, the scenes in San Francisco at the beginning were filmed at ] while most of the modeling shots were done at ]. Some of the location filming sequences were so complex that they required a technical crew of more than 400 people. The production presented many other challenges, as well. The famous giant squid attack sequence had to be entirely re-shot, as it was originally filmed as taking place at dusk and in a calm sea.<ref>{{YouTube|Pf_acgvdKmE|Sunset Squid Fight– 20,000 Leagues – unused monster sequence}}</ref>{{#tag:ref|Footage of the original, rejected giant squid attack sequence shows details of the filming.|group=Note}} The sequence was filmed again, this time taking place at twilight and during a humongous thunderstorm, both to increase the drama and to better hide the cables and other mechanical workings of the Animatronic squid.<ref>Bourne, Mark. ''The DVD Journal'', 2003. Retrieved: January 9, 2015.</ref> | |||
As the ''Nautilus'' approaches Vulcania, Nemo confides to Aronnax that he had considered using him as a mediator to share his secrets with the world. But it is too late. Vulcania is surrounded by warships that have deployed ground troops. Nemo takes this as an answer and decides to destroy his base rather than let his findings fall into wrong hands. | |||
But when returning to the ''Nautilus'', he is struck and mortally wounded by an invader's bullet. After navigating the ''Nautilus'' out of Vulcania and settling on the ocean floor as its last resting place, Nemo announces, "I'm dying. And the ''Nautilus'' is dying with me." Loyal to Nemo to the very end, his entire crew declares that they will accompany their captain in death. | |||
With a total (and deeply over-run) production cost of $9 million,<ref name="reel"> ], July 8, 2011. Retrieved: April 4, 2018.</ref> ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' was the most expensive and ambitious production in Hollywood up to that time. | |||
Nemo orders everybody to return to their quarters. Against joining in the mass suicide, Arronax, Conseil, and Ned are forcibly taken to their cabins. Ned fights back, escapes to the now deserted bridge, and manages to surface the ''Nautilus'', hitting a reef in the process which begins to rapidly flood the ship. After rescuing Arronax and Conseil, the three escape in the launch/lifeboat. In his final moments, Nemo staggers to the viewing window, slumps against it, and looks at his beloved ocean one last time before he collapses and dies. | |||
==Differences between novel and film== | |||
The companions witness the destruction of Vulcania in an incredible explosion, apparently atomic, creating an enormous mushroom cloud. The shockwave and the flooding takes the ''Nautilus'' back to its watery grave, and as the ''Nautilus'' disappears forever, Nemo's last words to Arronax echo: "''There is hope for the future. And when the world is ready for a new and better life, all this will someday come to pass. In God's good time.''" | |||
The film was praised as faithfully adapting the novel. James W. Maertens writes that while this is true, "Close comparison of the novel and film reveals many changes, omissions, even reversals, which affect the story's fundamental concern (besides scientific education), a representation of class and gender, specifically masculinity, in the industrial age." Nemo's submarine, battery-powered in the novel, is powered by ] in the film. The novel's submarine is also a "streamlined, cigar shaped sub" while the film's is "a more ornate vessel". The film's director and screenwriter extracted "the most memorable scenes from the novel and freely reordered them under the assumption that viewers would not remember the novel's order of events." Goff and Disney based the Nautilus's design in the film on the interior of the ].<ref name=":0" /> In the novel, Nemo orders parts from various industries, secretly shipping them to an island for assembly, whom Maertens labeled "a logistical genius at manipulating ] manufacturing".<ref>{{cite book | last=Maertens | first=James W. | chapter=Brains, Brawn, and Masculine Desire in Walt Disney's ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' | editor1-last= Brode | editor1-first=Douglas | editor2-last=Brode | editor2-first=Shea T. | year=2016 | title=Debating Disney: Pedagogical Perspectives on Commercial Cinema | publisher=Rowman & Littlefield | isbn=978-1-4422-6609-4 | pages=19–32 }}</ref> | |||
== |
==Music== | ||
Rather than an authentic soundtrack recording of the film's ] or dialogue, two ] studio cast record albums were released to coincide with the film's first two releases (1954 and 1963). Both albums contained condensed and heavily altered versions of the film's script without the usage of any of the film's cast for character voices. In addition, both albums were narrated by Ned Land as opposed to Aronnax, who narrated the film and the original novel. Neither album mentioned Nemo as actually being "cracked" (i.e. insane), as the film does, and considerably sanitized the character by omitting any mention of him killing anyone. The albums also had Nemo surviving at the end and releasing Ned, Arronax, and Conseil out of gratitude for their saving his life.<ref>{{YouTube|ex89G23PnbM}}</ref> In this version, Ned, Aronnax and Conseil were not shipwrecked because the Nautilus rammed the ship they were on, but because a hurricane came up.<ref> ''Kidde Records'', July 15, 2011. Retrieved: May 31, 2013.</ref> | |||
The first album was issued in 1954 in conjunction with the film's original release, and starred ] as the voice of Ned. This album, a ], was issued as part of ]'s ] series on two 45-RPM records.<ref name="amazon"> ''Amazon''. Retrieved: January 9, 2015.</ref>{{Better source needed|date=October 2018}} The second album, released by ] in 1963 in conjunction with the film's first re-release,<ref name="rateyourmusic"> ''Rate Your Music''. Retrieved: January 9, 2015.</ref>{{deprecated source|certain=y|date=November 2024}} was issued on one 33{{fraction|1|3}} RPM 12-inch ] with no accompanying booklet and no liner notes – the usual practice with most Disneyland label albums. It contained much more of the film's plot, but with many of the same alterations as the first album, so this recording was technically a remake of the earlier one. The cast for the 1963 album was uncredited. Neither album listed the film's credits or made any mention of the film's cast. | |||
The film received positive reactions, and has become a classic film of the Disney corporation. Audiences fondly remember it for the giant-squid battle and for the ''Nautilus'' itself, which have both become ] images of both the film and Verne's original novel. | |||
{{anchor|A Whale of a Tale}}A single for the film's most memorable song "A Whale of a Tale", written by ] and ] and sung by Kirk Douglas, was also released in 1954 under the ] label. According to Douglas, the recording was "very popular at the time".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Douglas |first=Kirk |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780470376171 |title=Let's Face It: 90 Years of Living, Loving, and Learning |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |year=2007 |isbn=9780470376171 |location=Hoboke, New Jersey |pages=89 |language=en |chapter=A Whale of a Tale}}</ref> The song "And the Moon Grew Brighter and Brighter", which Douglas had sung in the movie '']'' (written by Lou Singer and ]), was the ]. Both songs can be found on the 2008 digital release of the film's soundtrack.<ref name="soundtrackcollector"> ''Soundtrack Collector''. Retrieved: January 9, 2015.</ref> In the film, ]'s '']'' is played by Nemo on the Nautilus's organ, but James Mason's playing is actually dubbed by an anonymous organist. | |||
Even 50 years after the initial release ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' is considered by many the most mature Disney live action production, rich in controversial and philosophical dialogue revolving around timeless issues, a fascinating display of pessimism (Nemo) versus optimism (Prof. Aronnax). | |||
===Official soundtrack=== | |||
The film was also highly praised for the performances of the leading actors. This was the first time that major ] stars such as Kirk Douglas, James Mason and Peter Lorre had appeared in a Disney film, although ], a well-known actor in ] films, had played ] in Disney's 1950 version of '']''. Mason especially was singled out for his performance as Captain Nemo, and many people who first saw him onscreen in the film identify him most strongly with this role, just as many '']'' fans identify ] most with the role of ]. | |||
On January 29, 2008, ] released a 26-track ] containing the music of ]'s original soundtrack score to ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'', plus both sides of the "A Whale of a Tale" single, as well as a ] companion that explores the music of the film. This was the first official release of the film score and was initially available only through the ].<ref name="soundtrackcollector" /><ref name="iTunes"> ''iTunes Store''. Retrieved: January 9, 2015.</ref> Intrada released the same soundtrack on CD in 2011.<ref name="Intrada"> ''Intrada''. Retrieved: January 9, 2015.</ref> The music for ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' was composed by Paul Smith, with ] acting as the orchestrator. | |||
==Release== | |||
In addition, the era in which events take place, comes alive in meticulous artistic accuracy down to the beard trim of the sailors, surpassed only by the ] steel skin of the ''Nautilus''. And yet the Disney version echoes the hopes and fears of audiences of the 1950s and beyond, equally illustrating the chances and the dangers of nuclear power. | |||
On September 15, 1954, '']'' reported that Disney and ] had begun discussions on the distribution plans for ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea''.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://archive.org/details/variety195-1954-09/page/n170/mode/1up|title='Leagues' Distrib Selling Plans To Be Set This Week|magazine=Variety|page=5|date=September 15, 1954|access-date=May 22, 2024|via=Internet Archive}}</ref> A week later, it was reported that Disney decided to end his 17-year association with RKO, choosing instead to release the film through his newly formed distribution arm, Buena Vista Distribution. Overseas, the film was distributed by Walt Disney British Films Ltd, a studio-owned subsidiary in the UK, and other local distributors in international territories.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://archive.org/details/variety195-1954-09/page/n238/mode/1up|title=Disney 100% Out of RKO|magazine=Variety|page=7|date=September 22, 1954|access-date=May 22, 2024|via=Internet Archive}}</ref> | |||
On December 23, 1954, the film premiered at the ]. It was released in 65 key cities across the United States two days later, on Christmas Day.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://archive.org/details/variety196-1954-12/page/n17/mode/1up|title='League' Hits 65 Keys for Holiday|magazine=Variety|page=18|date=December 1, 1954|access-date=May 22, 2024|via=Internet Archive}}</ref> The film was re-released in theaters in 1963 and 1971.<ref name="d23" /> | |||
The film has inspired a ] at ] and a ] at ]. ] used the original sets as a walk-through attraction from ] to ]. ] ] also had ] from 1971 to 1994 which consisted of a submarine ride, complete with the giant squid attack. For this ride, voice artist ] stood in for James Mason in the role of Captain Nemo. | |||
== |
===Home media=== | ||
In September 1980, ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' was made available for purchase or rental on ], among other Disney films.<ref>{{cite news |title=Movies: Disney on cassettes |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/76873031/the-philadelphia-inquirer/ |work=] |page=2-C |date=June 24, 1980 |access-date=May 22, 2024 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}</ref> In 1992, Scott MacQueen, then-senior manager of Disney's library restoration, did an extensive digital restoration for the film's videocassette release.<ref name="d23" /> | |||
*] ... Ned Land | |||
*] ... Captain Nemo | |||
*] ... Professor Pierre Aronnax | |||
*] ... Conseil | |||
*] ... ''Nautilus''' First Mate | |||
*] ... Captain Farragut | |||
*] ... John Howard | |||
*] ... Billy | |||
*] ... Coach driver | |||
*] ... ''Abraham Lincoln'''s First Mate | |||
*]* ... Casey | |||
On May 20, 2003, the film was released on a two-disc DVD set with supplemental features, including an ], deleted scenes (including the original squid fight albeit without sound), and an extensive making-of documentary. On the same day, the film was screened at the ], with Richard Fleischer introducing the film.<ref>{{cite news |last=King |first=Susan |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-may-20-et-king20-story.html |title='20,000 Leagues' resurfaces on DVD |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=May 20, 2003 |access-date=May 22, 2024 |url-access=limited}}</ref> A ] HD version from a ] restoration was released on ] in 2014.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://notonbluray.com/blog/20000-leagues-under-the-sea-itunes-hd-review/ |title=20,000 Leagues Under The Sea – iTunes HD Review |website=Not on Blu-ray |date=March 17, 2014 }}</ref> In 2019, the film was released on Blu-ray via the Disney Movie Club. The film was made available to stream on ] when the service launched on November 12, 2019.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://attractionsmagazine.com/disney-plus-day-one-list/|title=Every Disney movie, TV show available day one on Disney+|date=14 October 2019|website=Attractions Magazine}}</ref> | |||
<small>* Not credited on-screen.</small> | |||
==Reception== | |||
==Comparisons with the book== | |||
===Box office=== | |||
During its opening weekend, ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' opened in second place at the box office behind '']'' (1954).<ref>{{cite magazine|title=National Boxoffice Survey|date=December 29, 1954|page=3|url=https://archive.org/details/variety196-1954-12/page/n282/mode/1up|magazine=Variety|access-date=May 22, 2024|via=Internet Archive}}</ref> On its third weekend, the film became the number-one box office film in the United States, displacing '']'' (1954).<ref>{{cite magazine|title=National Boxoffice Survey|date=January 12, 1955|page=3|url=https://archive.org/details/variety197-1955-01-12/page/n2/mode/1up|magazine=Variety|access-date=May 22, 2024|via=Internet Archive.org}}</ref> It was dethroned by ''Vera Cruz'' on its fourth weekend, but the film reclaimed the number-one position on its fifth weekend.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=National Boxoffice Survey|date=January 26, 1955|page=3|url=https://archive.org/details/variety197-1955-01-26/page/n2/mode/1up|magazine=Variety|access-date=May 22, 2024|via=Internet Archive}}</ref> By January 1956, the film had earned $8 million in ] at the box office from the United States and Canada,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://archive.org/details/variety201-1956-01/page/n83/mode/2up/|title=All Time Top Money Films|work=Variety|date=January 4, 1956|page=84|via=]}}</ref> becoming ]. (Another account put its initial rentals in the US and Canada at $6,607,000.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=Variety|url=https://archive.org/details/variety221-1961-01/page/n360/mode/1up?|title=$16,700,000 Invested in Disney's Line up|page=3|date=18 January 1961|access-date=9 August 2024}}</ref> | |||
===Critical reaction=== | |||
Earl Felton's script deviates noticeably from the original Jules Verne book by integrating elements of the lesser known Jules Verne book ], whose main attraction is an invention of peril (German book title) which Felton re-interpreted as nuclear power rather than the super ] Verne had envisioned. Thus, ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' became more palatable to movie audiences of the ]. Other elements borrowed from ] were Ned Land's messages in bottles and Nemo's base Vulcania, inspired by Ker Karraje's pirate hideout Buttercup Island. Other changes included: | |||
] of '']'' stated that, "As fabulous and fantastic as anything he has ever done in cartoons is Walt Disney's 'live action' movie made from ]'s '].' Turned out in ] and color, it is as broad, fictitiously, as it is long (128 minutes), and should prove a sensation—at least with the kids."<ref name="nytimesreviews">{{cite news|last=Crowther|first=Bosley|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1954/12/24/archives/the-screen-in-review-20000-leagues-in-128-fantastic-minutes.html|title=The Screen in Review; '20,000 Leagues' in 128 Fantastic Minutes|newspaper=The New York Times|page=7|date=December 24, 1954}}</ref> Gene Arneel of '']'' praised the film as "a special kind of picture making, combining photographic ingenuity, imaginative story telling and fiscal daring." He felt "Richard Fleischer's direction keeps the Disney epic moving at a smart clip, picking up interest right from the start and deftly developing each of the many tense moments ... Earl Fenton's screenplay looks to be a combination of the best in the Verne original and new material to suit the screen form. It's a fine job of writing stimulating pic fare. Technical credits — underline the water photography — are excellent."<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Arneel|first=Gene|url=https://archive.org/details/variety196-1954-12/page/n149/mode/1up|title=Film Reviews: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea|magazine=Variety|page=6|date=December 15, 1954|access-date=June 13, 2020|via=Internet Archive}}</ref> Kate Cameron of the '']'' praised the film as a "thrilling and absorbing adaptation"; she further wrote: "Richard Fleischer handled the direction of the film with vivid imagination. The underwater scenes are fascinating in their eerie beauty and the interesting glimpses they contain of marine life."<ref>{{cite news |last=Cameron |first=Kate |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-kate-camerons-review-of-20/147889373/ |title=20,000 Leagues On Screen at Astor Theatre |newspaper=New York Daily News |page=13C |date=December 24, 1954 |access-date=May 22, 2024 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}</ref> | |||
* Ned Land is an unwilling and recalcitrant passenger in both versions, but only in the movie is he locked up in the brig. | |||
* In the book, Professor Aronnax is more deliberate about joining the original expedition than in the movie. | |||
* In the book, Ned Land is described as a man of few words, but in the film he is talkative and outgoing. | |||
* Conseil doesn't speak in the third person, as in the book. | |||
* Esmerelda, the trained seal, was created for the film (as ]). | |||
* The film's main song "A Whale of a Tale" was also created for the film. The song is heard even before Ned sings it during the voyage. | |||
* The ''Nautilus'' in the book is described as being thin and speedy, while the ''Nautilus'' of the film is shown to be massive, powerful and capable of incredible surface speed. Elmo Williams, film editor on 20,000 Leagues, was put in charge of supervising Ralph Hammeras special effects team by Walt Disney early into the filming. Williams has stated in his autobiography that they had the Nautilus moving through the water at, in adjusted/converted speed, of what would be 90 knots, or 103 miles per hour. | |||
*Also, whilst in the movie it is nuclear-powered, in the book it is powered by ]. | |||
* While the book's version of Nemo did have an island stronghold where he stopped to resupply his ship, the final sea-battle at Volcania was fabricated for the movie; the ''Nautilus'' in the book disappeared in a whirlpool, and whether or not it actually sank was a mystery that was only resolved in Verne's later book '']''. | |||
* At the end of the novel, it is not known if Nemo survives, and he turns up alive in Verne's ''The Mysterious Island'', at the end of which he dies. | |||
Philip K. Scheuer, reviewing for the '']'', wrote: "Technically the film is a marvel itself, with actual underwater shot made in the Bahamas alternating with surface scale models that defy detection as such." He also praised Mason's performance, claiming "he lends depth and dimension to the stock figure of the 'mad genius.' The proof: he sometimes seems more pitied than scorned."<ref>{{cite news |last=Scheuer |first=Philip K. |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-philip-k-scheuer/147888492/ |title='20,000 Leagues' Top Adventure Film of the Year |date=December 27, 1954 |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |at=Part III, p. 9 |via=]}} {{Open access}}</ref> '']'' wrote: "Expertly utilizing the CinemaScope medium and Technicolor photography, he and his staff have fashioned a picture that is not only a masterpiece from the production point of view but also a great entertainment, the kind that should go over in a big way with all types of audiences."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://archive.org/details/harrisonsreports00harr_2/page/n237/mode/2up/|title='20,000 Leagues Under the Sea' with Kirk Douglas, James Mason, Paul Lukas and Peter Lorre|work=Harrison's Reports|page=203|date=December 18, 1954|access-date=June 13, 2020|via=Internet Archive}}</ref> A review in the '']'' wrote, "Produced with care, in handsome color and peppered with humor, it's a nicely balanced dose of old supposition and modern fact."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/chicago-tribune/147888957/ |title=Disney Puts Lots of Verve in Verne Tale |newspaper=Chicago Daily Tribune |at=Part 2, p. 5 |date=December 30, 1954 |access-date=May 22, 2024 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}</ref> | |||
==Trivia== | |||
{{trivia|date=May 2007}} | |||
Contemporary film critic Steve Biodrowski said that the film is "far superior to the majority of genre efforts from the period (or any period, for that matter), with production design and technical effects that have dated hardly at all." Biodrowski also added that the film "may occasionally succumb to some of the problems inherent in the source material (the episodic nature does slow the pace), but the strengths far outweigh the weaknesses, making this one of the greatest science-fiction films ever made."<ref>{{cite web|last=Biodrowski|first=Steve|url=http://cinefantastiqueonline.com/2007/08/25/hollywood-gothique-captain-nemo-double-bill/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071025195455/http://cinefantastiqueonline.com/2007/08/25/hollywood-gothique-captain-nemo-double-bill/|title=Hollywood Gothique: Captain Nemo Double Bill|work=Cinefantastique|archive-date=October 25, 2007|date=August 25, 2007}}</ref> On the ] website ], the film has an approval rating of 91% based on 32 reviews, with an average rating of 7.70/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "One of Disney's finest live-action adventures, ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' brings Jules Verne's classic sci-fi tale to vivid life, and features an awesome giant squid."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1000079-20000_leagues_under_the_sea/|title=20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)|website=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=March 25, 2024}}</ref> | |||
* In the opening credits, the title banner does not have a comma between the first and second zeroes "20000 Leagues Under the Sea" although a comma does appear on the poster and all related print advertisements. | |||
* This was the first full colour Disney ] movie made at Walt Disney's studio in the United States. | |||
===Accolades=== | |||
* One animated sequence involving monstrous glowing fish seen through the submarine's view-port took six months to create. This scene was to appear before the attack of the giant squid, when the submarine has sunk 5,000 feet below the surface after being shelled by an enemy warship. The decision to delete this footage was two-fold: first, the cartoon footage looked exactly like what it was - a cartoon; and second, film editor Elmo Williams said that it stopped the film's pacing right in its tracks. You had the warship shelling the Nautilus, then it sinks and Nemo has to save the ship, followed by the sudden attack of the giant squid. He said, "We couldn't all of a sudden stop to show a documentary on undersea life!" Some of this animated footage (without the actors) can be seen in the 20,000 Leagues Special Edition DVD in the bonus features area, plus a 4-second clip is in the movie's trailer. | |||
{| class="wikitable" style="width:95%;" | |||
* The film's main song "A Whale of a Tale" was created by Composer Norman Gimbel and Lyricist Al Hoffman. Unfortunately, Disney never gave either man the proper credit for their song in the picture, and both remained justifiably bitter at their treatment at the hands of the legendary producer. Decades later, after Disney had died and the Special Edition DVD was being produced, the Eisner organization still refused to give the two men their credits on the film. | |||
|- | |||
* Walt Disney was never known as a generous person in regard to giving credit to the people who worked for him. He even went so far as to deny the proper credit for Leagues brilliant art director, ] (instead, Disney came up with the phrase, "Production developed by...") because he didn't want Goff to become a member of the Art Directors union. Disney knew that once Goff earned union wages, he would never be allowed (as a union member) to go back to the lower wage scale that Disney had been paying him as an "independent." To placate the union, Disney hired a union art director, ], who became Disney's shill, while Walt kept delaying Goff's own entry into the labor organization, until it was too late. Even though Meehan functioned as Goff's assistant on the film, he was still listed "Art Director" in the movie's credits. During the night of the Academy Awards for 1954, events reached incredible proportions when 20,000 LEAGUES won the Oscar for Best Art Direction - Color - 1954, and Harper Goff's assistant, John Meehan, was announced as the winner. To this day, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences refuses to correct the record books and list the true winner of the Oscar for that night, although the Academy has often said it has been trying to give credit where credit was due and right previous wrongs. | |||
|- | |||
* The climactic squid battle on the Nautilus was originally shot with a serene sunset and a calm sea. Director Richard Fleischer was troubled by the artificiality of the monster and its lack of movement, making it look obviously fake. Plus, the wire supporting the tentacles appeared in all the footage that was shot. Walt Disney visited the set one day after being very troubled by what he and his brother, Roy, had seen in the dailies. Disney decided to shut the squid fight down and have Fleishcer go to work shooting other purely dramatic scenes with the actors until his effects team could come up with a viable way of making a believable giant squid. During the filming of LEAGUES, Disney had kept screenwriter Earl Felton on the production for continuous revisions of the script. After the debacle of the sunset squid, Fleischer showed the footage to Felton and asked for his thoughts on the sequence. Felton came up with the idea of shooting the sequence at night during a storm, when the squid would only be glimpsed through bolts of lightning. Otherwise, it would be a monstrous silhouette against a darkened sky. This would go a long way to hide the defects of the squid and make the sequence much more exciting. Fleischer ran out of the office to tell Disney about Felton's ideas and ran into him when he was walking across the studio street. After listening to Fleishcer, Disney agreed and the scene was re-shot with Felton's new concept, along with a major re-write by Felton of the squid fight's action. One more thing that should be known is that the squid was literally redesigned from top to bottom by the mechanical effects expert on the film, Robert Mattey. After several weeks of tests, Mattey came up with the brilliant idea of utilizing vacuum principles to bring the squid's arms to cinematic life. By shooting blasts of air into it, the arm would extend, giving the tentacle realistic movement. When the air was sucked out, the tentacle would coil inward. This innovative process gave the monster animation and made it appear utterly real in front of the camera. Decades later, director Fleischer wrote in his autobiography, 'Just Tell Me When to Cry,' "I'm the only director in the history of Hollywood who ever fired a giant squid." | |||
! Award | |||
* Richard Fleischer was surprised at being considered for the director's chair for this film, as he was the son of Disney's biggest competitor, ]. He approached Walt Disney to inquire if Disney knew who he was. Disney told him that he was well aware of who he was and hired him because he thought he was the best man for the job. | |||
! Category | |||
* One of the models of the Nautilus created by Harper Goff was a "squeezed" version which could be filmed with a standard lens and still look normal when projected in Cinemascope. Even though blueprints exist for this model, no photographs were ever taken of it. And whatever footage was shot using this miniature was never cut into the film. | |||
! Recipients | |||
* The actual undersea footage was shot in the Bahamas in the same location that was used for the original 1916 silent version. | |||
! Result | |||
* Walt Disney said that ] claimed that the giant squid got the role that was usually reserved for him. | |||
|- | |||
* In addition to his many contributions as the production designer, including designing the Nautilus for the film, Harper Goff also taught Kirk Douglas to play the guitar for the "Whale of a Tale" number. | |||
| rowspan="3"|]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1955 |title=The 27th Academy Awards (1955) Nominees and Winners |access-date=June 13, 2020|work=oscars.org|date=October 4, 2014 }}</ref> | |||
* The ] played by Captain Nemo in the film is located in the ballroom scene in the ] attraction at ]. | |||
| ] | |||
* A unused plan for '']'' at ] in ], ] involved a scene with Captain Nemo fighting the ], while ] played the organ on the island stage. However, the idea was scrapped and a re-enactment of scenes from '']'' appeared in place instead. | |||
| ], ] | |||
* ] was originally considered for the role of Professor Arronax and Ralph Richardson was considered for Captain Nemo at one point. Even though Boyer wanted the part, he couldn't get out of a play he was doing on Broadway at the time. | |||
| rowspan="2" {{won}} | |||
* The movie was filmed across three studio lots (Disney, Fox, and Universal International) as well as on locations in Jamaica. All the Nautilus interior scenes, as well as hotel room scenes and Abraham Lincoln scenes were shot at the Disney studio. During the production, three different units worked simultaneously: the main unit with the actors, a second unit under the direction of James Havens, and a third effects unit under Ralph Hammeras. Legend has it that there was only one CinemaScope lens made available to Disney during the production and that he had to "motorcycle it" between the shooting units. This is absolutely not true - the production reports on the film show all three units shooting on the same days. | |||
|- | |||
* Leagues was the sixth film shot in CinemaScope. It was Fleischer's first movie in the new format and he proved himself a master in staging and framing his actors in the wide-screen process. | |||
| ] | |||
* "The Nautilus" was the name of one of the submarines used in Disneyland's ] attraction and will be used in the new ] attraction set to open Summer 2007 | |||
| ], ] | |||
|- | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| {{nom}} | |||
|- | |||
| ]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://nationalboardofreview.org/award-names/top-films/ |title=Top Films Archives |publisher=National Board of Review |access-date=June 13, 2020}}</ref> | |||
| ] | |||
| ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' | |||
| {{won}} | |||
|- | |||
| ]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.saturnawards.org/past.html |title=Past Saturn Awards |work=].org |access-date=May 7, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080914184217/http://www.saturnawards.org/past.html |archive-date=September 14, 2008 |df=mdy }}</ref> | |||
| colspan="2"| ] | |||
| {{nom}} | |||
|- | |||
| Online Film & Television Association Awards<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oftaawards.com/film-hall-of-fame/film-hall-of-fame-productions/ |title=Film Hall of Fame Productions |website=Online Film & Television Association |access-date=May 15, 2021}}</ref> | |||
| colspan="2"| Hall of Fame – Motion Picture | |||
| {{won|Inducted}} | |||
|} | |||
The film's primary art director ], who designed the fictitious ''Nautilus'' submarine, was not a member of the Art Directors Union. Therefore, under a bylaw within the Academy of Motion Pictures, he was unable to receive his Academy Award for Art Direction.<ref name="tcm"> ''Turner Classic Movies''. Retrieved: January 9, 2015.</ref> | |||
==In Disney resorts== | |||
] at Walt Disney World in 1979]] | |||
] used the original sets as a walk-through attraction from 1955 to 1966. ] ] also had a ] named ] from 1971 to 1994 which consisted of a submarine ride, complete with the giant squid attack, and an arrangement of the main theme from the 1954 film playing on Captain Nemo's organ in the background. For this ride, voice artist ] stood in for James Mason in the role of Captain Nemo.<ref name="20kride">{{cite web |url=http://www.20kride.com/photos_below.html |title=20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. |work=20K Ride |access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> In 1994, a walkthrough attraction at ], named ], opened,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.photosmagiques.com/gallery/disneyland-park/discoveryland/les-mysteres-du-nautilus/ |title=Les Mystères du Nautilus. |work=Photos Magiques |date=September 29, 2011 |access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> and a dark ride at ] was created in 2001.<ref>{{cite web |last=Wilson |first=Shellie |url=http://notcraft.craftgossip.com/review-tokyo-disneyland-and-disneysea-part-2-tokyo-disneysea/2012/06/10/ |title=Review: Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea – Part 2: Tokyo DisneySea. |work=Craft Gossip |date=June 10, 2012 |access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> The exterior to ] contains a silhouette of the ''Nautilus'' in a rock wall<ref>{{cite web |url=https://touringplans.com/blog/2016/04/20/walt-disney-world-relics-tributes-magic-kingdom/ |title=Walt Disney World Relics and Tributes: The Magic Kingdom |first=Savannah |last=Sanders |work=TouringPlans.com |date=April 20, 2016 |access-date=24 February 2019}}</ref> and the ] ] Grog Grotto at ] serves a cocktail called the "Nautilus"<ref>{{cite web |url=https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/polynesian-resort/trader-sams-grog-grotto/menus/ |title=Trader Sam's Grog Grotto menu |access-date=24 February 2019 |work=] |publisher=]}}</ref> which is itself served in a stylized drinking vessel resembling the submarine,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://secure.cdn1.wdpromedia.com/resize/mwImage/1/640/360/75/dam/wdpro-assets/gallery/dining/resort-dining/polynesian-resort/trader-sams-grog-grotto/trader-sams-grog-grotto-gallery05.jpg |title=Trader Sam's Nautilus cocktail vessel |work=secure.cdn1.wdpromedia.com}}</ref> and features a dive helmet and a mechanical squid tentacle that pours liquor behind the bar.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://cflas.org/2015/03/29/trader-sams-grog-grotto-a-true-dive-bar/ |title=Trader Sam's Grog Grotto: Drinking You 20,000 Leagues Under The Table |first=Travis |last=Fillmen |work=Central Florida Aquarium Society |date=March 29, 2015 |access-date=24 February 2019}}</ref> | |||
==Comic book adaptation== | |||
* ] ] #614 (February 1955)<ref>{{Grand Comics Database issue|id=12145|title=Dell Four Color #614}}</ref><ref>{{Comic Book DB|type=issue|id=193573|title=Dell Four Color #614}}</ref> | |||
==Remake and prequel== | |||
On January 6, 2009, '']'' reported that a live-action remake titled ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Captain Nemo'' was being planned with ] (professionally known as McG) attached to direct. The film served as an origin story for Captain Nemo, as he builds his warship, the ''Nautilus''.<ref>{{cite news|last=Fleming|first=Michael|url=https://variety.com/2009/film/news/mcg-to-direct-disney-s-leagues-1117998080/|title=McG to direct Disney's 'Leagues'|work=Variety|date=January 6, 2009|access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> McG had remarked that it would be "much more in keeping with the spirit of the novel" than Richard Fleischer's film, in which it would reveal "what Aronnax is up to and the becoming of Captain Nemo, and how the man became at war with war itself". It was written by Bill Marsilli, with Justin Marks and ] brought in to do rewrites.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=56966|title=Randall Wallace to Rewrite 'Captain Nemo'|website=]|date=July 8, 2009|access-date=January 9, 2015|archive-date=September 30, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120930194857/http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=56966|url-status=dead}}</ref> The film was to be produced by ] with McG's ].<ref>{{cite news|last=Graser|first=Marc|url=https://variety.com/2009/film/news/justin-marks-rewriting-nemo-1118000058/|title=Justin Marks rewriting 'Nemo'|work=Variety|date=February 11, 2009|access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> | |||
McG once suggested that he wanted ] as Captain Nemo, but he reportedly turned down the part.<ref>{{cite news|last=Vejvoda|first=Jim|url=http://uk.movies.ign.com/articles/945/945281p1.html|title=Finding McG's Nemo|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090221090207/http://uk.movies.ign.com/articles/945/945281p1.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 21, 2009|work=]|date=January 15, 2009|access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Morris|first=Clint|url=http://www.moviehole.net/200920432-exclusive-sam-on-nemo|title=Exclusive: Sam downplays 'Nemo'|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100626010420/http://www.moviehole.net/200920432-exclusive-sam-on-nemo |url-status=dead|archive-date=June 26, 2010|website=Moviehole.net|date=August 21, 2009|access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> As a second possible choice, McG had mentioned ], with whom he worked on '']'' (2009), though they did not hold serious discussions. In November 2009, the project was shelved by then-] chairman ], after $10 million had been spent on pre-production work. Prior to the announcement, McG and Bailey had been notified of the project's cancellation.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Eller|first1=Claudia|last2=Chimelewksi|first2=Dawn C.|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-nov-18-et-nemo18-story.html|title=Disney sinks 'Captain Nemo'|work=]|date=November 18, 2009|access-date=June 2, 2020}}</ref> | |||
During the 2010 ], director ] announced plans of directing ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' for Walt Disney Pictures based on a script by ].<ref name="mtv">{{cite news|last=Rosenberg|first=Adam|url=http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2010/07/28/exclusive-david-fincher-confirms-that-work-continues-on-20000-leagues-under-the-sea/|title=Exclusive: David Fincher Confirms That Work Continues On '20,000 Leagues Under The Sea'|work=MTV Movies Blog|url-status=dead|date=July 28, 2010|archive-date=September 9, 2015|access-date=January 9, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150909035751/http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2010/07/28/exclusive-david-fincher-confirms-that-work-continues-on-20000-leagues-under-the-sea/}}</ref> While Fincher was wrapping up '']'' (2011), it was speculated that ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' would enter principal photography by late 2012.<ref>{{cite news|last=Davis|first=Edward|url=http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/sony-officially-planning-to-make-dragon-tattoo-sequels-but-david-fincher-is-looking-to-direct-20-000-leagues-instead|title=Sony Officially Plans To Make 'Dragon Tattoo' Sequels, But David Fincher Is Looking To Direct '20,000 Leagues' Instead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130605141056/http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/sony-officially-planning-to-make-dragon-tattoo-sequels-but-david-fincher-is-looking-to-direct-20-000-leagues-instead|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 5, 2013|work=IndieWire|date=January 9, 2012|access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> In the meantime, Fincher began courting ] to play the role of Ned Land while the film was kept on hold.<ref>{{cite news|last=Sneider|first=Jeff|url=https://variety.com/2012/film/news/fincher-scopes-out-brad-pitt-for-20-000-leagues-1118060967/|title=Director courts frequent collaborator for role of harpoonist Ned Land.|work=Variety|date=October 18, 2012|access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> However, in February 2013, it was announced that Pitt had officially turned down the role.<ref>{{cite news|last=Dibdin|first=Emma|url=http://www.digitalspy.com/movies/news/a460011/brad-pitt-turns-down-david-finchers-20000-leagues-under-the-sea.html|title=Brad Pitt 'turns down David Fincher's '20,000 Leagues Under the Sea|work=]|date=February 12, 2013|access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> | |||
In April 2013, it was announced that the Australian government would provide a one-off incentive of $20 million in order to secure the production.<ref>{{cite news|last=Bullbeck|first=Pip|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/disney-s-20000-leagues-under-432259|title=Disney's '20,000 Leagues Under the Sea' Confirmed For Australia Shoot'|work=]|date=April 2, 2013|access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> Despite this, the film was put on hold again the following month due to complications in casting a lead.<ref>{{cite news|last=Child|first=Ben|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/may/20/brad-pitt-passes-20000-leagues-under-the-sea|title=20,000 Leagues Under the Sea remake put on hold|work=]|date=May 20, 2013|access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> On July 17, 2013, Fincher dropped out to direct the ] of '']''.<ref>{{cite news|last=Davis|first=Edward|url=http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/exclusive-andrew-kevin-walker-rewriting-dragon-tattoo-sequel-david-finchers-20-000-leagues-is-dead-20130717|title=Exclusive: Andrew Kevin Walker Rewriting 'Dragon Tattoo' Sequel; David Fincher's '20,000 Leagues' Is Dead|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130720030024/http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/exclusive-andrew-kevin-walker-rewriting-dragon-tattoo-sequel-david-finchers-20-000-leagues-is-dead-20130717|archive-date=July 20, 2013|work=]|date=July 17, 2013|access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> Fincher revealed in an interview that he left the film because he wanted ] for Ned Land, but Disney wanted ] for the role.<ref>{{cite news|last=Jagernauth|first=Kevin|url=http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/david-fincher-says-differences-over-casting-and-disneys-corporate-culture-stalled-20-000-leagues-under-the-sea-20140915|title=David Fincher Says Differences Over Casting And Disney's Corporate Culture Stalled '20,000 Leagues Under The Sea'|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140918195018/http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/david-fincher-says-differences-over-casting-and-disneys-corporate-culture-stalled-20-000-leagues-under-the-sea-20140915 |archive-date=September 18, 2014|work=Indie Wire|date=September 15, 2014|access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> Additionally, the money originally allocated for the production of this film was redirected towards '']'' (2017).<ref name="The Guardian">{{cite news|last=Child|first=Ben|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/sep/01/pirates-of-the-caribbean-5-shoot-australia/|title=Pirates of the Caribbean 5 gets green light to shoot in Australia|work=The Guardian|date=September 1, 2014|access-date=January 9, 2015}}</ref> | |||
In February 2016, Disney announced that it was planning a live-action film titled ''Captain Nemo'', with ] directing.<ref>{{cite news |date=February 25, 2016 |last=Ford |first=Rebecca |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/wolverine-helmer-james-mangold-direct-869705 |title='Wolverine' Helmer James Mangold to Direct Disney's 'Captain Nemo' |work=The Hollywood Reporter }}</ref> Mangold left the project to instead direct '']'' (2023).<ref>{{cite web |date=29 August 2021 |last1=Williams |first1=Jordan |title=Why Disney's 20,000 Leagues Adaptation Has Taken So Long: Every Failed Version |url=https://screenrant.com/20000-leagues-under-sea-disney-movie-show-delays-cancelled/ |website=ScreenRant }}</ref> | |||
On August 23, 2021, it was announced that a ten-episode miniseries titled '']'' was in development. The series will be an origin story about Captain Nemo and will be written by James Dormer, who will co-produce with Johanna Devereaux.<ref>{{cite web |date=23 August 2021 |last1=Ritman |first1=Alex |title=Disney+ Orders 'Nautilus' Series Based on Jules Verne Classic '20,000 Leagues Under the Sea' |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/disney-nautilus-20000-leagues-under-sea-adaptation-1235001471/ |website=] }}</ref> On November 12, 2021, ] was cast in the lead role while ] will direct the series.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2021/11/shazad-latif-captain-nemo-disney-nautilus-michael-matthews-1234872277/|title=Shazad Latif Tapped To Play Captain Nemo In Disney+ Series 'Nautilus', Michael Matthews On Board To Direct|website=Deadline|last=Kroll|first=Justin|date=November 12, 2021|access-date=November 12, 2021}}</ref> However, in August 2023, Disney pulled out from the project due to its cost-reduction strategy to its streaming platforms.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Andreeva |first=Nellie |date=August 27, 2023 |title=Disney+ Not Going Forward With 'Nautilus' UK Series As Part Of Cost-Cutting Content Removal |url=https://deadline.com/2023/08/nautilus-canceled-disney-plus-uk-series-cost-cutting-content-removal-1235529143/ |access-date=May 22, 2024 |website=Deadline |language=en-US}}</ref> In October of the same year, the ] television channel acquired the series, with plans to air it in 2024.<ref>{{cite web |last=White |first=Peter |url=https://deadline.com/2023/10/nautilus-amc-disney-1235587237/ |title=Captain Nemo Series 'Nautilus' Docks At AMC After Disney+ UK Cancelation |website=Deadline |date=October 30, 2023 |access-date=May 22, 2024}}</ref> | |||
==See also== | ==See also== | ||
* ] | |||
{{wikiquote}} | |||
* '']'', a 1961 film by Columbia Pictures, based on Verne's 1874 novel '']'', which was a sequel to two of Verne's earlier novels: '']'' (also known as ''Captain Grant's Children'') (1867) and '']'' (1870) | |||
* ] | |||
* '']'', a 1962 Disney film based on Verne's 1867 novel ] | |||
* ] | |||
* '']'', a 2001 Disney animated film that would share much of the same design language as ''20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' | |||
* ] | |||
* ], a ride ] that was based on the film. | |||
==Sources and notes== | |||
;Notes | |||
{{Reflist|group=Note}} | |||
;References | |||
{{Reflist}} | |||
;Bibliography | |||
* {{cite book |last=Douglas |first=Kirk |title=The Ragman's Son: An Autobiography |url=https://archive.org/details/ragmanssonaut00doug_0/ |year=1989 |location=New York |publisher=] |isbn=0-671-63718-5 |url-access=registration}} | |||
* {{cite book |last=Schickel |first=Richard |author-link=Richard Schickel |title=The Disney Version: The Life, Times, Art and Commerce of Walt Disney |url=https://archive.org/details/disneyversionlif00schi_0 |location=Chicago |publisher=Ivan R. Dee |orig-year=1968 |year=1997 |edition=Third |isbn=978-1-56663-158-7 |url-access=registration}} | |||
* {{cite book |last=Warren |first=Bill |author-link=Bill Warren (film historian and critic) |title=Keep Watching the Skies: American Science Fiction Films of the Fifties |url=https://archive.org/details/keepwatchingskie00iiwarr |edition=21st Century |location=Jefferson, North Carolina |publisher=] |orig-year=1982 |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-89950-032-4 |url-access=registration}} | |||
==External links== | ==External links== | ||
{{commons category}} | |||
{{wikiquote}} | |||
* {{IMDb title|id=0046672}} | |||
* at | |||
* {{TCMDb title|20642|20,000 Leagues Under the Sea}} | |||
{{Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea}} | |||
{{Richard Fleischer}} | |||
* | |||
{{Jules Verne}} | |||
* | |||
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Latest revision as of 06:50, 16 January 2025
1954 film by Richard Fleischer
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea | |
---|---|
Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | Richard Fleischer |
Screenplay by | Earl Felton |
Based on | Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas by Jules Verne |
Produced by | Walt Disney |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Franz Planer |
Edited by | Elmo Williams |
Music by | Paul Smith |
Production company | Walt Disney Productions |
Distributed by | Buena Vista Distribution |
Release date |
|
Running time | 127 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $5 million |
Box office | $28.2 million |
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea is a 1954 American science fiction adventure film directed by Richard Fleischer, from a screenplay by Earl Felton. Adapted from Jules Verne's 1870 novel Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas, the film was produced by Walt Disney Productions. It stars Kirk Douglas, James Mason, Paul Lukas, and Peter Lorre. Photographed in Technicolor, the film was one of the first feature-length motion pictures to be filmed in CinemaScope. It was also the first feature-length Disney film to be distributed by Buena Vista Distribution.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was a critical and commercial success, being especially remembered for the fight with a giant squid, as well as Mason's definitive performance as the charismatic anti-hero Captain Nemo. The film won two Academy Awards for its art direction and special effects.
Plot
In 1866, rumors spread of a sea monster attacking ships in the Pacific Ocean. Professor Aronnax and his assistant, Conseil, are asked to investigate, and board a U.S. Navy frigate. They are joined by master harpooner Ned Land.
After months of patrolling, the monster is spotted. The frigate's guncrew open fire, but the monster rams the warship. Ned, Conseil, and Aronnax are thrown overboard while the disabled frigate drifts away. While clinging to wreckage, Aronnax and Conseil come upon a metal vessel and realize the monster is a man-made "submerging boat" that appears deserted. Below decks, Aronnax finds a large viewport and witnesses an underwater funeral, while Ned arrives on an overturned longboat from their ship. Spotted by the divers, Ned, Aronnax, and Conseil attempt to leave in the longboat, but they are captured. The vessel's captain introduces himself as Captain Nemo, master of the Nautilus. He returns Ned and Conseil to the deck while offering Aronnax, whose name he recognizes, the chance to stay. After Aronnax proves willing to die with his companions as the ship submerges, Nemo allows Ned and Conseil to remain aboard.
Nemo takes Nautilus to a penal colony island, where the prisoners are loading a munitions ship. Nemo, once a prisoner there as were many of his crew, rams the steamer, destroying it and its crew. Nemo tells Aronnax that he has just saved thousands from death in war, and that "this hated nation" tortured his wife and son to death while attempting to force him to reveal his discoveries. In Nemo's cabin, Ned and Conseil discover the map coordinates of Nemo's secret island base, Vulcania, where Nautilus is now heading. Ned throws messages with Vulcania's coordinates overboard in bottles in the hope of being rescued.
Off the coast of New Guinea, Nautilus becomes stranded on a reef. Nemo allows Ned to go ashore with Conseil, ostensibly to collect specimens, while admonishing them to stay on the beach. Ned instead goes exploring for avenues of escape, and finds human skulls posted on stakes. Ned runs back to Conseil, and they row away pursued by cannibals. Aboard Nautilus, the cannibals are repelled by electrical charges sent through its hull, and Nemo confines Ned for disobeying orders.
A warship fires upon Nautilus, which descends into the depths, attracting a giant squid. After an electric charge fails to repel the creature, Nemo and his men surface during a storm to dislodge it. Nemo is caught by one of its long tentacles, and Ned, having escaped from captivity, fatally harpoons the squid, and saves Nemo when he is pulled into the sea. Having had a change of heart, Nemo decides to make amends with the world.
As Nautilus nears Vulcania, Nemo finds the island surrounded by warships, with marines having disembarked. The Nautilus enters his base through an underwater passage, and surfaces within its extinct volcano lagoon. Nemo rushes ashore to activate a time bomb in order to destroy any evidence of his discoveries but is shot and mortally wounded as he returns onboard. Navigating the submarine to a safe distance from Vulcania, Nemo announces that he will be "taking the Nautilus down for the last time". His crew declare that they will accompany their captain in death.
Aronnax, Conseil, and Ned are confined to their cabins, while Nautilus's crew retreat to their own at Nemo's instructions. Ned, refusing to be part of the suicide pact, escapes and surfaces the submarine, striking a reef in the process, causing Nautilus to flood. Nemo dies while viewing his beloved undersea domain through the hull's viewport.
Aronnax tries retrieving his journal, but the urgency of their escape obliges Ned to knock him unconscious and carry him out. Aboard Nautilus's skiff, the three companions, along with Esmeralda, Nemo’s pet sea lion, witness Vulcania explode. A large, billowing mushroom cloud rises above the island's destruction. Ned apologizes to Aronnax for striking him, but Aronnax concedes that the loss of his journal might have been for the best. As Nautilus sinks, Nemo's last words to Aronnax echo: "There is hope for the future. And when the world is ready for a new and better life, all this will someday come to pass... in God's good time."
Cast
- Kirk Douglas as Ned Land
- James Mason as Captain Nemo
- Paul Lukas as Professor Pierre Aronnax
- Peter Lorre as Conseil
- Robert J. Wilke as Nautilus's First Mate
- Ted de Corsia as Captain Farragut
- Carleton Young as John Howard
- J. M. Kerrigan as Billy
- Percy Helton as Coach driver
- Ted Cooper as Abraham Lincoln's First Mate
- Fred Graham as Casey (uncredited stuntman)
- Laurie Mitchell as Hooker (uncredited debut)
Production
Walt Disney first expressed interest in an adaptation of Jules Verne's Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas after seeing some marine footage and storyboards created by Harper Goff during the production of the True-Life Adventures series. At the time, the film rights were owned by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and King Brothers Productions. In November 1950, film producer Sid Rogell announced he had acquired the screen rights to the novel, as well as a film adaptation prepared by Robert L. Lippert's production company. He had planned to start filming within a year at the General Service Studios. However, in December 1951, it was reported that Disney had purchased the film rights from Rogell. Goff's storyboards and art designs formed the film's basis, but he was not credited because he was not a member of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was filmed at various locations in The Bahamas and Jamaica, with the cave scenes filmed beneath what is now the Xtabi Resort on the cliffs of Negril. Other scenes were photographed in Nassau, Lyford Cay, and Death Valley. Filming took place between January 11 and June 19, 1954. According to the two-disc DVD documentary, the scenes in San Francisco at the beginning were filmed at Universal Studios while most of the modeling shots were done at 20th Century Fox. Some of the location filming sequences were so complex that they required a technical crew of more than 400 people. The production presented many other challenges, as well. The famous giant squid attack sequence had to be entirely re-shot, as it was originally filmed as taking place at dusk and in a calm sea. The sequence was filmed again, this time taking place at twilight and during a humongous thunderstorm, both to increase the drama and to better hide the cables and other mechanical workings of the Animatronic squid.
With a total (and deeply over-run) production cost of $9 million, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was the most expensive and ambitious production in Hollywood up to that time.
Differences between novel and film
The film was praised as faithfully adapting the novel. James W. Maertens writes that while this is true, "Close comparison of the novel and film reveals many changes, omissions, even reversals, which affect the story's fundamental concern (besides scientific education), a representation of class and gender, specifically masculinity, in the industrial age." Nemo's submarine, battery-powered in the novel, is powered by atomic energy in the film. The novel's submarine is also a "streamlined, cigar shaped sub" while the film's is "a more ornate vessel". The film's director and screenwriter extracted "the most memorable scenes from the novel and freely reordered them under the assumption that viewers would not remember the novel's order of events." Goff and Disney based the Nautilus's design in the film on the interior of the Forth Bridge. In the novel, Nemo orders parts from various industries, secretly shipping them to an island for assembly, whom Maertens labeled "a logistical genius at manipulating Industrial Age manufacturing".
Music
Rather than an authentic soundtrack recording of the film's score or dialogue, two vinyl studio cast record albums were released to coincide with the film's first two releases (1954 and 1963). Both albums contained condensed and heavily altered versions of the film's script without the usage of any of the film's cast for character voices. In addition, both albums were narrated by Ned Land as opposed to Aronnax, who narrated the film and the original novel. Neither album mentioned Nemo as actually being "cracked" (i.e. insane), as the film does, and considerably sanitized the character by omitting any mention of him killing anyone. The albums also had Nemo surviving at the end and releasing Ned, Arronax, and Conseil out of gratitude for their saving his life. In this version, Ned, Aronnax and Conseil were not shipwrecked because the Nautilus rammed the ship they were on, but because a hurricane came up.
The first album was issued in 1954 in conjunction with the film's original release, and starred William Redfield as the voice of Ned. This album, a book-and-record set, was issued as part of RCA Victor's Little Nipper series on two 45-RPM records. The second album, released by Disneyland Records in 1963 in conjunction with the film's first re-release, was issued on one 331⁄3 RPM 12-inch LP with no accompanying booklet and no liner notes – the usual practice with most Disneyland label albums. It contained much more of the film's plot, but with many of the same alterations as the first album, so this recording was technically a remake of the earlier one. The cast for the 1963 album was uncredited. Neither album listed the film's credits or made any mention of the film's cast.
A single for the film's most memorable song "A Whale of a Tale", written by Norman Gimbel and Al Hoffman and sung by Kirk Douglas, was also released in 1954 under the Decca Children's Series label. According to Douglas, the recording was "very popular at the time". The song "And the Moon Grew Brighter and Brighter", which Douglas had sung in the movie Man Without a Star (written by Lou Singer and Jimmy Kennedy), was the B-side. Both songs can be found on the 2008 digital release of the film's soundtrack. In the film, Johann Sebastian Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor is played by Nemo on the Nautilus's organ, but James Mason's playing is actually dubbed by an anonymous organist.
Official soundtrack
On January 29, 2008, Walt Disney Records released a 26-track digital album containing the music of Paul Smith's original soundtrack score to 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, plus both sides of the "A Whale of a Tale" single, as well as a digital booklet companion that explores the music of the film. This was the first official release of the film score and was initially available only through the iTunes Store. Intrada released the same soundtrack on CD in 2011. The music for 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was composed by Paul Smith, with Joseph Dubin acting as the orchestrator.
Release
On September 15, 1954, Variety reported that Disney and RKO Pictures had begun discussions on the distribution plans for 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. A week later, it was reported that Disney decided to end his 17-year association with RKO, choosing instead to release the film through his newly formed distribution arm, Buena Vista Distribution. Overseas, the film was distributed by Walt Disney British Films Ltd, a studio-owned subsidiary in the UK, and other local distributors in international territories.
On December 23, 1954, the film premiered at the Astor Theatre. It was released in 65 key cities across the United States two days later, on Christmas Day. The film was re-released in theaters in 1963 and 1971.
Home media
In September 1980, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was made available for purchase or rental on videocassette, among other Disney films. In 1992, Scott MacQueen, then-senior manager of Disney's library restoration, did an extensive digital restoration for the film's videocassette release.
On May 20, 2003, the film was released on a two-disc DVD set with supplemental features, including an audio commentary, deleted scenes (including the original squid fight albeit without sound), and an extensive making-of documentary. On the same day, the film was screened at the El Capitan Theatre, with Richard Fleischer introducing the film. A 1080p HD version from a 4K restoration was released on iTunes in 2014. In 2019, the film was released on Blu-ray via the Disney Movie Club. The film was made available to stream on Disney+ when the service launched on November 12, 2019.
Reception
Box office
During its opening weekend, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea opened in second place at the box office behind There's No Business Like Show Business (1954). On its third weekend, the film became the number-one box office film in the United States, displacing Vera Cruz (1954). It was dethroned by Vera Cruz on its fourth weekend, but the film reclaimed the number-one position on its fifth weekend. By January 1956, the film had earned $8 million in distributor rentals at the box office from the United States and Canada, becoming the third highest-grossing film of 1954. (Another account put its initial rentals in the US and Canada at $6,607,000.
Critical reaction
Bosley Crowther of The New York Times stated that, "As fabulous and fantastic as anything he has ever done in cartoons is Walt Disney's 'live action' movie made from Jules Verne's '20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.' Turned out in CinemaScope and color, it is as broad, fictitiously, as it is long (128 minutes), and should prove a sensation—at least with the kids." Gene Arneel of Variety praised the film as "a special kind of picture making, combining photographic ingenuity, imaginative story telling and fiscal daring." He felt "Richard Fleischer's direction keeps the Disney epic moving at a smart clip, picking up interest right from the start and deftly developing each of the many tense moments ... Earl Fenton's screenplay looks to be a combination of the best in the Verne original and new material to suit the screen form. It's a fine job of writing stimulating pic fare. Technical credits — underline the water photography — are excellent." Kate Cameron of the New York Daily News praised the film as a "thrilling and absorbing adaptation"; she further wrote: "Richard Fleischer handled the direction of the film with vivid imagination. The underwater scenes are fascinating in their eerie beauty and the interesting glimpses they contain of marine life."
Philip K. Scheuer, reviewing for the Los Angeles Times, wrote: "Technically the film is a marvel itself, with actual underwater shot made in the Bahamas alternating with surface scale models that defy detection as such." He also praised Mason's performance, claiming "he lends depth and dimension to the stock figure of the 'mad genius.' The proof: he sometimes seems more pitied than scorned." Harrison's Reports wrote: "Expertly utilizing the CinemaScope medium and Technicolor photography, he and his staff have fashioned a picture that is not only a masterpiece from the production point of view but also a great entertainment, the kind that should go over in a big way with all types of audiences." A review in the Chicago Tribune wrote, "Produced with care, in handsome color and peppered with humor, it's a nicely balanced dose of old supposition and modern fact."
Contemporary film critic Steve Biodrowski said that the film is "far superior to the majority of genre efforts from the period (or any period, for that matter), with production design and technical effects that have dated hardly at all." Biodrowski also added that the film "may occasionally succumb to some of the problems inherent in the source material (the episodic nature does slow the pace), but the strengths far outweigh the weaknesses, making this one of the greatest science-fiction films ever made." On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 91% based on 32 reviews, with an average rating of 7.70/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "One of Disney's finest live-action adventures, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea brings Jules Verne's classic sci-fi tale to vivid life, and features an awesome giant squid."
Accolades
Award | Category | Recipients | Result |
---|---|---|---|
27th Academy Awards | Best Art Direction – Color | John Meehan, Emile Kuri | Won |
Best Special Effects | John Hench, Joshua Meador | ||
Best Film Editing | Elmo Williams | Nominated | |
National Board of Review Awards 1954 | Top Ten Films | 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea | Won |
Saturn Awards | Best DVD Classic Film Release | Nominated | |
Online Film & Television Association Awards | Hall of Fame – Motion Picture | Inducted |
The film's primary art director Harper Goff, who designed the fictitious Nautilus submarine, was not a member of the Art Directors Union. Therefore, under a bylaw within the Academy of Motion Pictures, he was unable to receive his Academy Award for Art Direction.
In Disney resorts
Disneyland used the original sets as a walk-through attraction from 1955 to 1966. Walt Disney World Resort's Magic Kingdom also had a dark ride named 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage from 1971 to 1994 which consisted of a submarine ride, complete with the giant squid attack, and an arrangement of the main theme from the 1954 film playing on Captain Nemo's organ in the background. For this ride, voice artist Peter Renaday stood in for James Mason in the role of Captain Nemo. In 1994, a walkthrough attraction at Disneyland Paris, named Les Mystères du Nautilus, opened, and a dark ride at Tokyo DisneySea was created in 2001. The exterior to The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Undersea Adventure contains a silhouette of the Nautilus in a rock wall and the tiki bar Trader Sam's Grog Grotto at Disney's Polynesian Village Resort serves a cocktail called the "Nautilus" which is itself served in a stylized drinking vessel resembling the submarine, and features a dive helmet and a mechanical squid tentacle that pours liquor behind the bar.
Comic book adaptation
- Dell Four Color #614 (February 1955)
Remake and prequel
On January 6, 2009, Variety reported that a live-action remake titled 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Captain Nemo was being planned with Joseph McGinty Nichol (professionally known as McG) attached to direct. The film served as an origin story for Captain Nemo, as he builds his warship, the Nautilus. McG had remarked that it would be "much more in keeping with the spirit of the novel" than Richard Fleischer's film, in which it would reveal "what Aronnax is up to and the becoming of Captain Nemo, and how the man became at war with war itself". It was written by Bill Marsilli, with Justin Marks and Randall Wallace brought in to do rewrites. The film was to be produced by Sean Bailey with McG's Wonderland Sound and Vision.
McG once suggested that he wanted Will Smith as Captain Nemo, but he reportedly turned down the part. As a second possible choice, McG had mentioned Sam Worthington, with whom he worked on Terminator Salvation (2009), though they did not hold serious discussions. In November 2009, the project was shelved by then-Walt Disney Pictures chairman Rich Ross, after $10 million had been spent on pre-production work. Prior to the announcement, McG and Bailey had been notified of the project's cancellation.
During the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con, director David Fincher announced plans of directing 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea for Walt Disney Pictures based on a script by Scott Z. Burns. While Fincher was wrapping up The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011), it was speculated that 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea would enter principal photography by late 2012. In the meantime, Fincher began courting Brad Pitt to play the role of Ned Land while the film was kept on hold. However, in February 2013, it was announced that Pitt had officially turned down the role.
In April 2013, it was announced that the Australian government would provide a one-off incentive of $20 million in order to secure the production. Despite this, the film was put on hold again the following month due to complications in casting a lead. On July 17, 2013, Fincher dropped out to direct the film adaptation of Gone Girl. Fincher revealed in an interview that he left the film because he wanted Channing Tatum for Ned Land, but Disney wanted Chris Hemsworth for the role. Additionally, the money originally allocated for the production of this film was redirected towards Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017).
In February 2016, Disney announced that it was planning a live-action film titled Captain Nemo, with James Mangold directing. Mangold left the project to instead direct Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023).
On August 23, 2021, it was announced that a ten-episode miniseries titled Nautilus was in development. The series will be an origin story about Captain Nemo and will be written by James Dormer, who will co-produce with Johanna Devereaux. On November 12, 2021, Shazad Latif was cast in the lead role while Michael Matthews will direct the series. However, in August 2023, Disney pulled out from the project due to its cost-reduction strategy to its streaming platforms. In October of the same year, the AMC television channel acquired the series, with plans to air it in 2024.
See also
- List of underwater science fiction works
- Mysterious Island, a 1961 film by Columbia Pictures, based on Verne's 1874 novel The Mysterious Island, which was a sequel to two of Verne's earlier novels: In Search of the Castaways (also known as Captain Grant's Children) (1867) and Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas (1870)
- In Search of the Castaways, a 1962 Disney film based on Verne's 1867 novel In Search of the Castaways (a.k.a. Captain Grant's Children)
- Atlantis: The Lost Empire, a 2001 Disney animated film that would share much of the same design language as 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Sources and notes
- Notes
- Footage of the original, rejected giant squid attack sequence shows details of the filming.
- References
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- Bibliography
- Douglas, Kirk (1989). The Ragman's Son: An Autobiography. New York: Pocket Books. ISBN 0-671-63718-5.
- Schickel, Richard (1997) . The Disney Version: The Life, Times, Art and Commerce of Walt Disney (Third ed.). Chicago: Ivan R. Dee. ISBN 978-1-56663-158-7.
- Warren, Bill (2009) . Keep Watching the Skies: American Science Fiction Films of the Fifties (21st Century ed.). Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-0-89950-032-4.
External links
- 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea at IMDb
- 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea at DBCult Film Institute
- 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea at the TCM Movie Database
- 1954 films
- 1950s science fiction adventure films
- American science fiction adventure films
- 1950s English-language films
- Films adapted into comics
- Films based on Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas
- Films based on science fiction novels
- Films directed by Richard Fleischer
- Films produced by Walt Disney
- Films scored by Paul Smith (composer)
- Films set in San Francisco
- Films set in the Pacific Ocean
- Films set in 1868
- Films shot in Jamaica
- Films shot in the Bahamas
- Films that won the Best Visual Effects Academy Award
- Films whose art director won the Best Art Direction Academy Award
- Sea adventure films
- Underwater civilizations in fiction
- Walt Disney Pictures films
- CinemaScope films
- Films set in New Guinea
- 1950s American films
- English-language science fiction adventure films