Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959) (Movie Review)

                                                   

  For the past month I've been reviewing classic 1950's Sci-Fi classics, with topics ranging from Alien Invasions to Science Experiments gone bad, and now I’ll close things out with the last main category … “exploring the unknown”, and todays movie is in the 1959 classic “Journey to the Center of the Earth”. Based on the novel of the same title by legendary author/writer “Jules Verne”, this adaption stays true to the source material, while making it accessible to wide-range audiences of its time. It’s very much in the same spirit of another Jules Verne book adaption to film in 1954, Disney’s “20’000 Leagues Under the Sea”, as it also aimed to appeal to both kids and adults. While arguably dated by today’s standards of family entertainment, I find "Journey to the Center of the Earth" very refreshing, as it’s so different from the mainstream commercial entertainment of today, and for me, it represents a simple time that will never come again. With that said, how much of this film holds up with genuine quality, or is it simply comfort food … lets dig in and find out.     

  On this adventure, we follow a professor named Sir Oliver, who's played very well by James Mason, the same talent who played Captain Nemo in the previously mentioned 1954 picture “20’000 Leagues Under the Sea” … although, his Professor Oliver portrayal is far more optimistic by comparison. Anyway, he receives a rock fragment from one of his best students named Alec, which seems to have mysteriously traveled from one end of the world to the other. 

Further tests on the fragment reveals a man-made object inside, with an engraving from a traveler who made it the center of the earth, and died before he reached the surface. Professor Oliver soon reveals he’s obsessed with discovering things that are unknown to man, and what could be more fascinating than an underground cavern leading to the other side of the globe. Thus, he elects to go on this expedition himself, along with his student Alec, and a lady named Carla, whose late husband had previously dared the journey to the Earth’s center. As their underground travel ensues, our heroes find themselves racing against a rivel scientist determined to beat them to the grand discovery. Along the way they discover many wonders, and battle various elements, including monsters lurking in the deep caverns below.  

  The characters are all familiar archetypes, but likable enough to root for, and the cast deliver committed performances. As stated above, James Mason is an engaging lead, and naturally slips into the role of an excited scientist eager to unearth something new. Pat Boone makes for a decent lead behind James Mason as the young student Alec, and Arlene Dahl is charismatic as our leading lady Carla. Peter Ronson also provides some levity as a Russian accomplice named Hans, who brought his pet duck along for the ride. A lovely young Diane Baker is also a welcomed presence as the Professors niece, who provides the emotional concern while our hero’s travel. Rounding-up the main cast is Thayer David as the wicked Count Saknussemm, who’s a stock cliché villain, but played with so much commitment and restrained menace that he steals every scene he’s in.   

  The great composer Bernard Herrmann, who previously gave us a chilling score in “The Day the Earth Stood Still”, gives us another terrific music theme in this film. From the opening credits, I'm instantly hooked by his score, which provides a sense of excitement for whatever mysterious and excitement await us. I will admit that it’s a slow burning first half, with the charm of the actors carrying me through, but I’m not really hooked until about the midway point. While it’s all necessary build-up, I do wish it had tightened things up a little faster in the first act. Still, the payoff develops gradually, and it’s quite fun when keeping a humble perspective. Once the underground caverns take on a more fantastical appearance, the film really comes alive.

   Some of the highlights along the way include a room full of diamonds, a figurative mushroom Kingdom, the ruins of Atlantes, and at the center of it all … a giant, subterrain ocean. While not exactly a spectacle, there’s still a comforting sense of wonder and joy present in the design of these locations and imagery. 

Today’s notion of digital effects and imaginative, fast-moving escapist fun certainly have their strengths, appeals, and are arguably superior … but for me, there’s a special magic that comes from these older pictures like “The Wizard of Oz” or “Forbidden Planet”, and seeing all these extraordinary hand-crafted settings, with all the attention to detail in the environment, the props, the colors, map-painted backdrops and it all seems to take on a personality of its own. I still love my big, modern blockbusters, and their dazzling effects … but I’ll always carry a special fondness for these older pictures, and their dated, yet groundbreaking effects for their time.   

  While the film’s greatest strength is its sense of wonder and imagination, the adventure elements are only so-so, but still not devoid of appeal. Plenty of exciting obstacles challenge our caravan along their journey, including a boulder that goes chasing after them, getting trapped in a cave that’s slowly filling-up with water, a volcano that’s threatening to erupt, a team member getting lost in salt mines, and the cherry on top are the giant monsters lurking about, which are hungry for humans. 

While these creatures are supposed to be dinosaurs, their clearly just big lizards with prosthetics, which is basic, but still kind of fun. There's one ambitious shot for the time, framed from the inside of a lizard's moth, which is kind of striking. Similar lizard stand-ins for Dinosaurs would be seen again in the following 1960 picture “The Lost World”, which looked even sillier by comparison. 

 The comedy on display is also an acquired taste, as it’s goofy but not always funny. A scene with the characters playing a long game of Morse Code with the duck sets the stage for what kind of hummer we’re in for. Even after the movie builds to a genuinely thrilling climax, the momentum fizzles out on a cringe joke involving a group of Nuns spotting a naked man in a tree. As stated above, the film was aimed at a wide range audience that both kids and adults can enjoy, and the hummer on display was unmistakably a product of the time.

   Like many early 50’s Sci-Fi pictures, “Journey to the Center of the Earth” has been remade and rebooted several times, with the 2008 picture starring Brendan Fraser probably being the best known. While a little more fast moving and fun, I still prefer the original classic by a mile. While I wouldn’t call 1959’s “Journey to the Center of the Earth” one of the all-time great Sci-Fi classics … it’s still undeniably an appealing vintage offering of early Science Fiction Cinima. I first saw it at just the right young age, and it’s always been a simple comfort-food picture into my adulthood. I’ll admit, I can easily see kids, or contemporary viewers being bored, put-off or just not interested in this picture, but I say it’s worth giving a chance. If you have any love for old-school effects, or early Sci-Fi, then I’d say this journey is well worth experiencing.

Thanks for reading my review of the 1959 Sci-Fi picture “Journey to the Center of the Earth” … and continue to enjoy the movies you Love!