20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

[Mrs. Cake]

I rediscovered my childhood love for Disney's 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea over the past few evenings, having found a copy of the two-disc special edition at the local video store, hidden away in the kid's movie section. I loved all the extras with the movie - the Making Of doco narrated by John Rhys-Davies, all the period-piece Disney-made bits from the '50's, the meet-the-geeks peice featuring the brothers who've made it their life to collect every bit of memorabilia that still exists. I had no idea it had been so ground-breaking in so many areas, like using fiberglass sets and only being the second movie shot in Cinemascope.

The movie itself has so much right about it side-by-side with so much wrong. James Mason as the perfect Captain Nemo paired up with a fer-cryin-out-loud seal. Stunning miniature work in one scene followed by Kirk Douglas singing in the next. And of course, the star of the show, the Nautilus. Harper Goff's ultimate steampunk machine. We just kept stopping the DVD to geek out over the interior shots. I can't possibly detatch my feelings for this movie now from those of my 11-year-old self who saw it at a matinee back in the days when screens were biiig. James Mason's Nemo had a tremendous effect on my just-approaching-puberty hormones, leaving me with a deep and abiding lust for brooding, tormented geniuses with beards.

I'm aware that there have been a couple of sad, sorry attempts to remake 20,000 LUtS, but the only way it could be done is if Disney got on board and let, say, the writing/directing/production team behind Pirates of the Caribbean have Harper Goff's perfect Nautilus and have them throw everything else away and start fresh, maybe casting Ciaran Hinds as Nemo, Paul Giamatti as Arronax, and Brendan Fraser as Ned Land (shirtless, as often as possible.).

[Bryan Ekers]

20,000 leagues? I didn't know the ocean was that deep. That's, like, 6 miles or something.

[Morbo]

I saw an episode of Antiques Roadshow where a guy had the original two-foot model of the Nautilus. He was holding it in his hands like a medium-sized dog. The guy who brought it in got it from his uncle who worked on the movie F/X IIRC.

It was pretty cool to see - he'd kept it in great shape.

[Hentzau]

I agree with nearly everything that Mrs. Cake has said, though speaking as a brooding, tormented genius with a beard I suppose that would be expected. I admit I have no particular preference for a shirtless Mr. Fraser over a fully-dressed one, though I can think of no-one more suited to the part. I'm sure Mr. Giamatti would bring more life and depth to the part of Arronax than that displayed by Mr. Lukas.

Now who do we get for Conseil? And how do we raise the money?

[Walloon]

20,000 leagues? I didn't know the ocean was that deep. That's, like, 6 miles or something.A common misunderstanding of the title. 20,000 leagues is 60,000 miles. The title refers to a journey under the ocean of 20,000 leagues, not the ocean's depth. (The circumference of the earth at the equator is 24,901.55 miles.)

[Mrs. Cake]

I admit I'm stuck for a Conseil. Much as I usually adore Peter Lorre, he isn't who I'd cast in the part. As for money, let the mouse pony up. It's not like they'd have to mortgage Disneyland this time.

BTW, love the name, Hentzau. Brooding, bearded, tormented genius, eh? How are you with sabres and staircases?

[Baldwin]

A common misunderstanding of the title. 20,000 leagues is 60,000 miles. The title refers to a journey under the ocean of 20,000 leagues, not the ocean's depth. (The circumference of the earth at the equator is 24,901.55 miles.)Either Mr. Ekers was confusing leagues with fathoms, or you've been whooshed.

There was a "Saturday Night Live" sketch a few years ago, with host Kelsey Grammer playing Captain Nemo, and having to explain that same point over and over to everybody else in the sketch. "Gee, I can't believe we're really 20,000 leagues under the sea! That's really deep!"

As far as I know, nobody's ever made a filmed version of the novel that has the Nautilus looking right. It's supposed to be cigar-shaped, with a rudder and horizontal planes -- just like an actual modern submarine. As I recall, Verne had the ship powered by fuel cells, refueled by chemicals filtered out of the seawater, which is pretty clever.

[Hentzau]

Well, the best wife in the world has just about got me talked into teaching sabre in the spring semester. As for staircases...I've got one but it's not spiral, nor is it made of stone. That will have to wait for the next house. Fortunately I have this great lottery ticket.

In something like seriousness, this could be a great time for the mouse to finance a re-make of the film. They already own the Nautilus design, which I love, as well as all those great props and set pieces. They could get anyone they want (can you imagine any actor turning them down?) and anybody who can make us believe we're watching two square-riggers fighting in a maelstrom can handle the visual effects for 20,000 Leagues.

I would like to see it treated more darkly than the last, however. Nemo having read his Nietsche (though I haven't checked the dates to see if he could have). You know - "the abyss gazes into you" sort of thing. Handled right, the abyss could become a character in the film, the same way the ring became a character in LOTR.

[Morbo]

I've got the perfect cast:

Ned Land: Andy Dick
Nemo: Dane Cook
Arronax: Adam Sandler
Conseil: Rob Schneider

Plus Jessica Simpson as the holographic Nautilus Computer

[TupeloHoney]

I never saw the original 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. I've always been a huge Disney fan and somehow I missed that one. I am thinking that I should go out and rent it. I actually loved the Disney ride when I was younger but I remember that the line was always so long and my parents never wanted to wait. And now the ride isn't there anymore.

[Elendil's Heir]

Dear Lord, Morbo, please tell us you're whooshing us.

Yes, a cool movie for its day, and ripe for a remake. My dream cast:

Ned Land: Brendan Frasier
Nemo: Russell Crowe or George Clooney
Arronax: John Hurt or Ian Holm
Conseil: David Sedaris (I don't think he's ever acted, but he'd be perfect in the role)

Hanging in the visitors center for the Navy's USS Nautilus, now a museum ship moored near Groton, Conn., is a model of the Nautilus from the movie. I seem to remember it was an actual filming model, but it might be a later replica. It's a few feet long.

[blondebear]

I love that movie. Our babysitter took us to see it at the Drive-In one summer, and it was awesome! I still have the companion "Big Golden Book", with it's wonderful illustrations, from 1963.

[carnivorousplant]

I actually loved the Disney ride when I was younger but I remember that the line was always so long and my parents never wanted to wait.
One of the crushing disappointments of my youth was discovering that the subs didn't dive, only the passenger area was underwater. And the giant squid was a fake.
I have never trusted anyone since that bitter moment.

[Bryan Ekers]

Either Mr. Ekers was confusing leagues with fathoms, or you've been whooshed.

There was a "Saturday Night Live" sketch a few years ago, with host Kelsey Grammer playing Captain Nemo, and having to explain that same point over and over to everybody else in the sketch. "Gee, I can't believe we're really 20,000 leagues under the sea! That's really deep!"
Rob Schneider played the Peter Lorre role.

[El_Kabong]

The first two movies I ever saw in a theater were a matinee double-bill of Mothra and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, sometime in the early '60s, when I was about 8 or 9. They both pretty much blew my mind to smithereens, and I've loved film ever since.

That was in fact the only time I ever watched 2LUtS (oohhh, looks a bit too much like "sluts" doesn't it?) until earlier this year, on one of the movie channels. The OP called it right. There's so much that's great, and so much that's overripe cheese. I loved seeing it again anyway.

[TupeloHoney]

One of the crushing disappointments of my youth was discovering that the subs didn't dive, only the passenger area was underwater. And the giant squid was a fake.
I have never trusted anyone since that bitter moment.


Haha, it was sad that it didn't actually dive! I completely agree. However, I rarely got to ride it and I'm still a bit bitter about that!

[Thudlow Boink]

There was a "Saturday Night Live" sketch a few years ago, with host Kelsey Grammer playing Captain Nemo, and having to explain that same point over and over to everybody else in the sketch. "Gee, I can't believe we're really 20,000 leagues under the sea! That's really deep!"Transcript here (http://snltranscripts.jt.org/93/93qleagues.phtml).

[Walloon]

The movie sets and props were turned into a walk-through exhibit at Disneyland (http://www.20kride.com/photos_other_dl.html) from 1955 to 1966.

The IMDb tells us:In 1969, Captain Nemo's pipe organ (http://doombuggies.com/secrets_ballroom.htm), which had been on display in Disneyland, was redressed and now resides in the ballroom of Disneyland's Haunted Mansion. A duplicate (http://members.aol.com/HtdMsn/setc.html) was constructed for the ballroom of Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom Haunted Mansion, which opened in 1971, and over a decade later another duplicate was built for Tokyo Disneyland.

[FriarTed]

Let me give a nod to the ABC-produced version with Michael Caine as Nemo. I truly enjoyed that. It is on DVD but for about $20 when I saw it in the store & was short on cash at the time. Alas, I got the NBC Ben Cross version for $6 but haven't had the nerve to watch that yet.

[CalMeacham]

There's a silent version of 20,000 Leagues that's worth watching. They do a good job of portraying the Nautilus (as described by Verne), and it's the only version that depicts Nemo as Indian (something that wouldn't happen on film again until The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen). The film also manages -- amazingly -- to tell the story of The Mysterious Island. The underwater scenes were ahead of their time, and shot in the same place Disney used some 30 years later.



If you can, get hold of a copy of The Annotated 20,000 Leagues with notes by Walter James Miller, or else get his own translation of it. Worth the effort.

[Hentzau]

Ned Land: Brendan Frasier
Nemo: Russell Crowe or George Clooney
Arronax: John Hurt or Ian Holm
Conseil: David Sedaris (I don't think he's ever acted, but he'd be perfect in the role)
Mr. Clooney is too good-looking, but he certainly has the acting chops. I seem to be one of the few who cannot look at Mr. Crowe without wanting to slap him. I can't explain it. Maybe what other people take for broodiness I take for poutyness. I can say that Hamster and Commander didn't help matters.

[Morbo]

Rob Schneider played the Peter Lorre role.

Good gravy. I honestly did not know that when I tried to come up with the worst possible cast I could think of.

[carnivorousplant]

Hamster and Commander

Typo, whoosh or Bitter Truth?



:)

[Sal Ammoniac]

Bit of a digression, but was anyone else a little disappointed by the original book? Verne seems to have written it in a bit of a hurry, and there are a lot of things in there that don't hang together. Plus there's a good deal of padding -- long lists of fish and mollusks, clearly just copied out of some zoology text.

I haven't seen any of the movie versions, but in the book, Nemo is a bit of a psychopath, who goes on several murderous rampages. I'm guessing that's Disneyed out of the movie, no?

[Baldwin]

I haven't seen any of the movie versions, but in the book, Nemo is a bit of a psychopath, who goes on several murderous rampages. I'm guessing that's Disneyed out of the movie, no?No, I have to give Disney credit for that. Nemo is a dark, morally ambiguous character, who does terrible things with the best ideals, so that Arronax at once admires him and is appalled. As I remember it, that came across fairly well. Actually, the story works well either for youngsters -- a lot of adventure -- and older readers or viewers, who'll see more complexity in the characters.

I'd like to see a version that's really faithful to the book, with the Nautilus properly depicted, and including the passage where they sail all the way to the South Pole. (Geographers don't like it? Fuck 'em.)

[Mrs. Cake]

I'd love to see more of the book in a movie remake, although they can skip most of the science. Not dumb it down, just show more-tell less. And yes, I know the Harper Goff Nautilus is nothing like the book description, but it has so much coolness.

The South Pole sequence is one of my favorites, but you'd have to totally ignore the fact that we now know it is a continent, not just ice.

[BrainGlutton]

Bit of a digression, but was anyone else a little disappointed by the original book? Verne seems to have written it in a bit of a hurry, and there are a lot of things in there that don't hang together. Plus there's a good deal of padding -- long lists of fish and mollusks, clearly just copied out of some zoology text.

I haven't seen any of the movie versions, but in the book, Nemo is a bit of a psychopath, who goes on several murderous rampages. I'm guessing that's Disneyed out of the movie, no?

What struck me about the book is that Arronax's admiration for Ned Land comes across as kinda . . . gay. (Intentional on Verne's part or not, I wonder?)

[ralph124c]

I always like the Disney version-of course, it didn't show the voyage to the South Pole. ned Land is held up (by Arronax) as a classical hero-despite his crude language and lack of educationm, Verne admires him as an honest and trustful soul. My question: are there better (newer0 translations of 20,000 LUTS? I'm told that the older english translations aren't so accurate.
And 9by the way0 Disney's explanation of the "Nautilus') power source was cool-except you don't open a nuclear reactor to take a peek!

[Walloon]

My question: are there better (newer0 translations of 20,000 LUTS? I'm told that the older english translations aren't so accurate.The U.S. Naval Institute Press (http://www.amazon.com/Thousand-Leagues-Completely-Restored-Annotated/dp/0870216783/) edition, a new translation by Walter James Miller and Frederick Paul Walter, is unabridged and annotated.

[Eonwe]

20,000 leagues? I didn't know the ocean was that deep. That's, like, 6 miles or something.

I think the Marinas Trench is about that deep. I wonder if anyone's been there?

[Giles]

There is another version of 20,000 Leagues, which adds considerably to the story, and goes for about 16 hours (in 39 25-minute episodes): Fushigi no umi no Nadia (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096591/) (released in English as Nadia: the Secret of Blue Water. I haven't read the Jules Verne original, so I'm not sure how much of Nadia comes from there, but I found Nadia worth watching. There's also a normal-movie-length sequel.

[JThunder]

There is another version of 20,000 Leagues, which adds considerably to the story, and goes for about 16 hours (in 39 25-minute episodes): Sixteen hours? Good grief! One could travel 20,000 leagues in that amount of time!

[Giles]

Sixteen hours? Good grief! One could travel 20,000 leagues in that amount of time!
Not in a submarine -- not even in Nemo's submarine. I believe they cut the series short, because they ran out of money, so that's why it's only 16 hours. But you don't have to watch it in one sitting.

[BrainGlutton]

There were silent-film versions made in 1907 (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0000575/) and 1916. (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0006333/) See also the 1929 version of Mysterious Island. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mysterious_Island_%281929_film%29)

[Baldwin]

What struck me about the book is that Arronax's admiration for Ned Land comes across as kinda . . . gay. (Intentional on Verne's part or not, I wonder?)Well, you see a lot of that in 19th century writing, both fiction and correspondence -- that is, strong, even tender admiration between heterosexual men. I think it was because men and women lived more separately then; there was a man's world of military endeavors, business and science, and I think a lot of men formed their most meaningful relationships with other men in those areas that weren't (in general) shared by women. Anyway, that's my hypothesis.

[Hentzau]

I think the Marinas Trench is about that deep. I wonder if anyone's been there?

Yep. Take a look at this (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bathyscaphe_Trieste).

[Sampiro]

Ned Land: George Clooney
Nemo: Ben Kingsley (or if you want younger, The Rock)
Arronax: John Cleese
Conseil: Bob Hoskins (I wonder if Danny Devito can do accents?)

[Sampiro]

Though a better idea might be to go for a young Nemo prequel starring Max Minghella (http://images.google.com/images?q=max+minghella&sourceid=navclient-ff&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGGL,GGGL:2006-38,GGGL:en&um=1&sa=N&tab=wi) as a Eurasian young man who "reinvents" himself as a nobleman and then as an admiral and attempts to harness technology to punish the evil and found a Utopia, only to be driven under the sea as a technophilic/technophobic misanthrope. With Verne Troyer as a wacky drunken imaginary sidekick with a penchant for elaborate costumes.

[Baldwin]

Ned Land: George Clooney
Nemo: Ben Kingsley (or if you want younger, The Rock)
Arronax: John Cleese
Conseil: Bob Hoskins (I wonder if Danny Devito can do accents?)Conseil is a young, physically active Frenchman, totally devoted to Prof. Arronax. Why he was played by Peter Lorre is beyond me.

[BMalion]

What's also fun is Nemo's description of the food that they're eating for dinner while onboard. Doesn't sound so awful in these days of sushi and international cuisine.

I wonder what the poor bastard sailor did to pull the duty of milking the sperm whale? "Hey! Dimiti, the Cap'n wants milk on the table tonight, get suited up!" "Oh God, not again."

[ralph124c]

Were they (in the Disney movie) just props that went over a standard scuba mouthpiece and mask? Or were they specially developed for the film. Anyway, for the early 1950's I think Disney did an amazing job-were any of Jule's Verne's descendents on hand at the time?

[Walloon]

There's an 88-minute documentary on the making of the Disney movie (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0368002/), offered as a second DVD in the set.

[Icerigger]

What's also fun is Nemo's description of the food that they're eating for dinner while onboard. Doesn't sound so awful in these days of sushi and international cuisine.


I have always been partial to Saute of unborn octopus myself.

Does anyone remember Captain Nemo and the Underwater City with Robert Ryan? That Nautilus had a very cool unusual design.

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Nebula/8765/UNDERWATERCITY2.JPG&imgrefurl=http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Nebula/8765/ryan.html&h=1004&w=1034&sz=55&hl=en&start=1&um=1&tbnid=u9xSsShnSa2LpM:&tbnh=146&tbnw=150&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcaptain%2Bnemo%2Band%2Bthe%2Bunderwater%2Bcity%26svnum%3D100%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe% 3Doff%26sa%3DN%26as_qdr%3Dall%26ie%3DUTF-8

[ralph124c]

I have always been partial to Saute of unborn octopus myself.

Does anyone remember Captain Nemo and the Underwater City with Robert Ryan? That Nautilus had a very cool unusual design.

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Nebula/8765/UNDERWATERCITY2.JPG&imgrefurl=http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Nebula/8765/ryan.html&h=1004&w=1034&sz=55&hl=en&start=1&um=1&tbnid=u9xSsShnSa2LpM:&tbnh=146&tbnw=150&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcaptain%2Bnemo%2Band%2Bthe%2Bunderwater%2Bcity%26svnum%3D100%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe% 3Doff%26sa%3DN%26as_qdr%3Dall%26ie%3DUTF-8
How about the cigars (made of seaweed)-man, those things musta stank but good!

[Mrs. Cake]

I have a vague memory of Captain Nemo and the Underwater City, but it must have been more than 30 years ago the I saw it. I don't remember being impressed by the story, but liked Ryan enough to watch a couple movies I would have otherwise never seen. Ice Palace with Carolyn Jones was one of them, can't recall the other.

Yeah, another pretty cool Nautilus design.

Oh, meant to ask if anyone got through that gawdaful Hallmark Mysterious Island with Patrick Stewart as Captain Nemo? I had to turn it off about a half-hour in and return the DVD to the video store before it unloosed an unholy virus in my TV. Never got to see if their design was any good, but it did have the most unconvincing pirates ever seen (well, since last year's 5th-grade Halloween party anyway). Should I rent it again and skip to anything in particular?

[BMalion]

...
Oh, meant to ask if anyone got through that gawdaful Hallmark Mysterious Island with Patrick Stewart as Captain Nemo? I had to turn it off about a half-hour in and return the DVD to the video store before it unloosed an unholy virus in my TV. Never got to see if their design was any good, but it did have the most unconvincing pirates ever seen (well, since last year's 5th-grade Halloween party anyway). Should I rent it again and skip to anything in particular?


Don't bother. The only thing that sticks in my memory were the giant bugs. The special effects for those were OK, not great, just OK. I had to read the Sunday paper while that was on in order to get through it.

[Bill Door]

Ned Land: George Clooney
Nemo: Ben Kingsley (or if you want younger, The Rock)
Arronax: John Cleese
Conseil: Bob Hoskins (I wonder if Danny Devito can do accents?)

II have nothing to add other than to say this may be the first, and only time that Ben Kingsley and The Rock have ever been considered suitable for the same role by anyone.

[NoCoolUserName]

II have nothing to add other than to say this may be the first, and only time that Ben Kingsley and The Rock have ever been considered suitable for the same role by anyone.
Ever!

[BrainGlutton]

Say, why did Disney shut down the 20,000 Leagues ride (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/20%2C000_Leagues_Under_the_Sea:_Submarine_Voyage) at Walt Disney World?