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SYNOPSIS...
Union soldiers escape from a Confederate prison in a hot air balloon.
They end up on an isolated island in the Pacific.
The castaways encounter natural beauty, as well as giant animals, which
they kill and feast on. The men establish a secure base in a cave high
up a cliff. Two women wash up on the beach, bringing a welcome feminine
touch to the island.
Our heroes discover that Captain Nemo (thought to be dead) is alive
and on the island. Nemo helps them raise a ship from the ocean bottom
to escape the island in. The island's volcano blows its top, killing
Nemo and destroying his sub the Nautilus. Our heroes escape to safety
aboard the newly raised ship.
Review:
Director Cy Endfield's MYSTERIOUS ISLAND is a thoroughly entertaining
Sci-Fi adventure classic.
On a raining night in 1865, Union soldiers, a journalist, and a rebel
stowaway exit a Confederate prison camp in a hot air balloon. After
drifting for days, they crash in a storm and end up on an isolated island
in the Pacific.
Michael Craig (Vault of Horror) is a bit of a stick in the lead role
of the head of the shipwrecked group. He comes across like Fess Parker,
minus the folksy charm.
Michael Callan (Cat Ballou) plays the standard 50's/60's teen dream
character, who finds romance and adventure on the island. He doesn't
sing, however, so I'm not complaining.
Ray Harryhausen's justly acclaimed stop motion photographic/model work
(Jason and the Argonauts) is put to great use here. Scenes in involving
a giant crab, huge bird, and a jumbo-size swarm of bees are a delight
to behold. My favorite scene is a battle between our heroes and the
giant bird, resulting in a huge dinner feast.
The Screenplay, by John Prebble, Daniel Ullman, and Crane Wilbur, based
on the novel by Jules Verne, contains some good dialogue. When young
Callan asks how a crab could have grown so huge, cynical newspaper man
Gary Merrill (All About Eve) retorts, "From eating those giant
oysters, obviously."
Although Captain Nemo doesn't show up until rather late in the picture,
he's worth waiting for. With white hair and beard, and a cultured yet
dramatic manner, Herbert Lom (The Dead Zone) is a worthy successor to
James Mason's famous Nemo from "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea".
Director of Photography, Wilkie Cooper, ably captures Harryhausen's
stop motion creations, the natural beauty of the island locations, and
the film's various beautiful matte paintings of mountains, cliffs, and
a volcano.
The Music, by the great Bernard Herrmann, is rousing, stirring, and
dramatic. It doesn't hurt that the London Symphony Orchestra performs
it.
MYSTERIOUS ISLAND will be highly watchable for most Sci-Fi viewers.
Ray Harryhausen fans will have a field day. MYSTERIOUS ISLAND is a destination
worth seeing.
BEST BETS: JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH and 20,000 LEAGUES
UNDER THE SEA.
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