liberators : fighting on two fronts in world war ii is a 1992 documentary film directed by bill miles .

it was nominated for an academy award for best documentary feature .

a feature documentary about african - american soldiers in world war ii who fought in the segregated us army and helped liberate nazi concentration camps .
very important account of an untold history of african american history during world war ii . like the movie hidden figures americans should know this story
an account of black american soldiers in world war ii who combated racism in the segregated military and on the home front . in april 1945 , some black american soldiers were among the first . . . see full summary »
looking back on wwii and what black soldiers had to suffer on the home front before shoving off for combat duty in france and germany , the searing “liberators” spares little of the pain they endured thanks to u . s . racial policies , especially in the south . the war for blacks was on two fronts : restrictions at home [ … ]
former capt . david williams of the 761st tank battalion , one of the few black combat units to fight in world war ii , was talking about distances , sherman tanks and truth .
an account of black american soldiers in world war ii who combated racism in the segregated military and on the home front . in april 1945 , some black american soldiers were among the first ' liberators ' to enter nazi death camps , encountering the survivors described by one gi as
walking skeletons .
looking back on wwii and what black soldiers had to suffer on the home front before shoving off for combat duty in france and germany , the searing “liberators” spares little of the pain they endured thanks to u . s . racial policies , especially in the south . the war for blacks was on two fronts : restrictions at home and liberating nazi victims ; it’s a strong if not pretty pic .
episode four examines the surge of black activism that took place after world war ii . black veterans returned from the war determined to achieve the same rights at home that they had fought for in europe in a jim crow army . one vet , medgar evers , became an organizer for the…
looking back on wwii and what black soldiers had to suffer on the home front before shoving off for combat duty in france and germany , the searing
liberators
spares little of the pain they endured thanks to u . s . racial policies , especially in the south . the war for blacks was on two fronts : restrictions at home and liberating nazi victims ; it ' s a strong if not pretty pic .
the story of the organizing of the first black trade union - the brotherhood of sleeping car porters - provides an account of african american working life between the civil war and world war ii . miles of smiles chronicles the organizing of the first black trade union - the brotherhood…
by december 1944 , americans have become weary of the war their young men have been fighting for three long years ; the stream of newspaper headlines telling of new losses and telegrams bearing bad news from the war department seem endless and unendurable . in the pacific , american progress has been slow…
before there was a civil rights movement in the unites states of america , there were the actions of the tuskegee airmen . many african american men and women were aviators in the early 1930 ' s , but established military policy forbade them from flying . however , as world war ii loomed , there was heavy…
on nov . 9 , 1992 , two days before the nationwide pbs broadcast of “liberators , ” the world premiere was held at new york city’s lincoln center before an audience of prominent jewish and black americans , including mayor david dinkins , lena horne , kareem abdul - jabbar and harvey meyerhoff , the chairman of the us holocaust memorial council .
despite davis’ equivocations , awarding “liberators” with the oscar was a bridge too far for ampas voters , and on march 29 , “the panama deception” received the prize .
on pbs’s “the american experience” on veterans day in 1992 . the film tendentiously claimed that african - american gis from the 761st tank and 183rd combat engineers battalions liberated buchenwald ( 21 , 000 prisoners ) and dachau ( 32 , 000 ) , two of the largest concentration camps freed by the us army .
leon bass , one of the stars of “liberators , ” was first misrepresented as a buchenwald liberator in 1981 , at an international liberators conference hosted by the us holocaust memorial council at the state department in washington . a front - page article in the washington post on oct . 28 , 1981 , falsely reported that bass “liberated buchenwald with an all - black unit . ”
the film ,
the liberators ,
viewed by an audience of 3 . 7 million , portrayed the neglected history of the 761st battalion , putting considerable stress on the involvement of some of its members at the liberations of two of the most notorious camps in germany , dachau and buchenwald . ' pbs - gate follies , ' veteran says
on sunday , the 20th anniversary of the “liberators” - tarnished oscars , viewers might want to weigh these facts as they wait to see whether “5 broken cameras” or “the gatekeepers” takes home the academy award .
actor in a supporting role - david paymer in
mr . saturday night
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james mcbride and rick bragg read passages from to kill a mockingbird on how historical realities of southern life affect the characters in the novel .
filmmaker macky alston searches for a connection between his own family and two african american families with the same last name . the families trace their ancestors to the same plantation .
in an op - ed published that month in the new york post , i pointed out that while “the last days” portrayed paul parks , jesse jackson’s 1988 hero , as a dachau liberator , he had zero credibility . wnet’s investigation six years earlier had underlined that parks , identified in “liberators” as serving in the 183rd combat engineers battalion , had actually served in the 365th engineers .
as a result of the “liberators” oscar nomination , col . james s . moncrief , the sixth armored’s assistant chief of staff for personnel , sent a letter of protest to the academy . on march 4 , bruce davis , the ampas executive director , replied :
, ” written by jeffrey goldberg , delivered a devastating blow to the film . while the opening scene shows two veterans of the 761st tank battalion “returning” to buchenwald with survivor benjamin bender , one of the gis , e . g . mcconnell , confessed to goldberg that his first trip to the camp was in 1991 , courtesy of wnet . goldberg also reported that mcconnell’s admission was “supported by a host of veterans of the 761st , ” the battalion featured in “liberators . ”
on feb . 10 , kenneth stern , a researcher at the american jewish committee , released a 15 - page report , “liberators : a background report , ” which stated that the “film has serious factual flaws , well beyond what can be written off as ‘artistic license . ’” the next day , wnet / channel 13 and pbs jointly pulled the plug on the film , and commissioned an independent investigation .
in bass’ words , “i knew on this day i had seen the face of evil . i’m talking about racism . ” soldiers eye the room where germans hung their charges up on meathooks and the docu displays pix of corpses whose limbs were cut off , of a brain pressed against glass .
but mr . stern accuses the film makers of carelessness regarding the two notorious camps in germany . he concludes that the scant evidence placing men from the 761st at buchenwald or dachau is far outweighed by evidence placing them elsewhere . some blacks did take part in the rescue of jews from those camps , he said , but were from other army units . no mention in daily reports
last month , the film was nominated for an academy award for best documentary . before that , black and jewish leaders gathered at a special showing at the apollo theater in harlem and spoke of the two people ' s common history of oppression . the rev . jesse jackson urged that it be distributed in all high schools .
subsequent research at the national archives in college park , md . , revealed that the 365th was not anywhere near dachau on the day of its liberation — in fact , it was in another country entirely , close to le havre , france . despite this egregious fabrication , which i disclosed in the forward , “the last days” won the award .
“liberators , ” directed by williams miles and nina rosenblum , and with narration by denzel washington ( a best actor nominee this year for “flight” ) and lou gossett jr . ,
other questions followed . the first public criticism seems to have been made on the radio station wbai in new york by jim dingman , a program host who specializes in military history . articles questioning the veracity of the film were also published in the new york guardian , the forward and the new republic .
on dec . 17 , at the apollo theater in harlem , another screening was held before an audience of 1 , 200 prominent jews and blacks , hosted by three influential politicians : congressman charles rangel , manhattan district attorney robert morgenthau and jesse jackson . elie wiesel , who didn’t appear in the film , sent a videotaped message of support , and the event was broadcast on wnet .
the problem is that mr . williams - - and journalists , researchers and many other war veterans - - contend that a central element of the film , the role of black soldiers from the 761st in the liberation of those particular camps , is simply not true .
during jackson’s unsuccessful 1988 campaign for the democratic presidential nomination , he had expanded the myth of the african - american liberators to include dachau . the new york times published credulous articles on may 31 and june 3 , and both disseminated the falsehood that paul parks , a close associate of eventual nominee michael dukakis , was a dachau liberator .
mr . williams , who lives in retirement in miami , was offering his comment on a controversy that has suddenly emerged to chill what was a brief moment of racial harmony . it began with a documentary film that was broadcast nationwide on pbs last november but has now been pulled from circulation pending an investigation by wnet , channel 13 , the public television station for new york city , which helped produce it .
in 1982 , william miles , a prize - winning documentary film maker , began hearing tales of the 761st and other black battalions during his work on another documentary ,
the different drummer : blacks in the military ,
broadcast in 1983 . in 1985 he saw a letter in the new york times written by benjamin bender , a survivor of buchenwald , who recalled seeing black soldiers at the liberation of the camp . in 1989 the presence of black soldiers was mentioned by elie wiesel , who was also an inmate there .
“in a motion picture form that implicitly promises to deliver the truth , factual accuracy can legitimately be one of the criteria by which pictures are judged … to say that liberators is ineligible because of factual misrepresentations would imply that we checked every fact in the other . . . nominated documentaries and had found them all entirely accurate . ”
bass’s great heroism had in fact consisted of a visit to buchenwald on april 17 , 1945 , six days after the camp’s liberation , during which another 183rd soldier , william scott iii , took a few photographs .
channel 13 has asked pbs affiliates not to broadcast the film while it looks into the questions that have been raised about what it calls
details of the liberation of specific camps .
the station expressed confidence that the
overall point
of the film remains valid : that blacks fought racism and discrimination at home to be allowed to serve their country in the war and then witnessed the ultimate in racism and discrimination in the holocaust .
in spring 1945 , although the numbers of dead and wounded have more than doubled since d - day , the people of mobile , sacramento , waterbury and luverne understand all too well that there will be more bad news from the battlefield before the war can end . that march , when americans go to the…
in early february , channel 13 released a five - page response , saying that it had
absolute confidence in the veracity of this outstanding film .
the very next day , however , members of the station met with kenneth s . stern , a researcher for the american jewish committee , and a few days after that meeting the station decided to withdraw
the liberators
and begin its review .
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it was segregation even to the point of separate post exchanges and uso units , quota systems in the military ( finally lifted by fdr , who met with african - american leaders of the time about integrating the services and suggested maybe black bands on navy ships ) .
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the event was sponsored by wnet / channel 13 , the film’s chief financial backer and pbs’s affiliate in new york city , and the holocaust council , the federal organization established in 1980 to build and operate the nation’s holocaust museum in washington . thus , even before its opening the following april , the museum was ensnared in a major scandal .
publisher : ramboro books plc ; media tie in edition ( 16 jun . 1997 )
mr . stern also says in his report that he interviewed the veterans of the 761st who say that they were in buchenwald or dachau . he found that they were far less certain than they appear to be in the film about the identities of the camps they saw .
issues of race and identity unfold as a group of high school students in buffalo , new york , try to integrate tables in the school cafeteria after grappling with self - segregation .
a major point is the role supposedly played by members of the 761st in the liberation of buchenwald and dachau . the film shows several survivors of the camps , including mr . bender and israel lau , now the chief rabbi of tel aviv , testifying to the presence of black troops . several former enlisted men of the 761st battalion and the 183d engineers also describe their roles in liberating the two camps . william mcburney and leonard smith recount driving their tanks through the gates of dachau and detail the horrors they saw there . critics say tv was warned
speaking in obvious pain , another former soldier remembers coming home and visiting a florida grocery store in 1946 ; nothing , not all the chilling revelations he had , with so many others , witnessed and helped stop , changed the black status in the south ; that fight lay ahead .
mr . stern ' s 15 - page
background report
for the jewish committee affirmed the conclusion that
black soldiers were among the liberators of concentration camps .
his report , like many other records , finds that the 761st tank battalion was the first unit at the gunskirchen camp in austria , a sub - unit of the mauthausen camp , where 15 , 000 hungarian jews were being held .
katrina browne discovers her new england ancestors were the largest slave - trading family in u . s . history and decides to retrace the triangle trade , uncovering the extent of northern complicity in slavery .
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on april 29 , 1945 ,
he said , referring to the day the dachau concentration camp was liberated ,
the 761st was near straubing , which is about 70 miles from dachau as the crow flies . bridges were down , the tanks were all beat up . there wasn ' t enough gas . nobody could have just taken a sherman tank on a 140 - mile round trip and not have been noticed missing . he would have been court - martialed .
this documentary examines the role of african american soldiers in the liberation of concentration camps in europe , and the segregation that they concurrently faced at home in the united states . there are extensive interviews both with soldiers and survivors about the impact of their shared historical experience . although there has been some controversy about the historical accuracy of this film , it is a valuable contribution to the oral history of this period , particularly about segregation in the united states .
a mind - boggling postscript to the scandal occurred in february 1999 , when a film from steven spielberg’s shoah foundation , “the last days , ” was nominated for an oscar for superbly documenting the genocide against hungarian jewry in 1944 .
still , questions about the film ' s accuracy were raised even before it was nationally shown on nov . 11 . mr . williams recalled a phone conversation he said he had about six months ago with mr . miles in which he told mr . miles that
the stuff about buchenwald and dachau is a lie .
mr . miles , he said , did not reply .
follows a group of young black soldiers who , in the midst of the fierce racial eruptions of a pre - civil rights america , were called to europe to fight the nazis . 35 , 000 first printing . tv tie - in .
a retired school principal , dr . leon bass , addressing a jewish congegration in new rochelle , animatedly recalls what he saw with his buddies and , as the narrative moves relentlessly forward , recites in anguish what they all had witnessed . others meet in front of buchenwald with one - time inmate benjamin bender , who recites a litany of agonies about his family .
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three former officers in the battalion say that the reports written every day by each military unit - - called morning reports and after - action reports - - make no mention of buchenwald or dachau in connection with the 761st battalion . the battalion ' s own history has no reference to the camps ; neither does the presidential citation the unit received in 1978 from president jimmy carter .
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is there a politics of knowledge ? who controls what knowledge is produced and how it will be used ? is there
objective
scholarship and , if so , how does it become politicized ? these questions are examined through this groundbreaking film on the life and career of melville j . herskovits ( 1895 - 1963 ) , the pioneering…
factual , highly engaging volume provides valuable information not widely included in traditional reports on wwii . full of graphic details , statistics , authentic quotes and compelling photographs that convey the great sacrifice & dilemma faced by the african american military during times of segregation & racism . milestones & accomplishments of the black troops are presented realistically and within the context of this era . appropriate for middle school to adult readers , this book would be an appropriate addition to a school , academic , professional or public collection .
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military historians agree that the undisputed record of the 761st is outstanding . during 183 days of combat in 1944 and 1945 , the 761st , wearing the black panther patch , captured or liberated more than 30 major towns and four airfields . it suffered a 50 percent casualty rate and lost 71 tanks . it pierced the siegfried line into germany and fought in the battle of the bulge . and it did liberate at least one concentration camp , the gunskirchen camp in austria .
the writers hold up the faces of racism in both the united states and in germany , and they spare little . one vet observes that some folks won’t believe what he has seen , but he’ll always believe it just because he did see it . for anyone who did see such things , the gentleman speaks the truth .
the interesting narration of the life of olaudah equiano , or gustavus vassa the african
was the first influential slave autobiography . it caused a sensation when published in 1789 , fueling a growing anti - slavery movement in the u . s . and england . this bbc production employs dramatic reconstruction , archival material and interviews with scholars…
follows a group of black soldiers who , in the midst of the racial tensions of pre - civil rights america , were called to europe to fight the nazis .
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the unknown story of african - american battalions , focusing on the heroic actions of the 761st , which spearheaded general patton ' s third army and helped liberate concentration camps . this powerful film vividly records the experiences of the soldiers , who were utterly unprepared for the atrocities they witnessed , as well as the astonishment of the camp inmates - some of whom had never seen a black person before . for more information , go to urltoken
six months later , the new york times published an article about a just - released independent report by wnet conceding that african - american gis played no role in the liberation of either buchenwald or dachau . in contrast to the motion picture academy , pbs’s flagship station instituted a “new policy of requiring producers [ of documentaries ] to demonstrate proof of their claims before financing is provided . ”
many critics , however , argue that the film went seriously awry in its depiction of the liberations of buchenwald and dachau . they complain that the moral edifice embodied in remembrance can crumble if history is handled casually , or distorted to fit current needs - - and nothing having to do with the places whose names resonate with the century ' s worst crimes can be dismissed as a
detail .
inmates recall black soldiers
veterans of the black 761st tank battalion return as a civvy group to the sites they helped free half a century ago , but that’s only after a shocking reminder of what blacks endured while they were stationed in the united states .
separate facilities were the rule , even for black units overseas . but docu demonstrates how the 761st moved into action in late l944 and early 1945 and , as one ex - tanker notes , pushed down the dachau front gate .
one veteran , mr . mcburney , said in a telephone interview last week that he had been asked by channel 13 not to comment until its review of the film is complete . the wife of another veteran , preston mcneil , said the same thing for her husband .
from 1860 to 1920 hundreds of us counties expelled all of their african american inhabitants . banished visits three of these still all - white towns today . meanwhile the descendants of those displaced and disinherited seek redress . banished vividly recovers the too - quickly forgotten history of racial cleansing in america when thousands of african…
production : taped by miles educational film prods . inc . in association with thirteen / wdnet , wdr / germany , channel 4 / britain , sbs tv / australia , lasett , france . exec producer , suzanne de passe ; producers , william miles , nina rosenblum ; writers , john crowley , daniel allentuck , lou potter .
neither mr . miles nor ms . rosenblum agreed to be interviewed for this article , both arguing that they wanted to wait for channel 13 ' s review before making any further comment . in a written response to questions , they said they were
confident the vetting process currently under way will exonerate our film .
channel 13 backs off support
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mr . rappaport , the sixth division veteran , said :
i got in touch with bill miles , who was very polite . i told him our division was the sixth armored and that we liberated buchenwald . i was there . i saw no black troops . ' well , mr . rappaport , ' he said , ' we have witnesses . '
reci , reci , reci . . . ( words , words , words )
sound - terry porter , mel metcalfe , david j . hudson , doc kane
visual effects - richard edlund , alec gillis , tom woodruff , jr . , george gibbs
makeup -
bram stoker’s dracula
greg cannom , michèle burke , matthew w . mung
art direction - art direction : stuart craig ; set decoration : chris a . butler
visual effects - ken ralston , doug chiang , doug smythe , tom woodruff , jr .
documentary ( short subject ) - thomas c . goodwin and gerardine wurzburg , producers
short film ( animated ) - reci , reci , reci . . . ( words , words , words )
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it ' s the pbs - gate follies ,
said mel rappaport , a veteran of the sixth armored division , which , he said , did liberate buchenwald .
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montford point marines : america ' s 1st black marines and drill instructors . mp4
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inmates at the buchenwald concentration camp , days after liberation . famed author elie wiesel is second row from the bottom , seventh from the left , next to the bunk post . ( us army / us defense visual information center / wikimedia commons )
— “5 broken cameras” and “the gatekeepers” — for the 2013 oscar for best documentary feature . but before israeli cinephiles start singing hosannas to the ampas , they might want to know about the organization’s unconscionable support for the notorious “
while the film offered a comforting , inspiring tale of one persecuted minority rescuing another , there was a problem — the story was an invention .
i got over my blind allegiance , and now stick by israel ' s side , through thick and thin .
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the program looks at what they found behind the gates at buchenwald , and the horrors are described by veterans touring the old battle grounds by bus with their families .
there’s a charming reunion for the black panthers , as unit called itself , with a belgian family they freed , and grim footage of what they as members of patton’s third army found inside the camp .
fine docu–the fifth - season opener for “american experience”– is sure a respectful way to observe veterans day .
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how did jim crow begin ? as reconstruction ended , african americans ' efforts to assert their constitutional rights began to be repressed at every turn , betraying the promises of emancipation . southern whites were embolden by the north ' s withdrawal of support for black access to land , civil and economic rights , and due process…
a virgina born grandson of slaves lives through jim crow , the great depression , great migration , wwi , and wwii .
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journey to the center of the earth ( also called jules verne 's journey to the center of the earth ) is a 1959 adventure film adapted by charles brackett from the novel of the same name by jules verne .

journey to the center of the earth was directed by henry levin and stars james mason , pat boone and arlene dahl .

journey to the center of the earth ( 1959 film )

journey to the center of the earth is the 1959 film adaptation of jules verne ' s journey to the center of the earth .
journey to the center of the earth ( 1959 ) ( a film retrospective by mark r . leeper )
a scene from journey to the center of the earth ( 1959 ) , directed by henry levin .
when it comes to good adventure stories , journey to the center of the earth ( 1959 ) will arguably feature among the very best .
see the trailer and find local showtimes for
journey to the center of the earth .
looking for movie tickets ? enter your location to see which movie theaters are playing journey to the center of the earth ( 1959 ) near you .
filmation ' s saturday morning cartoon journey to the center of the earth ( 1967 ) was based on this film version rather than the original novel by jules verne and features several characters that were created for the 1959 film .
admittedly , in most cases that liberty has been abused , often to the point of providing a narrative at odds with the novel : mining the wonderful alliteration of the phrase , “journey to the center of the earth , ” and its simple yet profound central idea . in this regard come to mind such films as alien from l . a . ( cannon , 1988 ) , journey to the center of the earth ( viacom , 1989 ) , funky fables : an excellent journey to the center of the earth ( saban , 1991 ) , journey to the center of the earth ( nbc , 1993 ) , journey to the center of the earth ( usa , 1999 ) , journey to the center of the earth ( ion , 2008 ) , and journey to the center of the earth ( the asylum , 2008 ) . yet the new theatrical journey to the center of the earth provides a case of the optimal , most rewarding use of that freedom .
journey to the center of the earth director : laura shepherd distributor : catalyst distribution , inc . year : 1996
( from left to right ) pat boone , james mason , and arlene dahl in journey to the center of the earth ( 1959 ) , directed by henry levin .
axel , the enthusiastic and excitable nephew of the illustrious professor and mineralogist otto lidenbrock , narrates the tale of the journey to the center of the earth .
funky fables : an excellent journey to the center of the earth producer : eric s . rollman distributor : saban year : 1991
journey to the center of the earth director : t . j . scott distributor : ion network year : january 27 , 2008
the question and answer section for journey to the center of the earth is a great resource to ask questions , find answers , and discuss the novel .
last week i wrote an evaluation of journey to the center of the earth ( 1959 ) , one of my favorite movies of the 1950s and what i consider one of the great adventure films of all times . i find what is wrong with the film forgivable . but i would not feel right about just ignoring the many problems i saw watching the film recently . this is effectively an appendix to that essay listing problems with the writing of journey to the center of the earth .
: after all , we . . . we did hit the center of the earth .
journey to the center of the earth ( 1959 ) , an adaptation of the jules verne novel , is widely considered a classic . it featured boone , james mason , and lizards that stood in as dinosaurs . …
osborne - bartucca , kristen . pk ed .
journey to the center of the earth summary
. gradesaver , 13 november 2016 web .
[ 19 ] . background from the publicity and articles on the usa network journey to the center of the earth , printed on september 8 , 1999 .
1959 was a year of lackluster films from fox . but fox found journey to the center of the earth was a notable exception . they made some effort in the following years to have a science fiction adventure for the summer . in 1960 it was a remake of the lost world for irwin allen . but fox ' s best summer science fiction adventure film was journey to the center of the earth until it was displaced by star wars .
the writings of verne , particularly this novel , demonstrate their malleability to animation , a form demanding altered techniques and narrative approaches from live action . the medium of the small screen has been most typically associated with these productions , running the gamut from the low grade efforts for the 1967 - 69 journey to the center of the earth series , to the australian a journey to the center of the earth in 1976 . each of the animated versions has been created in its own , strikingly different style , from the minimalism of series television , to the juvenile caricatures of an excellent journey to the center of the earth , and ultimately the detailed , quality efforts in the aforementioned 1976 version , a journey to the center of the earth .
[ 26 ] . michael odorna , “brendan fraser stands tall with ‘journey to the center of the earth’ , ” los angeles times , july 13 , 2008 .
…love ( 1957 ) , the science - fiction movie journey to the center of the earth ( 1959 ) , and the musical state fair ( 1962 ) , in which he starred with fellow teen idols bobby darin and ann - margret . …
[ 6 ] . bob rusk , “pat boone’s journey to the center of the earth , ” the big reel , no . 264 ( may 15 , 1996 ) .
i caught up with boone recently in omaha , nebraska , where he was appearing at film historian bruce crawfords’ showing of the classic 1959 movie , journey to the center of the earth , which starred boone . coincidentally , boone had just come from his 60th high school reunion in nashville , tennessee .
news item added that lincoln barnett was to write the screenplay for brackett , barnett ' s contribution to the released film has not been determined . according to a march 1959
[ 13 ] . tom kelly , “journey to the center of the earth , ” epi - log , no . 25 ( december 1992 ) , 94 - 98 .
journey to the center of the earth study guide contains a biography of jules verne , literature essays , quiz questions , major themes , characters , and a full summary and analysis .
welcome to our weekly field guide to 1950s horror and sci - fi movies and the creatures that inhabit them . this week : it ' s time to gird our loins for a journey to the center of the earth
i can nitpick the obvious flaws , but these types of big - budget a - list adventure films are a dying breed . to quote julie kirgo’s excellent essay accompanying the film , there’s an “unironic innocence” to journey to the center of the earth that can’t be imitated today .
it was a tale of explorers entering an icelandic volcano , and finding themselves at the ' center of the earth ' - the earth ' s core . there they encountered :
the popular image or stereotype of the eccentric scientist , represented by professor otto liedenbrock ( or von hardwigg , or oliver lindenbrook in the 1959 film ) .
[ 25 ] . brendan fraser , quoted in “journey to the center of the earth 3 - d , ” life story : movie magic ( 2008 ) , 47 - 48 .
[ 28 ] . charlotte huggins , quoted in “journey to the center of the earth 3 - d , ” life story : movie magic ( 2008 ) , 47 - 48 .
[ 16 ] . steve biodrowski , “journey to the center of the earth , ” cinefantastique , 17 ( january 1987 ) , 10 , 53 ; pat h . broeske , “journey to the end of the budget , ” los angeles times , february 22 , 1987 , p . 19 ; steve biodrowski , “meanwhile , cannon shelves its other journey to the center of the earth , ” cinefantastique , 18 ( july 1988 ) , 43 - 60 .
the sun was shining quite brightly on the shores of the underground ocean ( near the center of the earth ) as can be seen by the shadows of the actors .
richard scheib at the science fiction , horror and fantasy film review ( 2 . 5 / 5 stars ) ( link ) -
any connection between this film version of journey to the center of the earth and jules verne’s 1864 novel ( his second published ) must be considered purely coincidental .
an heiress hires an anthropologist / adventurer to track down her husband who has disappeared while searching for a mythic passage to the center of the earth .
[ 14 ] . paul s . newman , journey to the center of the earth : the fiery foe , big little books no . 26 ( racine , wisconsin : whitman , 1968 ) .
[ 29 ] . anita briem , quoted in ian spelling , “brendan fraser and company add an extra dimension to jules verne in journey to the center of the earth in 3 - d , ” urltoken .
the 1959 version of
journey to the center of the earth ,
the one starring james mason and pat boone , wasn ' t filmed in 3 - d ; that one had to make do with
the incomparable magic of cinemascope ,
as mason intoned in the ' 59 film ' s trailer . the new
journey
has even less to do with jules verne than the pat boone one did . it may have more to do with jules munshin than jules verne .
a professor and his colleagues follow an explorer ' s trail down an extinct icelandic volcano to the earth ' s center .
stolid , stoic , practical , and minimal . in the book he ' s an eider - gatherer ; in the 1959 film a duck fetishist .
[ 15 ] . andres berenguer , “the adventure of photographing jules verne’s fabulous journey to the center of the earth , ” american cinematographer , 58 ( december 1977 ) , 1294 - 1295 , 1308 - 1309 .
professor oliver lindenbrook ( james mason ) and his assistant alec mckuen ( pat boone ) take a journey into the center of the earth , facing all manner of magical locations and exotic creatures .
ironically , journey to the center of the earth 3 - d , is from the same production company , walden media , that brought us chan’s around the world in 80 days catastrophe . it is in contrast with it , and another summer release , the league of extraordinary gentlemen , that walden’s journey to the center of the earth 3 - d stands out so strongly . a movie intended for the summer season , when the purest escapism is expected from the widest audience , offers the greatest difficulties for a potential adaptation . however , journey to the center of the earth 3 - d not only achieves fidelity to verne’s conception , but also includes a referential dimension .
professor lindenbrook of edinburgh university tracks an expedition undertaken generations ago , by an icelandic explorer , who was known to have attempted a journey to the centre of the earth .
films have logically tried to fill in more details about arne saknussemm , a character whose background verne leaves so enigmatic , and possibly this is the screen’s single greatest narrative contribution to the story . among animated versions , the 1976 a journey to the center of the earth and the willy fogg journey to the center of the earth both add details about saknussemm’s fate and that of his companions on that long - ago first journey . again , the creativity of animation trumps live action in this regard , whether the 1959 version examining him through the portrayal of his descendant , count saknussemm , or alien from l . a . providing a modern day saknussemm and his daughter .
an edinburgh professor and assorted colleagues follow an explorer ' s trail down an extinct icelandic volcano to the earth ' s center .
[ 3 ] . for detailed analysis and production history , see william schoell , “the making of jules verne’s journey to the center of the earth , ” filmfax , no . 55 ( march / april 1996 ) , 51 - 57 , 74 . see also the film’s pressbook .
meantime , as a little tide - over , we have a reassuringly cheesy and wholly enjoyable new version of
journey to the center of the earth
starring brendan fraser and a lot of stuff aimed directly at your head .
' s hair does have one curl out of place as they approach the center of the earth . all of their hair gets wet and shaggy near the end of the movie .
the devils ( bfi ) , for documentation of the various controversies surrounding the film .
the geographical expedition is varied by making it a trip back in biological and geological time - - the deeper the explorers go , the farther they travel into the past . journey to the center of the earth remains squarely within modern definitions of the science fiction genre , retaining all of the compelling originality and imagination , and does not have the aura of science fiction set in the past that now sometimes seems to date verne’s novels , such as twenty thousand leagues under the seas or from the earth to the moon and around the moon . the “prophecy” of submarines and moon travel has been fulfilled - - unlike journey to the center of the earth .
[ 5 ] . lawrence knight , “the journeys to the center of the earth , ” dakkar , no . 1 ( 1968 ) , p . 22 .
[ 27 ] . brendan fraser , quoted in “journey to the center of brendan fraser , ” life story : movie magic ( 2008 ) , 87 .
only a few incidents from verne remain as several juveniles become lost underground . [ 16 ] journey to the center of the earth becomes utterly incoherent as the focus shifts to an atlantis in the center of the earth , meant as a funky in - joke that is utterly bizarre and unfunny . the city is presented as a big - brother metropolis most reminiscent of george orwell’s novel , 1984 .
descending , they arrive at an abandoned mine shaft , board its rail . the subsequent roller - coaster style ride aboard a mine car is both reminiscent of tokyo disneysea’s “journey to the center of the earth” and a blueprint for possible rides in the future . [ 30 ] the tokyo ride devoted to the novel , like this part of the journey to the center of the earth 3 - d , depicts a mine excursion into one amazing underground world of colors and monsters conceived by verne , and it is this the film references , not , as some critics have suggested , indiana jones and the temple of doom . the filmmakers are recognizing that audiences may be as familiar with the 1959 film , the tokyo disney ride , as much as the original novel . [ 31 ]
every adaptation was aimed at fundamentally different audiences . worldwide mainstream viewers were the objective of the 1910 , 1959 , and 2008 3 - d movies . youthful filmgoers were the target in more specialized venues like where time began and journey to the center of the earth 3 - d , with children for the animated versions and wishbone : hot diggety dawg .
the actors get somewhat ragged as they spend months traveling towards the center of the earth . but all of them are quite well shaven and their hair seems to never grow .
a 1996 canadian animated version , journey to the center of the earth , clearly reflected an enormous debt to the 1959 movie , while adding fresh permutations of its own . directed by laura shepherd , it ran approximately 40 minutes and was produced by phoenix animation studios for blye mijicovsky productions , but had only very limited showings through catalyst distribution , inc .
( 1959 ) , a big - budget , family - friendly film with
something for everyone
and a generous helping of visual treats . as with the best adaptations of verne ,
back on the surface , the children are fascinated with a gold medallion that wishbone has dug up . returning to the story of journey to the center of the earth , the discovery leads to an underground river inside the rocks , to relieve the explorer’s thirst . the explorers are thrown out of the volcano in italy when the family accidentally digs into a water pipe .
viaje al centro de la tierra / jules verne’s fabulous journey to the center of the earth / where time began producer - director : juan piquer simon distributor : international picture show ( u . s . ) year : 1977
a exciting , but boring . journey to the center , become very silly . even henry levin ' s direction saves this sci - fi success .
years ago , i worked in the film industry and for a while as a publicis for 20th century fox , boone’s home studio . i fondly remember working at my very first real job as the assistant manager of the alex theatre in glendale , california , where journey to the center of the earth played first run .
the latest twilight time blu - ray presents the best version , particularly in the video department , of the film with all the lush colors you’d want in the center of the earth . there’s also the requisite isolated soundtrack , audio commentary with diane baker and film historians steven c . smith and nick redman , and the trailer .
the war of the worlds ( 1953 ) this film was the winner of the best achievement in special effects academy award , by producer george pal , for its vivid depiction of the invasion of the earth by martians .
there were some problems i found in journey to the center of the earth i think casablanca is a great film and most people i talk to seem to agree . but the truth is that there is a lot in that film that makes little sense . there was no such thing historically as
letters of transit
and certainly nothing that the gestapo would accept . and absolutely nothing that the germans were not allowed to even question . later in the film when the letters are actually used they seem to be barely examined . some films just seem to click and you accept them even with their problems . and as for rick and louis walking off into the fog at the end , where do you find fog in the moroccan desert ? still we just accept it because it is a good film . that is how i feel about journey to the center of the earth .
during the first few years of the 21 st century , new versions of journey to the center of the earth continued to be announced but remained unproduced . finally , in 2007 , a new big budget version was made , journey to the center of the earth 3 - d , and as so often happens , simultaneously two lower budget renditions of the same story were made to cash in on the former’s anticipated popularity , one by robert halmi for television , and another direct - to - video by the asylum . halmi’s appeared first , and like his 2005 version of mysterious island , the filmmakers did not return to the novel , but chose instead to remake an earlier adaptation .
not very much here that could be directly considered
lovecraftian
, but there is a sunken atlantis hidden in a hollow earth , and this is among the better hollow earth movies ever made , with some of the most striking hollow earth imagery to have ever been put to film . . . .
the day the earth stood still ( 1951 ) this classic science - fiction film featured state - of - the - art visual effects and seamless model miniatures .
in journey to the center of the earth 3 - d , all the vital motifs , characters , and themes of verne’s novel are retained , as far as possible in the format of a summer “thrill ride” movie . episodes are either replaced or approximated within the script’s new narrative . the major change is to have the journey take place over days , rather than weeks , with a running time of 92 minutes .
future learning and skills – giving everyone the opportunity to build a lifelong relationship with film .
based on jules verne ' s 1864 science - fiction novel , this henry levin - directed fun adventure - fantasy film had fake looking ( and now dated ) special effects , although they were still effective . it was remade as journey to the center of the earth ( 1993 ) , starring brendan fraser .
cinema scope mag for film reviews , criticism news & comments . one of the most respected publications on film , uniting experienced critics with new writers .
[ 18 ] . billy aronson , a journey to the center of the earth , “wishbone classics” series ( new york : harper , 1996 ) . although tied in with the wishbone series , this book actually retold the original verne story , rather than the television episode . by contrast , michael anthony steele , digging to the center of the earth , “the adventures of wishbone” series ( allen , tx : big red chair books , 1999 ) , followed the outline of the television episode hot diggety dawg .
prof . lindenbrook leads his intrepid party on an expedition to the center of the earth , via a volcano in iceland , encountering all manner of prehistoric monsters and life - threatening hazards on the way .
a summer film almost dictates a contemporary setting . the question then becomes how to re - tell the story within that requirement—or to abandon it altogether , as the asylum had done . director eric brevig himself had changed the initial 19 th century setting of the script of journey to the center of the earth 3 - d , believing it needed to concentrate on the book’s highlights , to appeal to modern audiences . [ 22 ] he hoped to get away from some of the elements that make the book unlikely from a scientific standpoint to modern audiences , and to avoid the feel of a remake . [ 23 ]
the asylum is known for producing films from public domain stories , and with titles reminiscent of big budget productions offered by major studios , so it is not surprising for them to join the verne bandwagon ; in 2007 they had released an updated version of twenty thousand leagues under the seas entitled 30 , 000 leagues under the sea . as weak as their journey to the center of the earth is , it is vastly superior simply as entertainment to 30 , 000 leagues under the sea . while the latter actually had more in common with verne , it was such a disservice to his premise that a film like journey to the center of the earth that simply abandons the author altogether ( except in name only ) deserves less opprobrium .
every version of journey to the center of the earth has demonstrated the ever - increasing intertextuality of these adaptations . the films increasingly reflect not only the novel , and an attempt at adaptation , but more and more frequently are equally influenced by previous films of the story . whether adding to the youthful mix of the underground explorers or finding atlantis , films expand the original vernian “text” to include new elements . so many of these verne productions have now been made and are repeated endlessly on television that he has been initially encountered through screen renderings by most of the last two generations of audiences , making such adaptations a defining experience in the discovery of this author . journey to the center of the earth 3 - d demonstrates how this has progressed to the point where it is possible to simultaneously craft a film which serves at one and the same moment as a pastiche and adaptation .
while decades may have passed since the peak of boone’s career as a hit singer ( second in sales only to elvis back then ) tv variety show host and movie star , he vividly remembers making journey to the center of the earth , in which he co - starred with james mason and arlene dahl .
it may well be second to king kong ( 1933 ) as the film i have seen the greatest number of times .
“ journey to the center of the earth may have saved 20th century fox , ” boone said , “the studio was in danger of being bankrupted by the filming of cleopatra until journey became a solid box office hit . it definitely ranks as one of the true adventure classics that had a profound influence on many future filmmakers , such as steven spielberg and george lucas . brendon fraser , eat your heart out . ”
long ago , a lone explorer named arne saknussemm made a fantastic descent to the fabled lost kingdom of atlantis at the earth’s core . after many centuries , his trail was discovered , first by me , professor oliver lindenbrook , my niece cindy , student alec mckuen , our guide lars and his duck gertrude . but we were not alone . the evil count saknussemm , last descendant of the once noble saknussemm family , had followed us , to claim the center of the earth for his power - mad schemes . he ordered his brute - like servant torg to destroy our party . but the plan backfired , sealing the entrance forever . and so for us began a desperate race to the earth’s core , to learn the secret of the way back . this is the story of our new journey to the center of the earth .
unfortunately , at the last minute journey to the center of the earth 3 - d has had to drop 3 - d from the title in many screenings , owing to a lack of theaters ready for the new systems . it had already been held back for a full year precisely because not enough theaters were equipped for it . having been made on a relatively modest budget of $ 54 million ( with ten weeks of principal photography , in montreal ) , journey to the center of the earth 3 - d could not open in 3 - d in all theaters . this required simultaneous release in many theaters with only “flat” prints , lacking the 3 - d .
the film featured man - eating tsavo lions leaping toward the camera and flying spears thrown out of the screen .
on february 28 , 1993 , nbc premiered a new two - hour television movie pilot entitled journey to the center of the earth , which had even less relation to the novel than the cannon duo . a nuclear - powered craft descends into the shaft of an active volcano , but becomes trapped as it explores the world underground on a quest for the knowledge of atlantis .
one of the cryptograms in max’s copy of journey to the center of the earth leads to the asgeirsson institute of volcanolgy in iceland , where trevor and sean meet the late asgeirsson’s daughter hannah ( anita briem ) . she explains that her father was a vernian—one of a small group who believed that what the author wrote was , indeed , fact , and hetzel editions can be seen on the book shelves .
prof . lindenbrook leads his intrepid party on an expedition to the center of the earth , via a volcano in iceland , encountering all manner of prehistoric monsters and life - threatening hazards on the way . written by mark hockley
the ten commandments ( 1956 ) the film won the best achievement in special effects academy award . it was cecil b . demille ' s remake of his own 1923 silent film , with one of the most miraculous visual effects scenes in film history ( and the most expensive special effects to date ) - - the parting of the red sea .
crew : ( color ) widescreen . available on vhs , dvd . extract of a review from 1959 . running time : 132 min .
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans . it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
in spite of my love for this film ( and it is a film i have loved from when i first saw it ) when i see it to say i am willing to give it a pass in spite of the film ' s stretches of credulity . here are problems i have noted ( in addition to the coincidences already mentioned ) .
in a staple of this series , at the conclusion wishbone narrates several minutes showing how the special effects were created to depict verne’s journey to the center of the earth - - an unusually direct acknowledgment of the fictional nature of the story . this lack of pretense allows hot diggety dawg to succeed in simultaneously telling two separate but complimentary stories . hot diggety dawg cleverly and charmingly conveys the novel’s tone and plot in a series of vignettes , overcoming its brevity .
you do not need to cross the fence to reach the cache , but you may want to for the views . you can see several of the other ridges where more difficult caches await your journey .
[ note : stanley kubrick was strongly influenced by this film , and based much of the design and plot elements of 2001 : a space odyssey ( 1968 ) on this film . star trek ii : the wrath of khan ( 1982 ) used props from this film as well . ]
arriving with sean are some of max’s possessions , including the baseball mitt intended as a gift for his son’s birthday and his carefully studied copy of verne’s journey to the center of the earth . the book is full of notes and even a cipher which , as in verne’s telling , the nephew decodes . here is a clear displacement in the new narrative , verne’s novel taking the position of saknussemm’s relic in the original . verne’s book becomes the document that adds a sense of mystery to the journey . just as in the novel , 19 th century travelers follow in the footsteps of those who went before ; in this film the characters are using the novel itself as their guide .
) discovers a long hidden message that reveals the existence of a passage into the centre of the earth . leading a team of unlikely adventurers ( including
: miss jenny ! i saw you turn pale when the domini spoke of those in peril at the far ends of the earth .
luckily , axel manages to decrypt the document . arne saknussemm reports that the traveler who climbs up on the crater of snæfells volcano can get into the center of the earth ; he apparently undertook this journey himself . axel knows that his uncle will want to make a similar attempt and decides not to tell him of the find , but eventually gives in . lidenbrock immediately starts planning the journey and tells his nephew to come along as well . axel is reluctant until his fiancée grauben , his uncle’s ward , tells him that he ought to make the excursion .
in 1880 , in edinburgh , professor oliver s . lindenbrook of the local university has been awarded with the title of
sir
and his students have chipped in for a gift including a lava stone . prof . lindenbrook researches the lava and finds evidence that the scientist saknussemm sent it from the center of the earth one hundred years ago . he sends his findings to his colleague prof . peter goetabaug of stockholm to endorse his research . but soon he finds that prof . goetabaug has betrayed him and traveled to iceland to organize an expedition to the center of the earth . prof . lindenbrook travels with his protégée alexander
alec
mckuen to iceland to organize his own expedition and discovers prof . goetabaug murdered by count saknussemm who wants to protect the discovery of his ancestor . prof . lindenbrook and alec are forced to team - up with the widow carla goetabaug and the strong local hans belker who brings his duck gertrude with him . the group goes to a volcano that is the entrance to the center of the earth in the beginning of their amazing and dangerous journey .
news item stated that charles brackett , in association with twentieth century - fox , had bought the rights to the novel from the korda estate and wanted clifton webb to play the role of
oliver lindenbrook .
although an april 1959
the earth itself as a kind of character or organism . for you scientists or mythologists , does verne subscribe to the gaea principle ?
this sci - fi disaster film was producer george pal ' s follow - up film to destination moon ( 1950 ) - with a mediocre story that had spectacular special effects .
a miniature model of the lost atlantis was used for the earthquake scene . the lava was probably oatmeal , similar to the lava in the 1960 film
the time machine
.
it was also the first science - fiction film to feature
flying saucers
and the first true robot , gort .
robert halmi , sr . dusted off the script of his 1999 version of journey to the center of the earth , compressing it back to a 90 minute telefilm for rhi entertainment that appeared on the ion network on january 27 , 2008 . william bray adapted the 1999 tom baum teleplay , this time helmed by t . j . scott . the principal characterizations and motives remained the same , only compressed and more tightly paced .
a bit hokey to be sure , but this action / adventure movie has a rip - roaring premise taken from the classic novel by jules verne . it has charming characters , especially the overbearing professor who is proven wrong on a regular basis . journey to the center of the earth also boasts diverting action sequences , and a grand , old - fashioned score .
fittingly , the first film recognized as steampunk was the 1902 fourteen - minute french animated short le voyage dans la lune ( a trip to the moon ) , based on jules verne’s from the earth to the moon and h . g . wells’ the first men in the moon . wildly popular upon its release , the georges méliès film– one of his hundreds of fantasy films– achieved canonical status within science fiction .
casper dies on the return journey , and crossing the underground sea again , jonas , lytton , and alice are abruptly sent to the surface by a vortex phenomenon . saknussemm ( in the only context in which he is mentioned ) is said to have predicted this : underground storms which turn into giant waterspouts that feed surface lakes . lytton and alice decide to honeymoon in iceland , and explore fresh caverns that may offer a more direct route to the center of the earth ( which has the curious effect of making the verne novel seem like a sequel to this film adaptation ) .
samuel m
sam
raimi [ 1 ] ( born october 23 , 1959 ) is an american film director , producer , writer and actor , famous for creating the cult horror comedy evil dead series , as well as directing the original spider - man trilogy ( 2002–07 ) and the 1990 superhero film darkman ; his most recent work is 2013 ' s disney fantasy film oz the great and powerful . raimi has produced several successful television series and is the founder of renaissance pictures . recently , he worked as the producer of the possession , and the 2013 remake of evil dead . he is currently working on a film adaption of the critically acclaimed video game the last of us .
i understand the appeal of the 1950s cinemascope adventure movies like 20 , 000 leagues under the sea and around the world in 80 days . while their special effects are dated , the practical effects are always spellbinding to see in a world gone to cgi and the actors take it seriously . however , these same movies suffer from an extended amount of bloat and the human component is always infinitely duller than the actual “journey” being undertaken . these are the problems and triumphs employed in journey to the center of the earth , a movie i liked a fair bit more than 20 , 000 leagues but whose issues remained the same .
apparently at the very center of the earth there is a sea to one side and not the other . and you can tell you are there because there is
a field of force that snatches gold away .
the physics makes no sense at all . ( also in this scene jenny seems to have some sort of psychic link to the explorers . )
in spite of it all , this is a film that clicks for me . it may well be second to king kong ( 1933 ) as the film i have seen the greatest number of times . mark r . leeper copyright 2016 mark r . leeper
[ 22 ] . joe nazzaro , “to the ends of the earth , ” starlog no . 367 ( july 2008 ) , 11 - 13 .
cooga mooga film productions , inc . , joseph m . schenck enterprises , inc .
audio commentary with actress diane baker and film historians steven c . smith & nick redman
the ballad of narayama
is a japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice , telling a story of startling cruelty . what a space it opens…
the story concerns an expedition , led by james mason , who plays a dedicated scientist , to the center of the earth . among those who descend to the depths with mason are pat boone , one of his students ; arlene dahl , the widow of a swedish geologist who steals mason’s information and tries to beat him to the ‘underworld’ ; and peter ronson , an icelandic guide and jack - of - all - trades .
edinburgh university professor sir oliver lindenbrook believes he has found an very old message from a long lost scientist who may have found the way to journey to the center of the earth . with his assistant , student alec mckuen , he sets off for iceland where an entrance in a volcanic range is to be found . they are soon joined by carla goetabaug , whose scientist - husband was recently murdered , and icelander hans belker as they descend into the bowels of the earth . there they will find fantastic creatures , exotic plants , the lost city of atlantis and a foe who wants to keep knowledge of this underworld to himself .
while the subterranean world is offered as an example of a different outcome of darwin’s theories , the theme is insufficiently explored , and the second half of the miniseries is disappointing . the filmmakers are unable to develop an adequate destination for the expedition , refusing to allow the journey itself to serve as the goal , as in the novel .
the expedition soon runs out of water , and axel faints and becomes lost . here , and at several other points in the story , the visuals adopt axel’s subjective point of view , approximating the first - person narration of the novel . the novel’s separate episodes of axel’s rescue and the finding of water are effectively conflated here , and they also find the skeletons of the many other men who had traveled with saknussemm - - an eerie sequence that provides one of the few attempts to seriously suggest the outcome of the first expedition to the center of the earth .
perhaps part of the novel’s appeal is its premise , transcending science fiction to present an adventure which can never be realized , yet still retains a powerful grip on human curiosity . for it is also a fantasy of the ultimate conquest of nature , traveling through its most hidden recesses to regions that will never be seen . journey to the center of the earth offers the reader and moviegoer not only a prehistoric world , but one entirely of the imagination , a realm conjured by the mind of jules verne , and ever more often by the magicians of the screen who have found his idea a source of inspiration .
news items , producer eugene lourie planned to film a version in italy with gerard philipe and michele morgan as the stars . according to september 1956 items in
there is an attenuated telling of the journey to the underground lake . the only marker among the caves is one at the beginning , in russian , telling them the correct initial cave to take . ( there is no mention of saknussemm . ) on the way , the remains of sergei’s brother are found .
a diary flies out of mason ' s hand while they are on a raft because of earth ' s magnetic field . you can see a wire attached to the left corner of the book .
a squad of supernatural investigators are earth ' s only defense against an evil ghost wizard and his minions .
[ note : the same joke to open up the screen ( for odorama ) was used in john waters ' polyester ( 1981 ) - in homage to this film . ]
this classic universal horror film effectively used a foam - latex costume suit to represent the amphibious creature called the gill - man - one of the most famous movie monsters ever created .
in some european versions of the film , for example the spanish dubbing , the
prof of geology ' s song
was re - dubbed into the
gaudeamus igitur
song .
however , it was also known for its unique opening or preamble , in which one of the film ' s stars , a bow - tied tom ewell , opened the film by walking out onto a open stage to speak to the camera ( and break the fourth wall ) and to introduce the feature . the background was an abstract landscape with musical instruments floating in space .
basically the story of a man forced to finally see the injustice around him . riley’s movie is designed to do the same thing to you . …
prof . lindenbrook leads his intrepid party on an expedition to the centre of the earth , via a volcano in iceland , encountering all manner of prehistoric monsters and life - threatening hazards on the way .
presence ; perfectly believable as the enthusiastic scientist lindenbrook , mason ' s performance also often adds to the film ' s light touch . as the determined captain nemo in
the self - conscious decision to go into the epistolary mode for part of the adventure .
in a grotto , bioluminescent birds extinct for millions of years lead them to the center of the earth : waterfalls and a sea lit by an underground sun . here is the world verne described , but recreated in an entirely fresh manner , lush and verdant , full of vibrant colors , teeming with all the signs of life . this image was the centerpiece of the original poster art and website reflecting the 3 - d .
the
scientific
idea of the earth being hollow ( evolving partly from the mythology of the
underworld ,
which in turn evolved into hell ) was in circulation since edmund halley in the late 17th century and still is the subject of speculation . ( edgar rice burroughs also wrote an inner - earth series of books . ) here are various
hollow earth
web sites - - some explanatory and skeptical , others rather loony .
scott ashlin at 1000 mispent hours and counting ( 1 . 5 / 5 stars ) ( link ) -
if you pay close attention to the dialogue , you’ll note that the plot of journey to the center of the earth unfolds over the course of most of a year . and yeah , the way this movie flows , that feels about right . . . . i have a longstanding personal prejudice against movies in which the heroes are routinely bailed out of trouble by their cute animal companions . . . lavish production values will only carry a movie so far ; it may be vastly sillier than this one , but at the earth’s core is at least reasonably entertaining most of the time .
zero point subrise : the hollow earth
- - brief historical summary of halley , symmes , . . . nazis :
geology , the fields of study concerned with the solid earth . included are sciences such as mineralogy , geodesy , and stratigraphy . an introduction to the geochemical and geophysical sciences logically begins with…
director nathan juran ' s classic fantasy film ( with stop - motion special effects by ray harryhausen ) wasn ' t even a nominee in the awards category of best special effects . it was the first film using stop - motion special effects to be shot in full color .
the gimmicky 3 - d effect required that the viewer wear special polarization glasses , unlike anaglyphic 3 - d that required red / blue glasses to be worn . 3 - d technology was employed to try to combat the encroaching competition of television on the film industry .
based on jules verne ' s fantastic stories of strange adventure . . . a fabulous world below the world !
based on the story by jules verne , an edinburgh professor and assorted colleagues follow an explorer ' s trail down an extinct icelandic volcano to the earth ' s center .
news item , cooga mooga film productions was pat boone ' s production company . under boone ' e deal with twentieth century - fox , boone was to produce and star in the film for a share in the profits , as well as a salary .
, is brought to the screen in this thrilling adventure about a band of intrepid explorers descending to the hidden reaches of our world .
the sequence around the underground sea is , as in the novel , the centerpiece of the story , and the full treatment of this setting and the incidents around it - - the island , the dinosaurs , the storm - - with a large degree of fidelity to verne , make where time began noticeably different from other films of the novel . more impressive than the blue of the sea in the 1959 version , in where time began filters turn the ocean a deep shade of greenish - blue aqua , contrasting with the orange of the land ; the striking color combinations make the setting all the more convincing . [ 15 ]
after some initial location views of the ascent of snaefells , the interior of the earth is entirely recreated through imagination , and computer - generated backgrounds that resemble the matte shots of earlier films , rather than using any of the authentic scenery such as carlsbad caverns in the 1959 version or the canary islands in where time began . trapped by a rockslide , there is no way but forward . lighting a flare ignites a cave of magnesium , and the movie emulates verne’s own habit of concealing pedagogical purpose ( in this case geology ) in the guise of an exciting narrative .
andre de toth ' s horror film from warner bros . had the extra added attraction of being filmed in 3 - d - and it was highly successful . it was the first 3 - d color feature film released by a major american studio .
although this was a horror film , the most remembered 3 - d scene in the film was the paddle - ball sequence in which a huckster ( reggie rymal ) in front of the newly - opened
house of wax
kept swatting at a ball attached by a string to a paddle . he spoke at the theatre audience and noted :
, who played lindenbrook’s student , croons love songs . however , the film’s special effects were excellent for their day , and the story can still hold the viewer , thanks mostly to the
producer / production co : twentieth century fox film corporation , cooga mooga , joseph m . schenck enterprises