20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA (1954, U.S.)

20,000 Leagues
Under the Sea

(1954, U.S.) color 127 minutes
Walt Disney Pictures / Buena Vista Pictures
Story: Jules Verne (from his novel, “Vingt Mille Lieues sous les mers”)
Screenplay: Earl Felton
Music: Paul Smith
Songs: Al Hoffman
Cinematography: Franz Planer
Editing: Elmo Williams
Production Design: Harper Goff
Produced by Walt Disney
Directed by Richard Fleischer

With: Kirk Douglas (Ned Land), James Mason (Capt. Nemo), Paul Lukas (Prof. Pierre Arronax), Peter Lorre (Conseil), Robert J. Wilke (First Mate of the Nautilus), Ted de Corsia (Capt. Farragut), Carleton Young (John Howard), J.M. Kerrigan (Billy), Percy Helton (Coach Driver), Ted Cooper (Mate on 'Lincoln')

***

In 1954, Walt Disney Productions released its most popular adventure film to date, 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA. Set in the late 1870s, the story opens with news reports of a dangerous sea monster that is destroying ships and making the sea lanes of the world impossible to traverse. While delayed in San Francisco, Professor Pierre Arronax, a well-known oceanographer (Paul Lukas) and his assistant Conseile (Peter Lorre) are being interviewed by the press about the dreaded sea monster. One of the reporters (Herb Vigrain, best remembered for playing villains on “The Adventures Of Superman” TV Show) asked the Professor if such a creature exists. Inadvertently, Arronax says that there are such creatures as “Narwhales”, that could destroy ships, but the scientist doesn't want to be quoted for he has no facts about the true cause of the destruction of the ships.

Seeing a good story, the reporters ignore the Professor's request and a story soon appears in the papers stating that Arronax has proof of a Narwhale destroying the ships, and he is mounting an expedition to try and stop the threat. Outraged by the story, Conseile and his mentor refuse to say anything further to the press. But The Professor's theories do come to the attention of the U.S. Government, and they send one of their representatives (Carleton G. Young) to hire Arronax and his assistant to sail aboard the S.S. Abraham Lincoln and confirm or refute the existence of the monster. With a promise of monies and credit for his findings, the two scientists accept the offer. Before long, both men join the skipper of the S.S. Abraham Lincoln (Ted De Coria) and the ship's top harpooner, Ned Land (Kirk Douglas).

After many months, the captain and the crew have found nothing, and they decide to abandon the search. In order to pick up the crew's spirits, Ned sings a sea shanty called, “Got A Whale of A Tale To Tell You Lads!” Everyone is enjoying the tune when the lookout sees a large black object coming at the ship, full speed. Giving the signal for everyone to man their battle stations, the Captain and the crew get ready for their fight with the monster. They discover to their horror that cannonballs and harpoons have no effect on the beast, and the Abraham Lincoln is soon sent into the briny, leaving Arronax, Conseile and Ned as the ship's only survivors. As they climb onto the beast, the trio soon find out that their adversary is not a sea monster at all but a submarine.

The Submarine's skipper, Captain Nemo (James Mason, who the year before had played Judy Garland's husband in A STAR IS BORN!) is a demented seaman and scientist, who wants to destroy the ships of the world because mankind is ruining “his seas” with wars. Not thrilled at having these three men aboard his sub, Nemo has the men put on top of the Nautilus and he tries to drown them, but when Arronax begs for the lives of his friends over his own, Nemo spares their lives, on their proviso that they don't try to escape or thwart his plans. Ned is not willing to accept this offer but Arronax and Conseile get him to reconsider.

During a trek to the island stronghold of a infamous group of warmongers, Nemo opens fire on the terrorists and kills everyone on the island, including the slaves. When they return to the sub, Arronax is angered by Nemo’s violent and hypocritical actions. Nemo then explains his reason for attacking the people; many years before, Nemo first sailed to that island and witnessed the warmongers forcing the slaves to gather materials for gun powder and weapons. He was captured and they tried to force him to reveal the secrets of The Nautilus. When Nemo refused, they tortured his wife and young son to death. Now understanding his bitter attitude towards society's cruel nature, Arronax tries to extend some sympathy to Nemo, but he refuses to accept any pity. Ned and Conseile also watched the slaves being killed on the island, and the sailor is enraged by Nemo's inhuman slaughter.

Seeing that he has to find a means of getting them off the Nautilus, Ned sneaks into the captain's quarters and finds Nemo's charts and maps. After copying down the sub's course, and finding out from Conseile that Nemo is heading for his secret headquarters, “Vulcania”, Ned writes up messages and places them inside of Nemo's specimen bottles. He then goes topside and tosses the bottled notes overboard. Eventually. The notes are found by the U.S. Navy, and as the Nautilus docks at Vulcania a U.S. Navy warship opens fire on the sub.

Outraged at their deceit, Nemo has Arronax and his friends sent to their quarters and he prepares his crew for battle, but the warship sends a cannonball directly at the sub's main power source and destroys it. Nemo is badly injured in the blast, but he is not willing to accept defeat, let alone allow himself to be captured; he comes into Arronax' quarters and tells the trio that he is going to set off a bomb that will destroy everyone and everything on board the Nautilus, and that the blast will also destroy Nemo's headquarters. Seeing that they have to escape immediately, Ned knocks out the guards, as the three men and Nemo's pet seal Esmeralda take Nemo's long boat and sail away. They manage to stop at a safe distance as they watch the retribution of The Nautilus, Vulcania and it's evil mariner.

***

I first saw 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA during it's re-release at the Wakefield Theater in the Bronx, in the early 1970's. The script is thrilling, and the f/x effects are top-notch, including Nemo and Ned's battle with the giant squid. The film is also enhanced by a wonderful cast: Mason has the right amount of menace and evil brilliance as Jules Verne's demented seaman and scientist; Lukas and Lorrie are engaging as Arronax and his apprentice, and Douglas provides action and comedy relief as Ned Land. (In a rare TV documentary about sea life and the making of the film, MONSTERS OF THE DEEP, which aired on Disney's and ABC TV's “The Disneyland Show” in 1954, Douglas admitted that he was hesitant about singing the tune “Got A Whale Of A Tale To Tell You Lads” in the film, but his performance of the song is so good that audiences accepted his talents as a folk singer.) There are also some memorable cameos from Vigrain, Corisa, Young, and by Percy Helton as a cab driver (Helton had played hotel desk clerk Abernathy in ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET THE KILLER, BORIS KARLOFF and the train conductor in THE MUSIC MAN).

- Kevin S. Butler

Video/DVD availability: VHS/DVD (Disney Home Video)