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Sick Product of a Sick System

For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

An Exercise In Nonsense

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Flat-footed direction by highly-regarded-in-his-day Stuart Paton, plus a cast of unimpressive nonentities, plus a huge amount of boringly repetitive underseas footage (which no doubt seemed far more novel and fascinating back in 1916), this movie is further burdened by poor acting particularly from Captain Nemo's Allen Holubar (an actor/writer/director with an extensive array of credits who died at the young age of 35 in 1923). Mind you, Holubar's make-up is poor and he is obviously receiving very little (if any) guidance from director Paton. Also something of a dead loss is Professor Aronnax as played by Dan Hanlon in his final of three movie roles. (Don't know what profession he moved into, or any other details at all, except that he died in 1951). The movie is reputed to have cost Universal a staggering $200,000, of which the studio recovered less than half on its initial domestic release. Fortunately, the movie was more popular in Europe. Available on a superb, full-length (104 minutes), multi-tinted DVD from Grapevine Video.

White-bearded mystery man Allan Holubar (as Captain Nemo) trolls the seas, looking for revenge against William Welch (as Charles Denver). We begin when Mr. Holubar's invention, an underwater ship called a submarine, is mistaken for a sea monster. Commanding the "Nautilus", Holubar wants to avenge the abduction of his wife and find his "child of nature" daughter Jane Gail (as Princess Daaker). He defeats, then compassionately rescues a crew of attackers, and goes near "Mysterious Island". Coincidently, enemy Welch and daughter Gail end up there, the latter falling in love with Matt Moore (as Lieutenant Bond)...Reportedly, the first submarine photoplay ever filmed, "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea" begins with a tribute to the Williamson brothers, "who alone have solved the secret of under-the-ocean photography." The brothers Ernest and George Williamson appear in an on screen introduction, tipping their hats (and looking like they could have had careers as actors). The film is mainly notable for their work in pioneering underwater photography; otherwise, this adaptation of Jules Verne's popular novel (with additions from his "The Mysterious Island") is sluggish sailing. It also corrupts the source material.***** Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (12/24/16) Stuart Paton ~ Allen Holubar, Jane Gail, Matt Moore, William Welch

This early adaptation of "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" is interesting, and generally entertaining, though it lacks the depth of the original story. Its strengths are the underwater effects, the settings, and the camera work, which at times are remarkable for the era. On the other hand, it makes little attempt to convey the most important themes of Verne's story, settling instead for straightforward adventure and melodrama, which are much easier to film.One can only guess how exciting it might have been in 1916 to see some of these images and special effects. Only occasionally does it falter a bit and lose the illusion of reality for a short time; otherwise it is quite convincing. Just seeing the underwater photography alone must have been pretty impressive at the time, and they also managed to get some interesting sea creatures on film. The photography itself is pretty good throughout the movie, and some of the props and settings are nicely done.The story draws rather freely both from "20,000 Leagues ... " and also from another Verne story, "Mysterious Island". It is a mostly entertaining yarn, full of action and with some unexpected developments. But only a small portion of Verne's scientific vision comes across, and none of the depth of the characters and of their interactions has been preserved. Captain Nemo is one of literature's more complex and thought-provoking characters, but here he becomes more of a stock melodrama figure. Professor Arronax and Ned Land are mostly spectators, rather than providing worthy foils for the mad genius Nemo.It's by no means a bad movie, and if you are a silent film fan and/or are interested in film history, there should be enough here to make it worth watching. But otherwise, the 1950's Disney version does a much better job of filming the profound vision and philosophical conflict found in Verne's original novel.

My first exposure to 20,000 Leagues, was as a kid in the late 50's at the Colony Theatre in Chicago. This was the Walt Disney version.I have since purchased the 1916 silent version. I have to commend the movie-makers for a very well-done attempt at filming such a difficult story. The surface shots of the Nautilus looked very much like the vintage 1900's submarine, "Holland". The interior shots were, of course, stage sets. I have to comment however, on the helm-wheel-- the prop guys forgot to tighten it down!!! Also too, the first (as far as I know) underwater shots were very well done-- remarkable for the times. If anyone at all is familiar with 20,000 Leagues, and has not seen this silent version, by all means, see it--and buy it!!! One last thing--- being an avid theatre organ buff, I only wish the music was tracked in organ-- perhaps by Gaylord Carter or Lee Irwin.Thank you. Your's, Rick