20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)

Plot
A professor and his assistant set out to seek the truth about a supposed sea monster which has been sinking ships in the Atlantic. When their ship is sunk the by the monster, together with a harpoonist who also survived the attack, they are taken aboard the Nautilus, a metal submarine run by Captain Nemo. It is the Nautilus which has been sinking the ships and the three men come to realise that the captain is a brilliant scientist with knowledge that could change the world. But Nemo bears a grudge against humanity and is intent on keeping his discoveries secret.

Review
Disney really came up trumps with this classic film based on the novel by Jules Verne. There's hardly a thing wrong with it. The special effects haven't dated as badly as one would expect from such an old film.

This being an early live-action Disney film and all, it's surprising to see that the plot is intelligent enough not to pander to kids. Yes there's plenty for kids to love here (and the nice user friendly 'U' rating means it's all clean, harmless fun) but there's a gripping story underneath the surface filled with imagination and creativity. Jules Verne wrote about the likes of submarines and diving suits long before they were invented but it's the other ideas he creates like an underwater world where crops are harvested and men are able to live which were way ahead of their time.

The production design is superb and Victorian technology is brought to life in vivid detail. The Nautilus is one of the most iconic and memorable of Jules Verne's creations given the big screen treatment with it's eerie green light illuminating the water around it like an eye and it's sleek design almost turning it into a mechanical sea monster. The interior design is breathtaking with the pipe organ, leather-bound library of books and all manner of ironwork bulkheads. Not to mention the massive window that Captain Nemo has in his quarters which allows the film to show off some amazing underwater cinematography. It's impressive to say that over fifty years later and this is still the benchmark for science fiction ships of all kind today.

Despite some rather dubious-looking special effects, especially when watched in the year 2004, the fight with the squid is still a classic and manages to create some gripping and exciting moments.

You can really believe that Nemo would be able to create an entire underwater world where crops are harvested and men live. Combined with the thoughtful story with plenty of scope we have some quality acting.

James Mason is just marvellous as the complex individual that is Captain Nemo. Rarely showing true anger and turning the character into some cookie-cutter mad scientist-style villain, he manages to give the character some humanity so whilst the audience don't agree with his choices, they can at least understand where he's coming from. He's civilised, he's intelligent but he's also a murderer and an idealist of the most dangerous kind. Mason owns the screen every time he's on it.