RETRO-ACTIVE: THE BEST FROM CINEMA RETRO'S ARCHIVES
(This article originally ran in June 2007)
The latest sci-fi special edition release from Fox is the eagerly-awaited Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. The TV spin-off series from the mid 1960s has built such a devoted cult following that many people forget it was based on a major big screen feature film produced by Irwin Allen. The eccentric producer has always been marginalized by the lifted pinky crowd for being the schlockmaster supreme, but Allen was a dedicated craftsman who cared not a whit about the critical establishment. He had an uncanny sense for reading the mood of moviegoers and providing the precise type of entertainment they craved at any particular time. By the time his instincts began to fail him in the late 1970s, he had already produced some of the most popular and highest-grossing motion pictures of all time, to say nothing of cult TV classics like Lost in Space, The Time Tunnel, Land of the Giants and of course, the Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea spin-off.
By all accounts, Allen was a bizarre but likeable man. Never a clotheshorse, Allen was known to wear outlandish and usually mismatched outfits and put more polyester on display than could be found in those back page ads for perma-press slacks in Parade magazine. He also sported a trademark pompadour haircut that still has former cast and crew members debating as to whether it was the world's worst toupee or the world's worst haircut. Yet, Allen commanded respect from all those who worked on his productions. He was a perfectionist who never wavered from his vision of how a film or TV show should be produced.
Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, released in 1961, was an important film for Allen. He not only produced it but directed it as well, which may account for why the acting is rather stiff and unconvincing. In his future epics such as The Poseidon Adventure and The Towering Inferno, Allen hired established directors to helm the films so he could concentrate on the logistics of producing. Consequently, these films feature far more enjoyable performances than can be found in Voyage, where the characters are rather bland and uninteresting, thus limiting the actors' abilities to bring any unique nuances to their roles. The premise is surprisingly timely: the world is on the brink of imminent disaster due to a ring of meteors that is circling the earth, causing deadly radiation to increase temperatures to almost unbearable levels. The polar ice caps melt while argricultural areas are devastated. There are only days before the planet is burned to a cinder. I half expected Al Gore to stride onscreen to take command of the situation. Small wonder why some clever person in the Fox marketing department has, with tongue-in-cheek, labeled this as the "Global Warming Edition"! All of the catastrophes described in the script are suggested but not seen because Allen had yet to get the Poseidon-sized budgets he would command in the 1970s. The production has virtually no exterior sequences and is largely confined to studio sets. Where Allen does use his budget wisely is in the creation of (then) state-of-the-art special effects. While they may look tame and sometimes laughable today, one is aware of the fact that Allen's creative team did an excellent job with meager resources.
Walter Pidgeon plays a revered admiral who has invented the Sea View, the most scientifically advanced submarine in the world. He orders his crew to race to the other side of the world to find the precise angle at which he can launch a rocket that will miraculously cause the radiation shield encircling the earth to be destroyed. If this sounds ridiculous, it's no more believable on screen. The screenplay meanders all over the place, throwing in plot elements that are never satisfactorily pursued (i.e a potential mutiny; the unveiling of a key cast member as the least-motivated saboteur in history, etc.) Yet, the film always maintains its sense of fun, probably because Allen's "toss-in-the-kitchen-sink" formula never sacrifices thrills for credibilty as the Sea View contends with minefields, melting icebergs, giant squids and- worst of all- Frankie Avalon singing an absurd title love song over the opening credits! Here again, Allen was a shrewd producer. Avalon was a hot teen idol at the time and Allen couldn't care less that a movie about melting ice bergs and giant squids would not exactly be an ideal vehicle for a teen love song. If there was a hit 45 rpm possible, then, damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead! (If Allen had produced Schlinder's List he would have found a way to incorporate a rap video.)
The cast doesn't have to do much heavy lifting to get through the proceedings. Pidgeon is a dignified and commanding presence, though it is amusing to observe him engage in now unthinkable politically incorrect behavior like chain smoking cigars inside the submarine. Peter Lorre is largely wasted as his fellow scientist and has little do but lurk in the background. Barbara Eden is tossed in for sex appeal as Pidgeon's secretary, who is also the girlfriend of the Sea View's skipper, played by Robert Sterling. Frankie Avalon wanders about without much to do and Michael Ansara somehow pops up with his dog on a melting iceberg in the middle of the Antarctic- and unless I missed some crucial dialogue, I can't recall anyone even asking him what he was doing there! Ansara's character comes the closest to having an intriguing background - he's a religious fanatic whose eccentricities at least figure logically in the film's climax. Joan Fontaine is also aboard, but her character is little more than window dressing - until she meets a fate that is as wacky as it is abrupt. My own personal absurdity in the film is the sequence in which the crew is watching broadcast news onboard the Sea View. The announcer warns that world wide destruction is imminent, then politely says that concludes this evening's newscast. What the hell did they have that was more imporant to show - the latest episode of Mister Ed? It reminds one of the old joke "World facing nuclear destruction. Details at 11:00."
Unlike Fox's Fantastic Voyage and Planet of the Apes, Voyage has not aged nearly as well. However, we can certainly recommend it for less discriminating viewers because its very creakiness enhances its appeal. It represents a time when filmmakers and audiences were less concerned about realism and just wanted a fun way to spend a couple of hours at the movies. The Fox special edition features some interesting bonuses including:
- Informative commentary by Tim Colliver, who authored a book about the Voyage legacy and who provides some interesting facts about the film. (We still wish there had been a retrospective documentary included.)
- Recent interview with Barbara Eden, who looks spectacularly glamorous, but whose comments are generally polite to the point of being bland
- An excellent selection of production stills, props and artwork as well as lobby cards and an interactive pressbook that allows you to zoom in on specific sections
- Original trailer
- A new featurette that masquerades as a look at sci-fi movie history but is really an excuse to have various scholars and scientists warn us about the dangers of global warming. It's the kind of documentary guaranteed to keep Rush Limbaugh up at night, as we are given some handy tips for what the average person can do to forestall worldwide destruction. (i.e use long-life light bulbs, keep your tires inflated, etc.)
This is by no means the classic many remember it as, but it's a
Voyage worth taking. -
Lee Pfeiffer
TO ORDER VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA DVD SPECIAL EDITION DISCOUNTED FROM AMAZON, CLICK HERE.
TO ORDER THE ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK CD FROM AMAZON, CLICK HERE