The awe-inspiring wonders and possibilities of the vast seas (70% of the Earth)
During the Civil War, a Senator (Chuck Connors), three men, a young widow & her boy, are rescued after abandoning ship in the stormy north Atlantic. Their savior ironically turns out to be the misanthropic Captain Nemo (Robert Ryan), who happens to be the benevolent ruler of an amazing underwater city.
“Captain Nemo and the Underwater City” (1969) takes the titular Jules Verne character from “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” (1954) and “Mysterious Island” (1961) and expands his potential to that of being the mastermind of an unbelievable subaquatic community.
The idea that this is only entertaining for kids is absurd since there's much here for adults to appreciate. Overlooking a few attempts at hokey humor (involving the gold-obsessed Bath brothers), there's the colorful sets and quality main actors, not to mention the beautiful women — Nanette Newman as Helena, Luciana Paluzzi as Mala and some peripherals. Speaking of Mala, she plays an instrument that's basically a Verne-esque version of the theremin, 65 years before it was patented by the Russian inventor Leon Theremin.
Then there's the fascinating character of Nemo himself. He's driven by hate, yes, but it's hatred of the evils of war and unjust government, as well as the corresponding suffocating laws. In the ocean, he & his people are free from all of this and, especially, humanity's penchant for self-destruction, at least to a greater degree.
Speaking of which, the ending brings up humankind's quest for Utopia and how to obtain it: Do we separate from humanity to achieve it in a secret enclave, like Nemo, or do we work with humanity to bring about positive change, like the Senator wants to do? This is an enduring theme since Coppola's new "Megalopolis" addresses the same kinds of questions.
It runs 1 hour, 45 minutes, and was shot at MGM British Studios in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, which was just northwest of central London (demolished in 1970). The oceanic sequences were done off Malta in the Mediterranean Sea, as well as the Red Sea.
GRADE: B
