20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1916)

 

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Summary and initial thoughts

This adaptation of Jules Verne's classic novel follows elements of both 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and a later Verne novel, The Mysterious Island.

The hero of our story is Captain Nemo, whose futuristic submarine Nautilus sets the stage for the Captain's many adventures as he seeks something unknown to us. After attacking (and then rescuing the passengers of) the navy ship Abraham Lincoln, Captain Nemo and his willingly captive guests have a series of underwater adventures.

Elsewhere on the high seas, man about town Charles Denver has yachted his way to a mysterious island (see what I did there?) where he hopes to discover what happened to a young woman he abandoned on the island years ago when her mother, the Princess Daaker, chose to kill herself rather than submit to Denver's sexual advances.

When Nautilus encounters Denver's yacht, it destroys the vessel but saves the daughter of Princess Daaker, who was indeed on the island.

We then learn that Captain Nemo is, in fact, Prince Daaker, who all this time has been seeking revenge on Denver, as well as word of his daughter.

When he discovers that the girl he has rescued is in fact his daughter, he is so overjoyed that he dies (I feel like dying of emotion is something that happened a lot in old movies and novels).

His crew bury him on the ocean floor and set Nautilus free to seek its fortune without crew or captain, which honestly feels a little irresponsible.

Why is 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea on the National Film Registry?

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was inducted to the National Film Registry in 2016, 100 years after its release. 

Billed as having been filmed at the bottom of the sea, this was indeed the first full-length feature filmed underwater. However, it didn't make it all the way to the bottom of the sea. Instead, an elaborate system of waterproof tubing and mirrors allowed for reflected shots of staged underwater scenes.

This film also made use of the specially designed "photosphere" technology, which was a sphere large enough for a cameraman and a camera to be lowered into the water, maintaining a connection to a boat from where the cinematographer who designed the technology could give directions.

These innovative special effects caused production of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea to take two full years and cost an extravagant $500,000.

Final thoughts on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

I didn't like this movie as much as I had hoped I would. Until the last third, the focus is much less on plot and much more on effects and ambience, making the narrative structure feel a little uneven.

Additionally, while the effects are very impressive, a lot of what is filmed using these systems is not terribly engaging, at least by today's standards.

Still, the story is intriguing, and my desire to dip my toes into Verne's novels has grown since watching this film.

I doubt I'd seek this one out again, but it's still impressive.