20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: 70 Years On

Richard Fleischer's adaptation of the Jules Verne classic remains one of Disney's finest live-action achievements

Credit: Disney

Warning: Contains spoilers

Mary Poppins (1964) is generally considered the best of Walt Disney’s live-action films, and rightly so. But not far behind it, Richard Fleischer’s 1954 adaptation of Jules Verne’s science fiction classic, 20.000 Leagues Under the Sea, surely deserves an honourable second place. It’s a lively, colourful adventure that thrilled cinema audiences back in 1954, and still holds up astonishingly well today.

Admittedly, my first viewing of this film was in less-than-ideal circumstances: An interrupted-by-commercials, pan-and-scan, ITV Boxing Day screening in 1986. Still, having recently read the novel, I enjoyed the film a great deal. But I enjoyed it a lot more several years later when I revisited it via DVD. This time, the film played out in the correct aspect ratio, and I wasn’t subjected to the tyranny of regular commercials. Thus, I was able to better appreciate everything about the film — from the faithfulness of Earl Felton’s adapted screenplay to Fleischer’s fine direction, Harper Goff’s lavish production design, James Mason’s first-rate performance as Verne’s enigmatic antihero, Captain Nemo, and, of course, the magnificent practical visual effects.