Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea
Directed by Irwin Allen
Written by Irwin Allen and Charles Bennett
1961/USA
Irwin Allen Productions
First viewing/Netflix Instant
[box] Admiral Nelson: If God ordains that Man should die without a fight, then why does He give us the will to live?[/box]
This apocalyptic submarine adventure provided few thrills to me.
Admiral Harriman Nelson (Walter Pidgeon) is also a genius submarine innovator. His latest sub is being criticized in Congress and a team arrives to investigate. This includes nit-wit psychiatrist Susan Hiller (Joan Fontaine).
After awhile, the Earth experiences some extreme climate change thanks to the Van Allen Belt. Certain scientists believe that the climate will somehow burn itself out in a few weeks. Admiral Harriman knows that he can save the Earth by shooting off a sea-to-air missile at a precise place and time before the other theory can be proved. If he is wrong, he may provoke the Apocalypse himself.
En route, the sub picks up a nut-job mariner who believes that Harriman should not interfere with God’s plan to destroy the planet. The sub loses contact with Washington, so Harriman is on his own. Furthermore, the UN has sent a team of subs to stop him. The crew’s morale is rock bottom. Ultimately, Harriman’s sanity is questioned. I will take bets on whether the world comes to an end.
The silly story culminates in a way that made no sense to me. Other than a few impressive shots of the sub and a couple of camp sub v. giant squid encounters I can think of no reason to watch this movie. With Barbara Eden as the Admiral’s comely secretary, Peter Lorre as the Admiral’s right-hand man and Frankie Avalon as a crew member. Avalon also sang the inane title tune.
