..Gary
Dretzka
..Noah
Forrest
..Leonard
Klady
..R.J.
Matson
..David
Poland
..Douglas
Pratt
..Ray
Pride
..Michael
Wilmington
Around the World in 80 Days (1956)
Directed by Michael Anderson
The 1955 Oscar winner, Around the World in Eighty Days, has been released by Warner Home Videos a Two-Disc Special Edition (28632, $276) in letterboxed format only, a glorious rendering of the film's Todd-AO widescreen cinematography, which has an aspect ratio of about 2.15:1 and an accommodation for enhanced 16:9 playback. Previous home video versions of the film-all of them cropped-have run, at the most, 179 minutes, including the Overture, Entr'acte and Exit Music. The DVD runs 182 minutes. In the previous editions, during the second act when the heroes are riding on a train in America that is attacked by Indians, Cantinflas' character suddenly falls off the train, and in the very next sequence he is shown tied to a stake surrounded by the Indians, who intend to roast him. While the sequence is still a little jumpy, it is now much more drawn out, with Cantinflas being chased before he is captured.
What was especially odd about the missing segment in the older versions is that its loss was so glaring to the narrative. There are many, many sequences in the film that could be trimmed and no one would be the wiser, for as the film tells the famous Jules Verne story about an attempt to circumnavigate the globe in a timely fashion, it includes leisurely vistas of every location the heroes visit. David Niven is the central hero, his journey disrupted by the well-intentioned but mistaken machinations of a detective played by Robert Newton, and Shirley MacLaine is an Asian Indian woman he picks up (rescuing her from a funeral pyre) along the way.
The movie has not aged well. To its credit, it is benign and charming, with an intoxicating musical score, compelling cinematography and a continually advancing locale. There are periodic action set pieces, such as the Indian attack, to give the film occasional surges of energy. It is the style of the film, which was directed by Michael Anderson under the watchful eye of producer Michael Todd (it is Todd's name that appears above the title), that the performances lack subtlety. Cantinflas, who plays Niven's servant, represents the film at its best, combining physical gags with a low-key humor and precise timing, but many of the other performances are arch, playing the comedy broadly, which is appropriate for the movie's simple humor but blandly predictable as the film grinds on and on. One of Todd's biggest inspirations for the film, to include what he termed 'cameo' appearances, by stars who show up in bit parts during the heroes' travels, was a marvelous boost to the film's 'what's around the next corner?' appeal in 1956, but with every passing year, the incandescence of those stars dwindles, and the joy of their presence becomes increasingly obscure, something to delight only the most knowledgeable film buffs.
The color transfer looks lovely. Once in a while there will be a segment that is a little grainier or has slightly weaker contrasts than the others, but it is clear that an extensive effort has gone into presenting the film as closely as possible to its original splendor. The 5.1-channel Dolby Digital sound has limited rear channel effects, but the front separations are highly elaborate, with gratifying (and well delivered) directional dialog and sound effects. Tones are smooth and strong. There is an alternate French audio track in standard stereo and optional English, French and Spanish subtitles.
The film is spread to two platters, with the break occurring at the Intermission point, almost exactly two-thirds of the way through. There is a commentary track by film historian Brian Sibley, who delivers some basics about the movie's production history but focuses primarily on supplying background information about whatever is at hand, whether it is the biography of one of the cameo stars or background information on the sights and activities depicted on the screen-among other things, he goes into a detailed history of ballooning, bullfighting and whist. Like so much of the film, it gets less interesting as it goes along.
Each platter also includes several special features. The film and many of the special features are introduced in various segments by TV host Robert Osborne. On the first platter, there is a 17-minute collection of silent outtakes (basically, single camera angles of various scenes), an 11-minute montage of publicity photos and two trailers. There is also, apparently, a DVD-ROM option, but we couldn't figure out how to access it.
The one subject Sibley doesn't cover all that thoroughly in his commentary is Todd himself, but that is compensated for in a 50-minute biographical documentary from 1968 on the second platter that goes over his entire life and career, and includes interviews with many of the people who worked with him. There are also plenty of home movies with his wife, Elizabeth Taylor, and their daughter, shortly before his death. He is a fascinating individual, making and losing great sums of money over and over again, and the documentary is highly entertaining.
On the first anniversary of the film's release, in 1957, Todd held a huge publicity event at Madison Square Garden and conned the otherwise respectable TV program, Playhouse 90, into covering the hoopla live. Walter Cronkite narrates and other luminaries appear, but the bulk of the 47-minute program is a tedious display of minor parade acts, circling the center of the Garden as the audience watches from afar. The biggest thrill comes when Cedric Hardwicke almost gets shaken off his elephant. The audience, clearly bored to tears, goes wild. There is also a great Joan Rivers moment in which the still svelte Taylor ceremoniously cuts the 'world's largest cake' ("I'm not going to eat the whole thing," Taylor tells Jim McKay), but for the most part, the show is a waste of time. Also included are a 2-minute post-Oscar newsreel clip, another half-minute newsreel clip of Taylor in Spain promoting the film, and a 2-minute silent color clip of the film's Los Angeles premiere.
June 22, 2004
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