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My review of "Around the World in Eighty Days" (1956)

From: Harry Hayfield <harryhayfield~at~btopenworld.com>
Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 18:34:05 +0100 (GMT Daylight Time)
To: "Jules Verne Forum" <jvf~at~math.technion.ac.il>

The film was shown today on Channel 5, which has a system of rating films
according to content. "Around the World in Eighty Days" was given a G rating
as "there are scenes which may be upsetting for very small children"

The film opens, not with a title sequence, but a "piece of camera" about
Verne and his impact and shows footage taken from a rocket launched into
space. The piece to camera ends with the announcer stating that "Around the
World in Eighty Days is the Jules Verne classic", which I think we can all
agree with, and with that we are introduced to London in 1872.

The Coldstream Guards are playing "Rule Britannia" and marching across
Horseguard's Parade, people are doing their things, and a newspaper man
saunters up to the entrance of the Reform Club proclaiming "Bank of England
Robbed". Just your typical day in 1872.

After checking that his watch and Big Ben are in synchronisation (which they
are), Fogg enters the Reform Club

After he arrives, we see the Reform Club in action and we get our first
blooper. In the book it states that ice from the Great Lakes was used to
keep Fogg's wine at "a satisfactorily cool temperature". So it comes as
rather a surprise when a servant offers one of the members some ice and is
flatly refused, the member stating that it is a subject that should be taken
up with the House Committee and if that fails then a letter to the Times!

Another oddity is the inclusion of a cat that seems to have a complete free
range of the Reform club, which one member states quite accurately when he
says "Must we have that confounded animal around here?"

Jules Verne 2, Hollywood 0

Then along comes Passepartout, not through the entrance of Number 7 Savile
Row, but riding down a London street on a penny farthing heading towards the
Employment Office where Forster is having a nervous breakdown!

Passepartout asks to be placed with Mr. Fogg and he is. (Blooper 3:
Passepartout's watch is dead on with Fogg's not 7 minutes behind as it in
the book) and then we move to the fateful whist game that leads to the
journey.

Hang on a minute. Did Lord Albermale just say what I think he said? He did,
he did! He said "Saturday 21st September!" Must be a slip of the tongue, he
meant December and said September by mistake. Simple enough mistake to make,
they do sound very alike.

Fogg returns home and gives Passepartout the nasty surprise, and before you
know it they have arrived in Paris and arrive at the offices of Thomas Cook
and Sons. No doubt a plug for the company and a slight reference to the fact
that Thomas Cook did actually have a "Around the World" Trip in 1872 that
lasted seven months!

But, oh dear, we have a problem. The Montford Tunnel has been blocked due to
an avalanche. So isn't it a good thing that the booking clerk is France's
second best balloon pilot (the first having died last Tuesday) and so they
buy the balloon and in doing so throw the book out of the window.

24 hours later they land and you think, "Oh, good Brinidisi in Italy". Sorry
to disappoint you, but they've actually landed in Pamplona(that's right
Spain which means cue the flamenco dancers!) not to mention the Moroccans as
well! After Passepartout shamefully shows off his Spanish heritage (not
French as we are first told), and whips the tablecloth from the Moroccan's
table to use as a cape against the flamenco dancer's bull, Fogg asks to hire
the Moroccan's boat which he agrees to do so, not without throwing the book
back out of the window again and asking Passepartout to take part in a
bullfight!

It's rather a relief after the commercial break to find some sense of
normality arriving as we drop in on Lloyd's of London where bets are being
made on Fogg's likely success. After 18 days, the odds are getting better,
being reduced from 40 - 1 to 30 - 1 (for those unaccustomed with betting in
the UK, that represents an increase in success of 33%) but following a £50
wager that he doesn't and a £150 wager that he does, the odds lengthen again
to 33 - 1 (the increase in success now having gone up only by 21%). After a
discussion with the Reform Club members we have a newsflash. "Fogg arrives
at Suez" and you think "Hooray! He's back on track!". Well, yes, he is back
on track, but down a massive 11 days on the book. Suez was reached on Day 7,
and here we are on Day 18!

Fogg may be 11 days down on the book, but at least things are starting to
make sense now, as Fix makes his first appearance wearing a rather nice pith
helmet as well. He stops Passepartout, makes sure that he has the right
person and asks for a warrant to be sent to Bombay, before taking ship and
enjoying a cruise at Scotland Yard's expense on the gold old HMS Mongolia!

In Bombay, Passepartout successfully manages to annoy half the city ( as per
the book) and they are soon off to Calcutta with the Brigadier now in tow,
until of course they get to Kholby and the "end of the line"! So without all
the fuss of bargaining away £2,000, Fogg, Passepartout and the Brigadier
find themselves on an elephant traipsing through the Indian jungle and just
happen to come across Kali's lot who despite their reputation give us a
rather nice dancing routine. The Rajah is brought out onto the pyre and we
are introduced to the Princess Aouda (not to mention a contender for the
1956 Mr. Universe contest) who lights the pyre which is Passepartout's cue
to do his ghost routine. After only a delayed reaction, the cult scarper and
the princess is rescued.

In spite of a news report about the incident filtering through to London,
Fogg manages to board the Rangoon which sails serenely through Thailand
(making me question the filmmakers's sense of geography) where Fogg is
impressing the Princess (played by a certain Shirley MacLaine) with his
prowess at whist and Fix is at his wit's end about how to get Fogg to slow
down.

Hong Kong arrives and the group split up. Passepartout to get the tickets
for the Carantic and Fogg and Aouda who goes to their room. Whilst buying
the tickets, Passepartout meets up with Fix who leads him into "a den of
iniquity" and gets him completely stoned on opium! (but not the pure sort,
Fix has laced Passepartout's drink) but the effect is the same and so
Passepartout finds himself on the Carantic and Fogg has to take a junk to
Yokohama.

When Fogg arrives in Yokohama, Passepartout seems to have gone back to his
circus roots. No gymnastics for him, oh no, he's the opening act!, sliding
down a rope to the stage. But he does get roped in to help with the pyramid
minus long nose and does lead to the whole thing collapsing. And before you
know where they are they are all on board the SS General Grant crossing the
Pacific.

As you might expect, a crossing of the Pacific is rather boring filmwise, so
we fast forward a bit, to read the newspaper headline "Fogg in America!".
The news of which seems to be of great interest to a certain royal personage
and lead to rather enlightened debate in the East End of London (note to BBC
Eastenders scriptwriters, perchance?)

The only drawback of arriving in America is electioneering not to mention
being propositioned by a certain Marlene Dietrich. Add to that a certain
Colonel taking offence at not being allowed to share a cigar and you're
asking for trouble!

After the commercial break, we're on the TransAmerican train service (in the
days before Amtrak needed massive government injections of cash), and the
filmmakers decide to refer to the book again by having several head of
buffalo cross the railway line, not to mention the incident with the railway
bridge (with the added enhancement of a little Dutch courage) add to that an
aborted duel and an Indian attack and you could be mistaken for thinking
that you're watching a true to life representation of the book. But no, the
filmmakers's fancy gets the better of them and they demand that Passepartout
be tied up and put at the center of an Indian reservation. And I'll tell you
another thing as well, supposing that this is meant to be late November /
early December, there's a distinct lack of snow on the ground. So after Fogg
leads the cavalry to rescue Passepartout, the filmmakers have another wheeze
 Let's use the ice yacht, but on rails instead.

Back in London, Lloyd's has reported a severe downturn in business. Fogg is
in New York, and it is only now that Scotland Yard reveal that he is the
main culprit in the robbery of the Bank of England and that Fogg is on a
boat bound for Venezuela! So is it any wonder that on Day 77 at 2.30pm
British time, the members of the Reform Club aren't that happy with life!
But with Fogg buying and burning the Henrietta in quick succession (plus Mr.
Fogg's top hat and umbrella) Liverpool is soon sighted.

The time: 12.03pm on Day 80
The place: Liverpool
The task: Travelling to London on a train which will take no more than 6
hours

Or at least it would be if Scotland Yard doesn't intervene (and talks about
a robbery in July for some reason or another) . But is Fogg's mistaken
identity realised in time to allow a last gasp mad dash down to London to
arrive just as "8.50 striking on all the clocks in London"? Of course not!
It's not until 8.43 PM (8 hours and 40 minutes later) that the mistake is
realised, and when it is does Fogg deck Fix for all the trouble he's caused.
Nope, he just ups and leaves without a word!

They all arrive back the following day, all seriously dejected. The Princess
makes and takes some tea to Fogg and they decide that despite his loss to
get married and so sends Passepartout for the vicar (who lives just down the
road). As Passepartout and the vicar head back, a newspaper sellers passes
stating that the Saturday results are available. Rushing back he tries to
show the newspaper to Fogg who in a stroke of genus realised that they
crossed the International Date Line (even though the term was not invented
until at least 1884 when the timezones of the world were first drawn up).
This entails a frantic dash to the Reform Club which is hampered by the
cabbie, Passepartout and then the cab horse getting the hiccups, and a
Salvation Army meeting outside the Club itself.

In the Reform Club itself, the members are watching the clock and determing
how Mr. Fogg will make his entrance, when on the stroke of 8.45 he comes
into the room and wins the £20,000 wager, closely followed by the Princess
(breaking every rule in the book) and causing a servant to drop a tray of
champagne (when told to do so by the director), a painting to fall down and
a curtain to collapse revealing Passepartout at the window. "This is the end
 announces the shocked chairman!

So how does it compare to the book. Well, if you ignore the glaring mistakes
that occur from time to time and take heed of the end credit "Based on a
book by Jules Verne" then it's a very good film, but when compared to the
book, I have to quote from the England vs West Germany football match of
1966

"They think it's all over, it is now!"

Jules Verne 7 Hollywood 0

Harry Hayfield

Received on Mon 16 Sep 2002 - 21:18:01 IDT

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