“The medieval philosophers were right. Man is the center of the universe. We stand in the middle of infinity between outer and inner space, and there’s no limit to either. ” – Dr. Duval
Number of Times Seen – 1 (12 Sep 2018)
Brief Synopsis – After an assassination attempt on a scientist, a team of doctors are sent into his body in a shrunken submarine in order to repair the damage to his brain.
My Take on it – This film have a very interesting concept that just isn’t presented well enough for audiences of today to appreciate.
The story probably worked much better when this was made 52 years ago but based on today’s advances in special effects and scientific knowledge, certain scenes that should be great, seem a bit laughable.
It is fascinating to see how the effects teams of the 60’s perceived the way that many of the internal organs would look and be viewed when looking at them from an internal and miniature perspective.
The biggest problem with this film is that since it was made at the height of the Cold War, they felt the need to make the story rely too heavily on the concept that the US and Russia are always fighting about everything, even when it comes to miniaturization technology.
The cast is quite good with Stephen Boyd, Raquel Welsh, Donald Pleasance and Edmond O’Brien all doing fine jobs with their roles despite the fact that much of the plot comes across more campy than serious or even thrilling like it probably should have.
Bottom Line – Interesting concept that doesn’t work as well as it probably could have. Its fascinating to actually see how the effects team made the various internal organs look as the crew moves around the body on the way to save the brain. The cast is quite good, but the story relies too heavily on Cold War aspects instead of having the characters do things for the sake of science itself. Talented cast that is slightly wasted by the campiness of it all.
MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – Medical schools, at least as late as the 1980s, would show clips from this film to illustrate various concepts in human anatomy, physiology, and especially immunology. (From IMDB)
Rating – BAFTA Worthy (6/10)
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