1956 - AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS, one of those 50's super spectaculars

 This was the big one for 1956,  It won many awards and was very popular with movie going audiences.  The producer was a man called Michael Todd who was apparently quite the showman.  He was also known for his chutzpah a man so brash he somehow got Elizabeth Taylor then in her mid twenties to marry him.  Todd was forty seven years old at the time.

Todd was one of the original founders of Cinerama, the wide screen movie process.  He split from that company and patented his own widescreen format called Todd-AO.  Looking for a suitable movie to showcase his widescreen miracle,  Todd decided to make a film out of Jules Verne's Around The World in 80 Days.  Basically pumping all of his money into the film Todd actually found himself with a substantial hit. 

 

The film today looks very much like a widescreen super spectacle.  Lots of photography of scenery, (the film was shot in a lot of different locations) at the expense of a well paced story.  The actors, particularly David Niven have to work hard to have some kind of a presence in the film.  The Mexican actor known as Cantinflas, was hired to play Niven's faithful servant. Cantinflas carries much of the load in the film with lots of unfunny physical comedy.  Cantinflas is unsual casting in that he was primarily known as a verbal comedian in Mexico.

The film is entertaining when the viewer isn't being bombarded with lots of scenic vistas.  The last hour of the film is entertaining. This film is so over the top that the ending credits by Saul Bass run six minutes. 

 

To ensure box office success, Todd loaded the film up with lots of Hollywood actors in parts he called cameos.  The film is almost a record over 1950's actors.

The running time is a whopping 182 minutes.  The screenwriters were James Poe,  John Farrow and S.J. Perelman.