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Rating: 3 out of 5
Ooooh, to travel worldwide and see all the sights, sounds, cultures, and food. The food must be the number one item on everyone’s to-do list as they visit another country. I would love to see many places worldwide and chill for a while. I want to lounge by the Eifel Tower while eating macarons with the beautiful Eva Green. Still waiting on that phone call to take you out. I would also like to see the vast country of England while becoming a marquess. Since I love anime, chilling near Mt. Fuji and taking in the culture of Japan. So many places to visit and so much fun to have.
Here is a question: how fast can you travel around the world? Obviously, by plane, it could be about a day. By boat, who the hell knows, but it would be quite an adventure. How about a hot air balloon? Based on the classic novel, Around the World in 80 Days, an English gentleman bets his friends that he can do it. Also, I used to work at the amusement park called Worlds of Fun which is based on and modeled after this book.
Directed by Michael Anderson and based on the classic 1873 novel by Jules Verne, Around the World in 80 Days is a movie filled with sights, sounds, and wonders. In 1872, wealthy Englishman Phileas Fogg (Niven) is chilling with his four boys in the high-end Reform Club. While talking about whatever high-class men do while drinking some scotch, Fogg claims he can circumnavigate around the world in eighty days. His boys look at him like he is crazy and laugh until Fogg makes a £20,000 wager, which is straight up bank now. His four friends each contribute £5,000, stating that he couldn’t arrive back at the club eighty days from exactly 8:45 pm that evening. That day, Fogg’s new valent, Frenchman Passepartout (Cantinflas), arrives and learns they are leaving immediately for the adventure. Passepartout has unusual skills but also loves the opposite sex, which could distract him. Going off of Fogg’s intense planning to the second, the pair might be able to complete the bet. Along the way, the pair are met with one misadventure after another but also have a ride of a lifetime.
Let’s start with the fact that I am still determining how this film won the best picture. Is the movie entertaining with funny and wild scenes? Yep, but it also doesn’t have anything that will make you remember it as one of the best pictures of the year. It beat out films like The King and I and The Ten Commandments. The movie reminded me a lot of The Greatest Show on Earth. A film that will make you laugh and entertain but nothing where you will stand and applaud.
When I say entertain, the film never makes you feel like there is a rush to travel 80 days. The reason is that many modes of transportation the pair take are fun to watch. It is not just a hot air balloon, but they do go by steamboat and train. Yet, the sense of urgency comes up in the film’s last part. Also, the film didn’t need to be around three hours long. You could’ve kept it at two, and still would’ve been fine.
The major highlight of this film is the cinematography and all the sights and scenes of the places Fogg and Passepartout go to. The pair fly over the beautiful Alps, drinking that champagne. Yet, it was the places they went that really showed off the beauty of the world. When they were in Spain, Passepartout participated in a bullfight. In India, the pair rescue a beautiful young woman and have her tag along, but the sights of the jungle and animals won me over. In America, the scenes get really crazy. The film showed America as a wild, crazy place that seemed so uncivilized. That is where some of the best scenes were. Gotta love us Americans. MERICA!!! The trio take a ride on a train from San Fran to New York, where they are attacked by Native Americans in the Wild West. It was all stunning to watch.
Regarding the main characters, David Niven as Phileas Fogg was okay. I felt like he played Fogg as he should be, the pompous, uptight, stick-up their ass Englishman who is wealthy. The true star of the film is Cantinflas as Passepartout. He is honestly the only reason this film was fun to watch. Besides calling this film Around the World in 80 Days, it should’ve been called the misadventures of Passepartout. Cantinflas is fantastic in this film, and enjoyed every time he found himself in a bad situation. In Japan, he was recruited to be part of some stunt. In America, homeboy was stuffing his mouth with eggs, but it was the train scene that made me laugh. Also, homeboy has some major dance moves and wasn’t shamed to holla at any girl that walked past him.
This movie has a TON of people in it. More than 40 famous performers make brief cameo appearances. I could only name like three of them. First, Shirley MacLaine in her third film ever. The film also has ole blue eyes himself, Mr. Frank Sinatra, along with classic comedian Red Foxx, Glynis Johns, and so many others. The film is like a classic all-star film, and I couldn’t name all 40 people.
Around the World in 80 Days is one of those films that you can do without. Is it a fun movie to watch, and will you be entertained? Yes. Yet, the film shouldn’t have won the Best Picture award, but hey, the Academy does screw up quite a bit. With a cast of over 40 brief cameos, you will have a fun time trying to spot each one. Rather than watching this movie, you know what you can do instead? Hope on a plane or in a car and go on your own adventure.
