Mysterious Island (serial)
| Mysterious Island | |
|---|---|
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| Directed by | Spencer Gordon Bennet |
| Produced by | Sam Katzman |
| Written by | Screenplay: Lewis Clay Royal K. Cole George H. Plympton |
| Based on |
The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne |
| Starring |
Richard Crane Marshall Reed Karen Randle Ralph Hodges |
| Music by |
Mischa Bakaleinikoff (musical director) Gerard Carbonara Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco (uncredited) |
| Cinematography | William Whitley |
| Edited by | Earl Turner |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
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Release date
|
August 23, 1951 |
|
Running time
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15 chapters (252 minutes) |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Mysterious Island is the 46th serial released by Columbia Pictures. It is an adaptation of the 1874 novel by Jules Verne, The Mysterious Island (L'Île mystérieuse). As in the original story, which was a follow-up to Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, this serial is set in 1865. However, the serial has alien Mercurians as an additional set of villains and it has been labelled as a space opera version of the Verne novel.
During the siege of Richmond, Virginia, in the American Civil War, POW Capt. Cyrus Harding escapes from his Confederate captors in a rather unusual way – by hijacking an observation balloon. In his escape, Harding is accompanied by sailor Pencroft, his nephew Bert, writer Gideon, loyal soldier Neb, and a dog. A hurricane blows the balloon off course, and the group eventually crash-lands on a cliff-bound, volcanic, uncharted (and fictitious) island, located in the South Pacific, with very unusual inhabitants. They name it "Lincoln Island" in honour of American President Abraham Lincoln.
The castaways soon encounter a group of people that include the local natives (who worship the island's volcano), Rulu (a woman from Mercury trying to extract an unnamed superexplosive element in order to conquer the Earth), Ayrton (a wild man exiled on the island) and Captain Shard (a ruthless pirate). A mystery man, who possesses great scientific powers, also makes his presence known to the group of people; he is Captain Nemo, who survived the whirlpool in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, and unlike the character in the Disney film, was not fatally wounded by military troops from warships. On the way, our quintet of heroes must battle the elements and peoples while trying to figure out a way off the island and back to civilization.
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