Fantastic Voyage (1966)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Richard Fleischer

Writers:

Harry Kleiner (screenplay)
David Duncan (adaptation)

Release Date:

24 August 1966 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

The screen's most fantastic voyage

Plot:

A diplomat is nearly assassinated. In order to save him, a submarine is shrunken to microscopic size and injected into his blood stream with a small crew. Problems arise almost as soon as they enter the bloodstream.

Plot Keywords:

Blood | Submarine | Tympanic Membrane | Coffee | Military

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Stephen Boyd	...	Grant
Raquel Welch	...	Cora
Edmond O'Brien	...	General Carter
Donald Pleasence	...	Dr. Michaels
Arthur O'Connell	...	Col. Donald Reid
William Redfield	...	Capt. Bill Owens
Arthur Kennedy	...	Dr. Duval
Jean Del Val	...	Jan Benes
Barry Coe	...	Communications Aide
Ken Scott	...	Secret Service
Shelby Grant	...	Nurse
James Brolin	...	Technician
Brendan Fitzgerald	...	Wireless Operator

Also Known As:

Microscopia
Strange Journey

MPAA:

Rated PG for mild violence and language.

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System) | Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved (certificate #20942) (original rating) | Canada:G (video rating) | Portugal:M/6 | Australia:G | Finland:K-12 | Spain:T | Sweden:15 | UK:U | USA:PG | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Exposition Park, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

As a college student, director Richard Fleischer was a pre-med student for a time.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The amount of radioactive material for the sub would not need a lead carrying case. Grant proves this by removing the container from the case with no protection and handing it to Owens who inserts it into the reactor, again bare-handed.

Quotes:

Grant: Wait a minute! They can't shrink me.
General Carter: Our miniaturizer can shrink anything.
Grant: But I don't want to be miniaturized!
General Carter: It's just for an hour.
Grant: Not even for a minute!

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in Dead End (1985)

Superior Sci-Fi Adventure!

The premise of "Fantastic Voyage" seemed very unlikely in 1966, however in 2002 I'm not so sure.

The story concerns a top secret miniaturization program being developed by the Americans and concurrently by "the other side". A scientist from the other side has the secret of counteracting the situation where the miniaturization effects wear off after one hour. Unfortunately, the scientist receives a brain injury in an assassination attempt. This results in General Carter (Edmond O'Brien), the commanding officer of the project deciding to "send in" a team of experts miniaturized, to the injured man's brain to repair the damage.

The team consists of Drs. Duval (Arthur Kennedy) and Michaels (Donald Pleasance), Pilot Capt. Owens (William Redfield) and the romantic leads, Grant (Stephen Boyd) and the ever lovely Raquel Welch as Duval's assistant. Assisting O'Brien as a medical expert is Arthur O'Connell as Col. Reid. Of course, as in most film's of this type there is the inevitable fifth columnist aboard. The acting is good, particluarly the performances of veterans Kennedy, Pleasance, O'Brien and O'Connell.

The real star of the "Fantastic Voyage" are its amazing special effects. Filmed long before today's computerized digital effects, this film still makes believable, the illusion of a team of people being injected into a person's bloodstream. To fully appreciate the effects the viewer should see it in its widescreen format.

Watch for James Brolin in a small role as one of the lab technicians. And if you get bored, there's always (snort, pant, drool) Raquel in her form fitting diving suit.