Kev11sky A classic!It would be impossible to film it in all those locations in today's world without spending many millions of dollars -- actual locations include Spain, Japan, USA, and (maybe?) India.The cameos by many actors are interesting. The plot is light-hearted and amusing. I think Cantinflas (as Passepartout) is the real star of the movie... his humor and acrobatic antics are not unlike today's Jackie Chan!

Leofwine_draca AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS is doubtless the definitive big screen adaptation of the Jules Verne novel, although I admit to loving the 1980s cartoon version of the series as a kid. All I remember about the cartoon nowadays is that it re-posited the main characters as dogs and had a really cool theme tune. But I digress: in terms of sheer 1950s-era star-studded spectacle, this film version takes some beating.This is a big bucks lavish production which looks absolutely glorious in high definition. From the first scenes of Cantinflas riding through the streets of London on his Penny Farthing you know you're in for a visual treat and the film's cinematography never disappoints in that respect. I also really appreciate the fact that the budget was high enough to allow for filming in exotic locales including Hong Kong and Japan.At times, this film appears to be something of a shallow viewing experience. It lurches from one big set-piece to the next with little in the way of depth or insight. At the same time, it keeps you watching without getting bored, no mean feat considering the extended running time. I thought that Cantinflas dominated the screen a bit too much and occasionally makes David Niven feel like a supporting player in his own movie, but that's not too great a flaw. The endless celebrity cameos are inevitable highs and some of the set-pieces, like the Indian attack, are brilliantly conceived. AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS really is one of those films that they simply don't make anymore.

jacobs-greenwood Using Jules Verne's novel about modern transportation and the resultant "shrinking globe", James Poe, John Farrow and S.J. Perelman won an Oscar for their adapted screenplay. Producer (and Elizabeth Taylor's third husband) Michael Todd, whose film technique Todd-AO was used for only the second time in this movie, won his only Oscar (he was killed less than a year later in a plane crash).In addition to winning Best Picture, the comedy adventure won three other Oscars and was nominated for three more, including for its director Michael Anderson (his only nomination from the Academy).David Niven plays the adventurous perfectionist Phileas Fogg and Cantinflas plays his newly hired, multi-talented and resourceful manservant Passepartout. British gentleman Fogg bets fellow members of his club (Finlay Currie, Robert Morley, Noel Coward, and Trevor Howard) that he can circle the globe in 80 days.Robert Newton is Mr. Fix, who knows nothing of the bet but is intent on catching and/or stopping Fogg because he believes that the adventurer is a thief. Shirley MacLaine plays a princess from India - that Fogg and Passepartout rescue from death - who travels with them for most of their trip.Among those that Todd was able to convince to appear in the film were Sir John Gielgud as a manservant, Charles Boyer as a travel agent, Jose Greco as a flamenco dancer (now there's a stretch), Cesar Romero as MacLaine's would-be executioner, Alan Mowbray as a government official, Sir Cedric Hardwicke, Melville Cooper, Reginald Denny, Ronald Colman as a railway official, Charles Coburn as a steamship clerk, Peter Lorre as a steward, George Raft as a saloon bouncer, Red Skelton as a drunk that enjoys the saloon's free food with Cantinflas, Marlene Dietrich as the saloon's hostess that Raft loves to protect, John Carradine as a blowhard Kentucky Colonel, Frank Sinatra as the saloon's pianist, Buster Keaton as a train conductor, Joe E. Brown as the station master, Andy Devine, Victor McLaglen and Jack Oakie as shipmates, John Mills as a carriage driver, Glynis Johns and Hermione Gingold as sporting ladies, and Edward R. Murrow as himself.

Gregory Porter Around the World in 80 Days is the 1956 adaptation of the Jules Verne novel of the same name. We follow the eccentric, particular, and peculiar Victorian gentleman, Phileas Fogg. By particular, I mean, he orders that his breakfast be served at 8:37, not 8:36 or 8:38, and that his toast be precisely 87 degrees. As with most gentlemen around that time he has a valet to help him with his day to day tasks but because he is so difficult he's gone through half a dozen in five months. His latest valet is an earnest, Spanish acrobat named Passepartout. Now, the journey begins when Fogg bets his fellow Reform Club members that he can go around the world in 80 days. Hence the name. They visit places like Madrid, Pakistan, Thailand, Japan and it was filmed on location in many of these places.At 167 minutes, this is a long movie and it feels like it. When the group is in Madrid, Passepartout takes part in a really lengthy bull fight. Being from 1956, before I saw it I anticipated a musical. That would explain the length, I thought. That's one of those things about musicals around that time. There is always a song followed by an extended dancing sequence. Not that there is anything wrong with dancing but, you know, after a while, let's just keep the movie going. But Around the World in 80 days is not a musical. Instead of dancing sequences, they have parades which are used to showcase a given culture. This is something interesting about this movie too. It provides an opportunity for the 1950's audience to see cultures around the world. There are lots of very relaxing shots with the camera mounted on the front of a train as it passes through the landscape.Now, this is 1956 after all, and being 1956 you have the problematic racism and sexism that you'd expect. For example, when the group goes through the jungle somewhere in India, they come across a group of cannibals who are sacrificing an Indian Princess, played by the ever so Indian Shirley McClaine. When the groups goes through America, they encountered a group of the Sioux or as the movie calls them "violent red skins." It was one of those movies that I just had to say "it was a different time."Something that struck me as odd was the massive number of cameos. If you look at the wikipedia page for this movie there is a whole section devoted to just the cameos. Frank Sinatra for example is a piano player in a Wild West saloon. He's on screen for maybe a second and has no lines. He just turns around and smiles. I only recognized a couple of people but I'm sure it would be fun if I knew more of them.The acting overall is good. I liked David Niven as Fogg. He is persnickety but at the same time endearing. Passepartout is a really nice character too. He's like a Spanish acrobatic Charlie Chaplin. The whole tone of this movie is that of a lighthearted adventure.Would I recommend Around the World in 80 days? Because it is colorful and long, I can see it projected on a wall to be a backdrop for a party. I once went to a club where Rapmania the Roots of Rap was projected over the bar. Rapmania is a hip hop concert from the mid-nineties. While it was projected on the wall, current music was being played over the speakers. Nobody was really watching the movie unless they were using as a break from conversation or if they were sitting at the bar. It served as a sort of visual stimulation. On it's own though, because it is rather racist and sexist and very long, I wouldn't really recommend it.