Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D
Review
by Sean Lynch
Having endured a preview screening of The Mummy : Tomb of the Dragon
Emperor less than 24 hours earlier, the proposition of a
second helping of Brendan Fraser was far from an enticing thought.
The trailers for
this 2008 3D update of Jules Verne's classic
sci-fi/fantasy novel Journey
To The Centre Of The Earth were far from awe inspiring
either, conjuring up images of another Shark Boy vs Lava Girl.
But bugger me if Journey
3D
isn't one of the most enjoyable adventure flicks to hit the screen this
year. Move over Indiana Jones - we have a new King in town!
Using the 1864 tale as a template, the new Journey follows
scientist Trevor Anderson (Brendan Fraser) who along with his nephew Sean (Josh Hutcherson) travel to Iceland upon discovering some ground
breaking notes in his missing
brother's copy of the Jules Vern book.
It seems that Verne might not have been simply creating fiction... that
perhaps, just maybe, there was some truth to it all.
Enlisting a fellow scientist's daughter, Hannah (Anita Briem) as a
guide the trio trek the Icelandic mountains before descending into a
cave
which leads them deeper still into the centre of the earth.
While the major selling point of Journey
3D
is the fact it's the first feature length film to be shot entirely in
the "Real D" format - but at the end of the day, it was always going to
take more than a few spears and bugs jumping off the screen to make
this a worthwhile night out to the cinemas.
The good news is the
3D format is barely a foot note in what turns out to be one of
the
most fun, exciting and downright best childrens adventure flicks of
2008.
Fraser delivers an enjoyable performance here (much better than his
attempt in The Mummy 3)
as does co-star Hutcherson
(who seems to have a contractual obligation to appear in every Walden
Media production) with the two sharing a fantastic chemistry.
The
3D works a treat to, although how the film plays out in 2D remains to
be seen. Sure there are quite a few over-the-top instances in which a
dinosaur will bite at you, or a ball will whizz past your head
- but the real strength of this technology is the subliminal depth it
gives to each and every scene. Whether it simply be a table positioned
in the foreground, it is truly astonishing how well it tricks your
brain (all achieved without those old school paper glasses with red and
blue cellophane!).
At the end of the day, it doesn't matter how
impressive the visual wizardry is, it is the story, script and
characters which make a film worthwhile (take note George Lucas) and in
that regard Journey To
The Center of the Earth succeeds in spades.
Maybe it's the little kid inside me, but I have to admit this is the
first film since the original Charlie
& The Chocolate Factory
in which I was truly engrossed and even excited by the mysterious new
world the film's heroes were exploring. And that's a pretty big task!
Add to that the fact that even most science geeks will be impressed
with the logical explanations for every occurance and escape (geysers,
volcanic tubes, etc) and you've got yourself a movie that is not only
fun... but it actually pretty educational as well.
Whether or
not the novelty of 3D productions will continue into the next decade
remains unclear, but if studios can continue to churn out flicks of
this calibre - I'll be the first in line.
A great distraction from the world outside, highly recommended.
4 out
of 5
Journey to
the Center of the Earth 3D
Australian release: September
25th,
2008
Official
Website: Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D
Cast:
Brendan Fraser, Josh Hutcherson, Anita Briem
Director: Eric Brevig
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