Rating: 
Summary: A score that gives visions of the underworld.
Review: Bernard Herrmann's score for this film is just perfect for it. The complete brass section brings out the terror and beauty of the places in the center of the Earth. Jimmy Van Heusen's music was also very beautiful, and I'm so glad that they added in the two other deleted songs. Herrmann used almost the same arrangement that he did when he composed for Jason and The Argonauts. All brass and woodwinds, harp, no strings, but the only thing that he didn't use for Jason and The Argonauts was the organ, which brought a chilling feeling to the dangers of the area. The inventiveness for track 18 was perfect for the chameleon scene, but you kind've have to laugh at the way it sounds. It matches exactly what the linear notes say in the booklet. This is an absolute must for Herrmann fans.
Rating: 
Summary: Another 4.5 star movie from years ago
Review: This is a high-adventure film based upon Jules Verne's novel. A scientist, played impeccably by James Mason, puts together an expedition to follow successfully in the tracks of a previous, attempt to reach the center of the Earth (in Verne's time, it was not known that the Earth had a molten core). There are lots of special effects, weird creatures, weird scenes, and intrigue along the way. Mason's Dr. Lindenbrook is a very driven man (we see that early on, but his fellow travelers take a while to realize it, and are stuck with him by then). Pat Boone does a surprisingly good job as the scientist's assistant on the expedition. Arlene Dahl tags along as a wealthy investors/explorer, and ends up being a love interests for Mason.Are the special effects dated? Yes, but not as much as one would expect from a movie made in 1959. The worst effect is the lizards with rubber fins on their backs. That factor does not detract from the story and the adventure and the surreal scenery of the interior of the Earth (according to Jules Verne and producer Michael Todd). This movie is just plain fun, along with "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea". Update on 11/2/03: I just read the novel, and now realize that the film was only very loosely based on the Jules Verne novel. The premise remains intact: a scientist leads a small team in an attempt to retrace an earlier expedition to the Earth's center. However, the movie added several characters and plot-lines, rearranged many aspects of the "world" found within the Earth, and inserted a solid dose of comic relief not found in the novel. The film discarded an ongoing discussion of scientific theory between two characters (played by Mason and Boone in the film), possibly because their debate is now a moot point. If this film, as is, came out today, it would be blasted as being totally unfaithful to the novel. I wonder if that occurred when the film was released. Eitherway, it is still an interesting and entertaining film.
Rating:
Summary: A fantastic adventure
Review: Journey to the Center of the Earth is just as great of a movie has the book of the same name. The character names have been changed. The plot has somewhat been changed also. The "Dinosaurs" in the film are actually lizards with fake frills put on them. Nevertheless, they still look like how Dimetrodons possibly looked millions of years ago. Another good thing about the dinosaurs is that they are not all over the place. They take up a little less than 15 minutes of screen time. The sets are simply breathtaking. A funny part of the movie is when the professor taps Morse code to a duck. Also, he walks by a bagpipe band without even knowing it! The movie is somewhat sexist ("All women hear things. Up there!"). But that is probably similar to what happened in the late 19th century. Journey to the Center of the Earth is a great movie for fans of Jules Verne's novels or for people looking for a good family film (I would also recommend Full Metal Jacket for a family film. Just kidding!).
Rating:
Summary: One of the best Science Fiction Movies ever made.
Review: I had read Journey to the Center of the Earth about five years ago, so I can say that this movie is quite faithful to the book. James Mason and Pat Boone play scientists who lead an expedition to the center of the Earth, and encounter everything from a cave of giant mushrooms to Dinosaurs that live beneath the earth;s surface. The effects work is still pretty good for it's time. The dinosaurs look quite real, and This film should be in the collection of anyone who likes good science fiction.Screenplay by Walter Reisch and Charles Brackett.Based on the novel by Jules Verne.Directed by Henry Levin.Music by Bernard Herrmann.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best classic movies of all time
Review: Before I watched "Journey To The Center of The Earth," I was expecting it to be something like "At The Earth's Core" where a scientist travels in a huge drilling machine to get to the center of the earth. But it's not anything like "At The Earth's Core," it's a lot better. Professor Lindenbrook (James Mason) and the crew don't use a machine to get there, they just work their way down on foot. "Journey To The Center of The Earth" is an exciting journey filled with adventure. You'll see some of the best effects from any movie made in the late 50's when you see some of the caverns and volcanoes in the movie. Some of the best scenes in the movie are when the crew gets chased by a huge boulder and when Alec McEwen (Pat Boone) falls down into a place full of salt. They also run into a few big reptiles who try to stand in their way. Bottom line: If you like classic adventure movies, "Journey To The Center of The Earth" is definitely one you can't afford to miss.
Rating:
Summary: James mason gets down---I mean way down.
Review: A Professor (James Mason) is given a piece of lava for a present. It proves to be too heavy for the type of lava. Upon examination there is a message inside that will eventually take this professor through many adverse adventures eventually leading to a "Journey to the Center of the Earth"
I usually side with the book. However this time it is the movie that I will hold as the standard. This is better than all the subsequent attempts to re-interpret the story. They picked just the right people for the parts. Pat Boone as Alec McEwen (Goodbye Charlie ASIN: B00000IBMF), James Mason as Professor Oliver Lindenbrook, and Arlene Dahl as Mrs. Carla Goetaborg. And Thayer David was the sinister Count Saknussmen. The count had no scruples when it came to shooting or eating. However I was a little upset when he ate Gertrude.
I still watch this periodical. And kid about the three marks of Arny Saknussmen when they show the footprint of the Mantis (The Deadly Mantis ASIN: 6302763916), as it has the same three marks.
Rating:
Summary: A fantastic old adventure
Review: Although this epic-scale retelling of Jules Verne's classic novel veers wildly off course, it's still a marvellous and fun old-fashioned adventure for the whole family. The German professor Lidenbrock becomes Scottish professor Lindenbrook, along with his contempories, since there was no way that in America of 1959, there was going to be a film with Germans as the good guys. It may be taking liberties, but it doesn't detract in the slightest. What does however is then-teenage heart-throb Pat Boone using the film as a vehicle to endorse his songs. When he sings My Love Is Like A Red Red Rose, it's a true Fast Forward moment for me. Other differences include the addition of a rival expedition to the Earth's core which leads to placing a woman in the main cast to provide a love interest (Arlene Dahl), and another rival contender who is a descendant of Arne Saknussemm - the first man to discover a world below the ground. And then there's the lost city of Atlantis, giant lizards, and of course Gertrude the duck. There are enough differences to fill an Olympic swimming pool, but really, only the purists would be offended by all these massive differences. They actually make for a wonderful adventure which is headed by a capable cast: James Mason (who would take the lead role in Verne's 20 000 Leagues Under The Sea a year later), the aforementioned Dahl (having a woman was a gratuitous addition but Dahl can act just fine), Pat Boone (when he's not singing), and among others, Diane Baker and Charles Napier. It may be dated, but it was done so well, it will never go out of fashion. Relive a true classic.
Rating:
Summary: Journey to the Center Of The Earth: Herrman's Volcano
Review: Bernard Herrman turns almost any music to gold, makes average films better. In Journey to the Center of the Earth, Herrman unleashes the elements of geology through his themes, whether a startling trumpet of sunlight passing through mountain peaks, a wonderful use of the organ bringing an ominous quality to certain scenes, and crashing cymbals during a seastorm, and ascending and descending harp notes for climbing scenes. Only an average movie, Herrman's music makes it worthwhile, even if he scores a few songs for Pat Boone, which aren't too bad considering "My Love Is a Red Red Rose, " is a famous Scottish song to the words of the immortal Robert Burns. Like all his fantasy film scores, this one is again magical, mysterioius as the geological adventures it follows deep into the dark regions of the planet.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best!
Review: I remember how much I had loved this film growing up. I love it even more now! This is a great film with great acting! This is not a stupid low budget movie. This is a very well done wonderful film of adventure! Fun for the whole family!
Rating:
Summary: Herrmann at his darkest
Review: This soundtrack represents Bernard Herrmann at his darkest. It is powerful in its simplicity; full of bass rumblings and deep organ chords representing the subterranean world of the film, with contrasting brass fanfares that evoke the explorers' heroic quest. (I could have done without the Pat Boone songs that appear on the album, but they WERE in the film . . .) One interesting feature is Herrmann's use of a medieval instrument called the serpent, in the cue "Giant Chameleon." As the excellent liner notes (written by Herrmann scholar Steven C. Smith) explain, this instrument has a very odd tone, sometimes described as sounding like a "donkey with emotional problems." Although I don't find its use very inspiring in this particular soundtrack, it just shows what an innovator Herrmann was, willing to use ancient instruments and modern alike (i.e. the theremin in "The Day the Earth Stood Still"). Herrmann afficionados will not be disappointed in this recording, though it has, as he admitted, less human qualities than many of his other scores.
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