Rating: 1½ stars (out of 4)

Around the World in 80 Days (1956): Dir. Michael Anderson.  Written by: James Poe, John Farrow, and S.J. Perelman.  Based upon the novel of the same name by Jules Verne.  Starring: David Niven, Cantinflas, Shirley MacLaine, and Robert Newton.  Rated G.  Running time: 167 minutes.

Boasting star power, budget, and intriguing source material, Michael Anderson’s 1956 opus should provide rousing adventure and exciting locales.  Unfortunately, it ends up offering less of a world tour and more of a world perusal.

The film was and remains one of the most ambitious undertakings ever produced, boasting an enormous cast of extras, locations, sets, and costumes—it’s pure, indulgent Hollywood.  We follow the persnickety British gentleman Phileas Fogg, who bets that he can accomplish the eponymous feat by utilizing the fairly recent advents of steam and railway technology.  Accompanying him is his eccentric manservant and an Indian princess rescued from a violent cult.

But while ambitious, the film has little aspiration beyond its expensive tastes, which are superficial indeed.  We don’t get immersed in any of the cultures we encounter, instead encountering the Western stereotype version of every foreign country.  Even the conflicts of the film are quickly resolved, conveniently stemming any sense of tension.  A running conflict involving Fogg accused of robbing the Bank of England?  Resolved with a dissolve to Fogg being exonerated.

And while some sequences provide good fun, the movie barely gives us a reason to root for our protagonists.  It’s as if the filmmakers thought that brisk pacing would distract from the lack of character development.  David Niven plays the archetypal British gentleman to a tee, but the character is so underwritten he’s barely interesting (I’m at a loss as to why Niven called this his favorite role).  At least Cantinflas manages to slightly entertain as the resourceful Passepartout.

I will give the film credit for a clever ending, but by then, well…too little too late.  Rather than taking a tour of the world, I felt as if I’d just taken a rush tour of Epcot’s World Showcase.  In a Concorde jet.

Next film: The Bridge on the River Kwai, 1957