Journey to the Center of the Earth

    Was a journey into a chronic state of disbelief... then the boredom set in. Fortunately it was over in 93 minutes.

    The original book by Jules Verne and the first movie of the same title, produced in 1959, were much better. Irrespective of the fact that this was not truly a remake, it did claim the title of the book, and yet it was not the same story: just an imposter masquerading under its title: preying on the fans of Verne - the visionary science fiction writer from the late 19th century.

    Regardless that the recent "Journey to the Center of the Earth" was not a sorry remake of the classic saga, it still shamelessly borrowed from its literary gravitas. Unfortunately, it was nothing more than a special effects vehicle to enthrall young audiences, that are more impressed by the dazzle, sizzle and pop of the fantastic rather than the fine telling of a timeless tale. Obviously there is a market for these shallow movies that are shot for an IMAX theatrical release, and in the case of this movie, alternately shot for the 3D viewing option offered on DVD. When there are so many good to great films known by me and some still to be discovered by me, I have not the time or the patience for well intentioned but poorly crafted movies like this one.

    It's not that I don't like movies chock full of computer graphics; on the contrary, if properly crafted in the context of the film, they make the story telling more rich in perspective. Sadly, this "Journey to the Center of the Earth" had no believable storyline and therefore failed miserably.

    My case in point was what was this week long journey by Professor Trevor Anderson, played by Brenden Frazier, and his estranged nephew, played by Josh Hutcherson, when they sojourned to Iceland to discover the validity of seismic activity in the northern tectonic plates. Their expedition begins when they are trapped in a mine shaft, and suddenly by a variety conveyances; including their long fall down a cooled magma shaft to a slippery and perfectly angled waterfall that breaks their descent; suddenly find themselves near the center of the earth. The fall, at arguably 32 feet per second, would have taken at least a week before they got anywhere close to that point where a close proximity to the center of the earth would begin. To continue my state of disbelief, they cross vast underground seas while encountering various adventures before ultimately vaulting up another shaft by the force of magma heated steam, and then ultimately expelled from the mouth of a dormant Mount Vesuvius in Italy. Rather than allocate a short week to travel to the earth's core and back: use the kid's entire summer vacation. I might buy that.

    Rated PG. Released on DVD October 28, 2008.