The 3 Worlds of Gulliver *** (1960, Kerwin Mathews, Jo Morrow, June Thorburn) – Classic Movie Review 3721

Kerwin Mathews makes a dashing, handsome but rather bland hero as Lemuel Gulliver in co-writer/director Jack Sher’s swift 1960 run-through of Jonathan Swift’s 1726 satirical novel Gulliver’s Travels, with the emphasis on the familiar Brobdingnagian and Lilliputian adventures.

In Swift’s novel, Brobdingnag is a fictional unknown land occupied by giants, which Gulliver visits the land after his ship is blown off course and he is separated from an exploration party. The Lilliputians are a society of mean, nasty and vicious people around six inches in average height but possessing all the pretension and self-importance of full-sized folk.

Producer Charles H Schneer’s family fantasy adventure entertainment The 3 Worlds of Gulliver is pleasantly easy-going viewing, with some lovely patches but also some dull stretches as well.

The movie’s main redeeming attractions are Ray Harryhausen’s appealing Superdynamation stop-motion trick work, Wilkie Cooper’s eye-catching Eastmancolor cinematography and Bernard Herrmann’s rip-roaring music score.

The other asset is the nice cast, including Basil Sydney as the Emperor of Lilliput, Mary Ellis as Queen of Brobdingnag, Jo Morrow as Gwendolyn, June Thorburn as Elizabeth, Grégoire Aslan as King Brob, Charles Lloyd Pack as Makovan, Martin Benson as Flimnap, Marian Spencer as the Empress of Lilliput, Alec Mango as Minister of Lilliput, Sherry Alberoni as Glumdalclitch and Peter Bull as Lord Bermogg.

Also in the cast (uncredited) are John Breslin as Kings Guard, Joan Hickson as Mrs Dewsbury, patient at Dr Gulliver’s, Oliver Johnston as Mr Grinch, Waveney Lee as Makovan’s daughter Shrike and Noel Purcell as Captain Pritchard.

The 3 Worlds of Gulliver was shot on location in Spain.

Arthur Ross writes the screenplay with Jack Sher, based on Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift.

Ray Harryhausen died on May 7 2013, aged 92.

© Derek Winnert 2013 Classic Movie Review 3721

Check out more reviews on derekwinnert.com