The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen *** (2003, Sean Connery, Stuart Townsend, Peta Wilson, Shane West, Jason Flemyng) – Classic Movie Review 1082

Sean Connery stars as adventurer Allan Quatermain in director Stephen Norrington’s lively 2003 fantasy comic book adventure, in which seven famous characters from Victorian fiction combine to stop a maniac known as The Fantom from starting a world war in 1899. With some wobbly acting, writing and editing but flashy action, a plush production, handsome Prague filming and impressive sets, this is jolly good escapist entertainment.

Based on the graphic novels by Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill, it’s a great idea, Connery is ideally cast and there is a marvellous production (the Nautilus submarine action in Venice looks particularly impressive). So it’s a great pity that James Dale Robinson’s screenplay is so patchy and the editing so choppy.

Unsurprisingly, lots of deleted scenes appear on the DVD. If these had been in the movie it would have been a much more satisfactory experience. Amusing though it is, it’s a bit of a wasted opportunity because it could have been a real contender. Naseeruddin Shah is Captain Nemo, Peta Wilson is Mina Harker from Dracula, Tony Curran is Rodney Skinner, an Invisible Man, Townsend is Dorian Gray, Shane West is American secret service agent Tom Sawyer and Jason Flemyng is both Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

Cheekily, Richard Roxburgh is M and David Hemmings appears as Nigel.

The DVD has 12 deleted and extended scenes, a behind-the-scenes documentary and audio commentaries, all of them fascinating.

Paid $17million for his role, Connery allegedly had a poor working relationship with director Norrington and this was his last film before he decided to retire quietly from acting. Norrington did not attend the opening party and, when Connery was asked where the director was, he is said to have replied ‘Check the local asylum’.

Blade director Norrington had such a hard time that he said he would never direct another film – and by 2014 hasn’t. He was a member of the creature effects crew on Aliens and in charge of alien creature effects on Alien 3. Alan Moore was reportedly unhappy with the adaptation, vastly different from his original story.

Filming was delayed due to the summer 2002 floods in Prague, which destroyed more than $7million worth of sets.

All the characters except The Invisible Man have fallen into the public domain, so anybody can write about them. But 20th Century Fox was unable to get the rights for H.G. Wells’s literary character of The Invisible Man, so the character’s name in the film is changed from the book’s Dr Hawley Griffin and Rodney Skinner is never be referred to as The Invisible Man, only an invisible man.

It was intended to spawn a film franchise based on other titles in the comic book series, and the actors were signed up to do three movies. But, with $180million gross worldwide, there was little enthusiasm for a sequel, though it survived poor reviews to build up a bit of a cult following. And now it cries out for a successful reboot.

On 27 May 2015 it was announced that 20th Century Fox has plans to reboot the movie.

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© Derek Winnert 2014 Classic Movie Review 1082

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