My favorite element of Disney’s telling of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea is in the casting. Not every role is a perfect fit but two stand out as great achievements.

The first is most obviously Kirk Douglas in the role of Ned Land. Mister Douglas had already picked up a couple Oscar nominations by the time he signed on to Disney’s take on the Jules Verne story. But his previous roles were far more serious roles. His fun-loving portrayal of the harpoon hunter quickly personified a “Disney performance”, one where viewers have an unwritten contract with the performer that ‘everythings gonna turn out okay, let’s have some fun’. He even finds time to perform a song or two during the film, one time doing some fancy guitar work that may not musically make sense, but it sure is clever. It is important to understand Kirk Douglas’ take on Ned Land to fully appreciate the next performance.

James Mason also had a big career on stage and screen long before taking command of the Nautilus as Captain Nemo. In a film where the stars work within their clean family film performances, James Mason did not get the memo. His take on Nemo could easily fit into a serious biopic of a troubled, ingenious man. His dark characterization is so unique in the film – so un-Disney – that it is easy to see Nemo as a truly stellar individual, concerned only with his slanted view of a perfect world.

Hats off to both of them…. You gotta love it.