Fantastic Voyage is a wonderful, old-fashioned sci-fi adventure ripe with unique ideas. I like the idea about exploring the inside of a human body, something that hasn't been done much even at a time where original ideas are practically non-existent. The film is not all perfect, as the visual effects are very outdated, though it's still cool to look at. I also had an issue with some of the characterization, mainly with Raquel Welch's character. I had no idea what the point of her role was other than being eye candy. But for the most part, I had a fun time watching the movie and it was even a learning experience for me, learning about the human body. I also loved the score for the film. It wasn't so much a score as it was a sound effects party. In most cases, I would have been annoyed, but I felt such a score would belong in a film like this.
Richard Fleischer's film is about this scientist who is mortally wounded by gunfire, and he holds the secret to miniaturization that could be catastrophic if the information fell in the wrong hands. The CIA decides to do emergency brain surgery, but in order to do so, they most get miniaturized themselves and take a trip into the human body. Grant was hired to act as security, because the CIA fear one of their own may be with the enemy.
The film was reasonably well-acted. Stephen Boyd, more known as Judah Ben Hur's enemy in 1959's Ben-Hur does a pretty good job. This is Raquel Welch's film debut, but I'm not sure the point of her character was. There was no romantic subplot or she hardly ever speaks. This was probably my biggest bugaboo. Donald Pleasance, mostly known for starring in horror films, does a wonderful job as the lead doctor.
Overall, Fantastic Voyage is a fun sci-fi movie that holds up pretty well today, story-wise. The visuals were good for its time, but not so much today. I loved the idea of exploring the human body, and I think this film does that justice. When the body's immune system starts attacking everyone was a very interesting scene to watch. I was expecting a cheesy sci-fi movie to be honest, but I was pleasantly surprised. Maybe I shouldn't be with how the cast was. While nowhere near perfection, it was a fun movie to watch.
My Grade: B+
Richard Fleischer's film is about this scientist who is mortally wounded by gunfire, and he holds the secret to miniaturization that could be catastrophic if the information fell in the wrong hands. The CIA decides to do emergency brain surgery, but in order to do so, they most get miniaturized themselves and take a trip into the human body. Grant was hired to act as security, because the CIA fear one of their own may be with the enemy.
The film was reasonably well-acted. Stephen Boyd, more known as Judah Ben Hur's enemy in 1959's Ben-Hur does a pretty good job. This is Raquel Welch's film debut, but I'm not sure the point of her character was. There was no romantic subplot or she hardly ever speaks. This was probably my biggest bugaboo. Donald Pleasance, mostly known for starring in horror films, does a wonderful job as the lead doctor.
Overall, Fantastic Voyage is a fun sci-fi movie that holds up pretty well today, story-wise. The visuals were good for its time, but not so much today. I loved the idea of exploring the human body, and I think this film does that justice. When the body's immune system starts attacking everyone was a very interesting scene to watch. I was expecting a cheesy sci-fi movie to be honest, but I was pleasantly surprised. Maybe I shouldn't be with how the cast was. While nowhere near perfection, it was a fun movie to watch.
My Grade: B+