The 3 Worlds of Gulliver (1960) User Reviews

A Gulliver for Kids and Adults

[wannall · 7/10 · 9 July 2000]

The special effects that let Gulliver be a giant in Lilliput and a mite in Brobdingnag are by the reigning genius of the day, Ray Harryhausen, but writer/director Jack Sher's 1960 film wisely uses them only in the service of the story. They have held up quite well, in part because they were used with restraint to begin with and they do nothing to interrupt or distract from the story and its points. (A minor exception could be the fight with a giant animated crocodile that must have been damn fun for the effects team, but even it is kept within reason.)

Is this a film for children or a film for adults? The too-easy answer is that it is obviously a children's version: There is none of the trumped-up insanity element that the dreary-but-great-looking 1996 TV movie shoe-horned in for cheap drama. Neither is there the despair or genuine misanthropy of the book.

Only Lilliput and Brobdingnag are visited. (No Laputa, Balnibari, Luggnag, Glubbdubdrib, Japan, or Houyhnhnms. The third world is Gulliver's own normal-sized world.) Gulliver puts out the fire in Lilliput by spitting wine. (In the book, the wine has been processed by Gulliver's bladder before he douses the fire with it.) Many characters, though not all, are all done in a cartoonish way clearly aimed at children. The travels are framed within the added-on love story of Gulliver and his fiancée Elizabeth.

These are good choices. Children are inherently interested in the size contrasts. (It must add something to the experience that first they identify with the Lilliputians but later identify with Gulliver.) Spitting the wine is good enough. The cartoonish-ness makes the characters less threatening than they could have been. The love story is light and easy to follow, and promotes marriage.

There are even a couple of musical numbers, one a love song that Gulliver sings. The Bernard Herrmann score is a fine complement to the film, as you would expect from the composer of music for the original Psycho, Citizen Kane, Magnificent Ambersons, Ghost and Mrs. Muir, Day the Earth Stood Still, Alfred Hitchcock Presents (tv), Have Gun Will Travel (tv), Perry Mason (tv), Twilight Zone, Cape Fear (1962), Taxi Driver, and on and on and on.

But Sher's script and direction have preserved some important points and spirit from the book: The gratitude of princes is short-lived. The causes of war can be shockingly petty. Vanity and unreason among the powerful make truth an early casualty in the pursuit of power. The various unpleasant characters (and the few nice ones) actually reflect things inside all of us. If it's okay for an adult to be reminded of these things in a playful way (certainly more playful than the original), then this film will amuse and inform that adult.

And what are Gulliver and Elizabeth doing when their ball-field sized marriage license falls over them like a tent, and King Brob, peeking under it, is moved to say, "You're right dear. I'd better marry them at once."

Ultimately, it has to go down in the books as a children's film, but surely an uncommon one: an intelligent adaptation, if abridged and lighthearted, of a great classic, that stands on its own for entertainment and, if you like, can whet your child's appetite for the book when that time arrives.

Like the tacked-on love story, there is a tacked-on ending that suggests that the whole thing might have been a dream. I originally found this annoying.

These days, watching with my little girl, I find that I'm glad for the admittedly sore-thumb reminder that the value of the story is not in whether those characters do or don't exist, but in what the story says about what is within us. As with all such points in the film, you'll have to talk with your child a bit to be sure that it comes across, but what a pleasure - to find a film that sparks such a discussion with your child.

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Other works by Jack Sher:

-------------------------------------------------------- Writer - filmography -------------------------------------------------------- Female Artillery (1972) (TV) (story) Goodbye, Raggedy Ann (1971) (TV) Move Over, Darling (1963) Critic's Choice (1963) Love in a Goldfish Bowl (1961) Paris Blues (1961) 3 Worlds of Gulliver, The (1960) ... aka Worlds of Gulliver, The (1960) Wild and the Innocent, The (1959) Kathy O' (1958) (also story) Joe Butterfly (1957) Four Girls in Town (1956) Walk the Proud Land (1956) ... aka Apache Agent (1956) World in My Corner (1956) (also story) Kid from Left Field, The (1953) Off Limits (1953) ... aka Military Policemen (1953) (UK) Shane (1953) (additional dialogue) My Favorite Spy (1951)

-------------------------------------------------------- Director - filmography -------------------------------------------------------- Love in a Goldfish Bowl (1961) 3 Worlds of Gulliver, The (1960) ... aka Worlds of Gulliver, The (1960) Wild and the Innocent, The (1959) Kathy O' (1958) Four Girls in Town (1956)

(with thanks to The Internet Movie Database http://www.imdb.com)

Pleasant Saturday Matinee Fun

[buchser · 7/10 · 22 November 2003]

This pleasant yet dated little 1960 family movie arrives is part of Columbia TriStar's "Ray Harryhausen Signature Collection." However, unlike Jason and the Argonauts, First Men in the Moon, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, and 20 Million Miles to Earth, there's not much here to thrill the average Harryhausen fan. Other than a quick battle with a giant alligator and a dino-sized squirrel that's more mirthful than menacing, The 3 Worlds of Gulliver doesn't depend on Harryhausen's famed stop-motion monsters to menace our hero. Instead, it features cinematic effects that make seafarer Dr. Lemuel Gulliver (7th Voyage's Sinbad, Kerwin Mathews) a skyscraper-tall behemoth on the isle of Lilliput and a doll-sized castaway "witch" in the court of Brobdingnag. The script is just a wire hanger for the "giant/tiny" effects scenes, but the story moves briskly (even a pair of treacly song-breaks don't get much in the way), and it should particularly appeal to the under-10 set who haven't yet become jaundiced to anything pre-dating modern CGI gloss. Mathews is plenty wholeseome and likable in a role first offered to Danny Kaye and (no kidding) Jack Lemmon. And Gulliver's fiancé/wife (June Thorburn) is perfunctory but not too much of a drip. Look for Peter Bull, Dr. Strangelove's Russian ambassador, in a small role. Of course the script is loosely based on the first half of Jonathan Swift's ribald 1726 novel, Gulliver's Travels. While the book remains one of the hardest-biting social satires ever to draw blood from the pompous and the political, few of those teeth remain in this truncated adaptation. Nonetheless, the Lilliputian social order and its Emperor's single-minded war against a neighboring island - fought over an absurdly trivial matter inflated to genocidal levels by unbending ideological fervor - are still recognizable targets. Visually, Harryhausen's tall/small effects are well done, though a viewer accustomed to more recent breakthroughs should expect to see the seams showing and hear the floorboards creaking. For a good number of fans, Bernard Herrmann's fine score is the chief appeal here.

Fun family tale with special effects by the great Ray Harryhausen and utterly shot in Spain

[ma-cortes · 6/10 · 3 March 2015]

A poor Englishman doctor called Gulliver (Kerwin Matthews) has adventurer plans , so nothing keeps him in the little town he lives , not even his girlfriend Elisabeth (June Thornburn) who wishes to marry him . He signs on to a ship to India in spite of objections his beautiful fiancée . But in a storm he's washed ashore and discovers a fantasy land of small inhabitants called Lilliput in the East Indies where everyone is about two inches tall . Later on , he managed to convince them he's harmless and is accepted as one of their villagers , but their king wants to utilize him in war against his enemies . After that , Gulliver goes to land of Bobdingnag where inhabits giant people .

This is an amusing adventure movie , a colorful family rendition of Jonathan Swift's classic as well as satiric novel written in 1726 . Many scenarios have been constructed in miniature , others have been made by special techniques and remaining are staged by natural outdoors from Spain such as Alcázar de Segovia, Segovia, Ávila, Palacio de La Granja De San Ildefonso palace, La Granja, San Ildefonso, Segovia, Castilla y León, and Paltja d'Aro, Girona, Catalonia . Flavorful performance from Kerwin Matthews , Jo Morrow , Lee Patterson , Gregoire Aslan , Basil Sydney , Martin Benson , among others . Adequate and spectacular art direction by Gil Parrondo who subsequently would achieve Academy Award for Patton . Rousing and evocative score of Bernard Herrmann , Hitchcock's regular . Glimmer and glamorous scenarios well photographed by Wilkie Cooper . Professional though uneven direction by filmmaker Jack Sher

The highlights of the movie are the great visual effects by craftsman Ray Harryhausen , including his ordinary monsters using his customary system Dynamation . After three sci-fi monster films such as The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms , 20 Million Miles to Earth , It Came from Beneath the Sea and work with Willis O'Brien in Mighty Joe Young and on an Irwin Allen documentary titled : The animal world , Harryhausen did the effects work for The 7th Voyage of Sinbad or Sinbad and the princess (1958) also starred by Kerwin Matthews , his first split-screen film shot entirely in color, which was highlighted by Harryhausen's mythological monsters interacting with actors . Because Harryhausen worked alone on his stop-motion animation sequences, the filming of these could often take as long as two years, the most famous example of the kind of patience required being the exciting skeleton sword fight sequence in his most popular film Jason and the Argonauts (1963) in which Harryhausen often shot no more than 13 frames of film (one-half second of elapsed time) per day . The 1960s were Harryhausen's best years, among the spotlights being his reunions with dinosaurs and other creatures in Hammer Films' One Million Years B.C (1966) , The Valley of Gwangi (1969) , Mysterious Island (1961) and this The 3 Worlds of Gulliver (1960) . His pace slowed in the 1970s, but he produced three of his masterworks during that period : The fantastic voyage of Sinbad (1973); Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger (1977) and Clash of Titans (1981).

Other versions about this immortal novel are the followings : ¨Gulliver's travels¨(1939) by Max and Dave Fleischer , being an animated retelling ; ¨Gulliver's travels¨(1977) by Peter Hunt with Richard Harris , Catherine Schell , in which real life and cartoon mix in a three-dimensional tale ; TV adaptation (1995) by Charles Sturridge with Mary Steenburgen , Edward Fox , Peter O'Toole , Edward Woodward , Ned Beatty , in which Gulliver/Ted Danson is confined in Bedlam insane asylum after being lost at sea for eight years and he relates his odd adventures in the tiny land and among the giants and the silly and impractical intellectual of Laputa . And recent comical recounting (2010) by Rob Letterman with Jack Black , Jason Segel , Emily Blunt and Amanda Peet .

Close to definitive adaptation

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 20 January 2013]

The reteaming of Kerwin Mathews, Bernard Herrman and Ray Harryhausen after the success of THE 7TH VOYAGE OF SINBAD may not be the classic we were hoping for, but instead is a kiddie-orientated version of the classic Jonathan Swift tale GULLIVER'S TRAVELS with enough ingredients to make it enjoyable for adults too. Sure, at times the film is sentimental and goes overboard in promoting a strong moral message, but this is never offensive as in recent productions. In retrospect, it all seems rather charming and a little dated, but that's what makes it unique. This is a colourful and lively romp which is fun for adults and children alike.

I'm sure the classic tale is familiar to most readers so I won't bother readdressing it, other than that this film concerns solely on the two kingdoms of Lilliput and Brobdingnan, ignoring the other minor lands of Swift's tale and concentrating on the most well-remembered ones. The first half of the film concerns Lilliput, and is boosted by some fine effects from Harryhausen which involve lots and lots of back and forward projection which is never less than convincing. Indeed the classic scene of Gulliver being tied down by the little people is present and as realistic as you could ever want it. The characters are interesting, the story good and bolstered by the likable presence of Kerwin Mathews, one of the most naturally charming of fantasy actors from the period who always lifted any movie he appeared in (another good one is JACK THE GIANT KILLER).

The second half of the film, concerning the land of the giants, isn't quite as good, but again the special effects of the miniature Mathews and Thorburn are better than average. Although it drags a little at times, the characters are interesting if not likable, and thankfully some stop-motion animation is interested by Harryhausen to enliven the proceedings. The creations include a briefly-seen but genuinely impressive giant squirrel which abducts Mathews, miniature animals kept in cages, and a miniature crocodile which then proceeds to battle Mathews in a fight to the death, a classic action moment which comes as a reward to those looking for Sinbad-style monster action.

THE 3 WORLDS OF GULLIVER is a film worth watching for the talent involved alone. As well as Mathews, the quality cast includes the lovely June Thorburn as the love interest and a whole host of familiar British character actors - including Charles Lloyd Pack in a meaty role for a change as an evil wizard - playing the miniature people and the giants. Bernard Herrman's score is also lively and always entertaining, whilst Harryhausen seamlessly integrates the large and small people so that you never for a moment doubt the quality of his effects. Not a classic, but a fine, friendly, old-fashioned adventure, as heartwarming and cliffhanging in equal measure as you could want. A TV-movie adaptation (with lots of unnecessarily-added extraneous scenes) with Ted Danson followed in the mid 90's.

What you don't understand you want to destroy!

[hitchcockthelegend · 6/10 · 28 June 2010]

The Three Worlds of Gulliver is produced out of Columbia Pictures and is directed by Jack Sher. It stars Kerwin Matthews as Lemuel Gulliver, June Thorburn as his fiancée Elizabeth, with support coming from Basil Sydney (The Emperor of Lilliput), Grégoire Aslan (King Brob), Mary Ellis (Queen), Charles Lloyd Pack (Prime Minister Makovan) & child actor Sherry Alberoni as Glumdalclitch. Filmed in England and Spain, it features stop-motion animation and special visual effects by Superdynamation genius Ray Harryhausen. Sher & Arthur Ross adapt for the screen with a loose reworking of the 18th-century English novel Gulliver's Travels written by Jonathan Swift. And music maestro Bernard Herrmann provides the score.

Swift's biting satirical novel has been watered down and given a romantic edge for the family market. That said, as the kids are enjoying the froth and tickle, the adults will note that there's just enough caustic comment in the piece to get the message across. This adaptation has slimmed down the four parts of Swift's work to just the two; Lilliput land of the little people and Brobdingnag land of the giants. With our intrepid normal sized hero Gulliver and his stowaway fiancée Elizabeth under threat either way.

While the script has its pleasing moments it is still only serving as a bridging work for Harryhausen's effects to be shown. Be it the giant and tiny people sequences or the perils that come to our undersized protagonists courtesy of a Gator and a Squirrel, it's these that the children will find beguiling. This, however, can not be said for Harryhausen aficionados or adults more accustomed to more modern advancements. For this is bottom rung for Harryhausen, not bad at all, yet although there's a charm here, and no one should ever dismiss the painstaking amount of time it took him to weave it together, the work is creaky and lacking the dynamism so befitting his best work.

Major bonus' come with the swirling and pounding score from Herrmann and the vibrant performance of Matthews. The role of Gulliver was first offered to Danny Kaye, which naturally makes sense given Kaye's previous work on Hans Christian Andersen some years earlier. That it was also offered to Jack Lemmon, though, makes no sense at all. Anyway, Matthews got the gig, and following on from his fine work in The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, he laid down a marker in the fantasy adventure genre that secured him fondness from legions of fans throughout the years. A safe, colourful and pleasant enough piece if ultimately not one for most fantasy adventure fans to revisit often. 6/10

Big Lemuel, little Lemuel.

[BA_Harrison · 7/10 · 10 December 2017]

Lemuel Gulliver (Kerwin Matthews) is a hardworking but not very wealthy doctor who wants to make a success of himself in order to provide for his betrothed, Elizabeth (played by the gorgeous June Thorburn, who sadly died way too young in a plane crash). Taking a position as a ship's physician, Gulliver hopes to earn enough money to pay for a cottage, but he doesn't realise that Elizabeth has stowed aboard the vessel to be with him.

During a storm, Gulliver is washed overboard and finds himself in the land of Lilliput, where he is a giant compared to the inhabitants. After failing to solve a conflict between the Lilliputians and the neighbouring Blefuscudians, who are at war over which end of an egg should be cracked before eating, he escapes, only to end up in Brobdingnag, where he is the tiny one (along with Elizabeth, with whom he is reunited). Treated as toys by the Brobdingnagian king (Grégoire Aslan), and accused of witchcraft by royal sorcerer Makovan (Charles Lloyd Pack), Gulliver and Elizabeth escape back to England with the help of a young Brobdingnagian girl, Glumdalclitch (Sherri Alberoni).

Fantasy film legend Ray Harryhausen delivers a whole host of excellent special effects in The 3 World's of Gulliver, utilising hundreds of travelling mattes and some very convincing forced perspective to achieve marvellous results. However, those looking for lots of Harryhausen's trademark stop motion work might well be a little disappointed: there's a cool animated crocodile, with which Gulliver battles, a mini menagerie, and a rather moth-eaten looking squirrel (which is far from the man's finest work). But that's it.

Still, with such a timeless tale, performed by a wonderful cast, it's hard not to have a good time with this charming fantasy which not only astounds with its stunning visuals, but also acts as a satire about politics and imperialism, and as an indictment of human nature, illustrating man's many weaknesses: vanity, pride, ignorance, jealousy, stubbornness etc. (as per Jonathan Swift's novel, or so I believe—can't say I've ever read it).

6.5/10, rounded up to 7 for IMDb.

Good

[Cosmoeticadotcom · 6/10 · 1 September 2010]

The 3 Worlds Of Gulliver I first saw on the big screen, and in color, and later saw it a few times on television, but not for a quarter century or so. So, I had to rewatch the 100 minute film. Kerwin Matthews, from The Seven Voyages Of Sinbad, does a surprisingly good job as the semi-zomboid, but buff, Dr. Lemuel Gulliver. He plays Gulliver as a real guy his genuineness makes up for his sometimes wooden reactions. June Thorburn plays his fiancée (then wife) Elizabeth. She's sufficient eye candy, and that alone is reason enough to justify her sweet insertion into the tale (she is not in Swift's novel). Gotta love her silly 'Don't ever wanna lay eyes on you again moment' after Gulliver objects to her naïve-te regarding the purchase of an old shack. None of the other actors who play any of the other characters leaves that great an impression, although the girl who plays Glumdalclitch (Sherry Alberoni, a child star on the original The Mickey Mouse Club on television) does a solid job with the little she's given. Her petulance and warmth make her the only semi-realistic character in all of Lilliput (land of the tint people) or Brobdingnag (land of the giants).

This film features less of the stop motion photography Harryhausen was noted for, and more visual tricks involving split screens and traveling mattes, to make use of forced perspective in portraying Gulliver against his smaller and larger costars. Cinematographer Wilkie Cooper is credited in the film, but, realistically, he was, in effect, just a cameraman for Harryhausen.

The story is a simplified version of the Swift novel. Gulliver reluctantly aids the King of Lilliput in his war against the rival state of Blefescu. The war is over which is the proper end of an egg to be opened. After Gulliver steals the Blefescuan Navy ships, the King is still not satisfied, and orders Gulliver to commit genocide on Blefescu. As a doctor and man of honor, he refuses, and is accused of treason. He then flees, and washes up on the shores of Brobdingnag, where Glumdalclitch finds him. The King of Brobdingnag offers to barter for him, then accepts the girl as his protector. Fortuitously, Elizabeth ended up there when she stowed aboard Gulliver's ship. He had been washed overboard to Lilliput, and the ship later destroyed. She seems to have been the lone survivor. The King's doctor accuses Gulliver of witchcraft after he saves the Queen's life with modern medicine, and the two lovers (married by the King) are persecuted. While the Lilliputians and Blefescuans are small in mind regarding politics, the Brobdingnagians are backwards regarding science and medicine. Glumdalclitch therefore rescues the couple, tosses them into a basket, and throws them down a river which washes out to the sea, where the two end up back in England at film's fade. Yes, there's some petty philosophizing by Gulliver, but it works in a campy way. Even the ending which questions whether or not the adventures were all a dream- while trite, is not too big a deal because the film handles everything in a lighthearted way. Had the film been more sober in its claims and portrayal, such an ending would have bombed, especially since it veers so far from the original.

The Worlds of Jonathan Swift

[bkoganbing · 9/10 · 18 May 2007]

The 3 Worlds of Gulliver could easily have been made into an adult satire as Jonathan Swift originally intended, but I daresay Columbia Pictures would not have realized too much box office had they gone that route.

I saw it as a 13 year old back in the day in theater which is really the only way to appreciate the special effects of Ray Harryhausen. It's a wonderful film for a juvenile, but later in reading about the times one can appreciate what Swift was trying to say and the humorous way he said it.

At the time Gulliver's Travels was originally written the age of the religious wars of the 17th century was coming to an end. Swift was a member of the Tory Party who sought to put an end to the War of Spanish Succession which the Whigs in power seemed to drag on and on. For the Whig view of the conflict I suggest strongly reading Winston Churchill's Life of Marlborough which equates the Tories of the day with the Baldwin-Chamberlain led Tories of the Thirties. Swift looked about and just saw a lot of carnage with power politics and religion all jumbled together so that you could not tell where one left off and the other began.

Gulliver's Travels is how Swift saw the world of his day, religious intolerance and a budding imperialism. Swift was in fact an ordained minister who apparently had a vision that HIS way of worship was not necessarily THE way of worship for all. A novel idea back then, expressed in the war the Lilliputians and Blefescuans wage over which end of the egg to break.

The Brobdingnag tale where Gulliver once a giant in Lilliput is now a small wee creature in a land of giants. And these giants think that because they're bigger and mightier they can rule over all. They see Gulliver and his bride as pets to kept as long as they amuse. It's a classic commentary against imperialism, unusual in its day and made Swift most unpopular in high places.

These issues aren't for kids of the Saturday matinée crowd and Kerwin Matthews as Gulliver is playing for them. Matthews had a great career doing these fantasy things and he was real good in them. Maybe because he played the roles absolutely straight and we believed because he believed the part.

Ray Harryhausen is at the top of his game and the film holds up very well. Even better in fact when you know the background from which the material came from.

Size Matters

[wes-connors · 7/10 · 31 July 2012]

In 1699 England, handsome doctor Kerwin Mathews (as Lemuel Gulliver) is set to marry pretty June Thorburn (as Elizabeth), but worries about supporting her in poverty. Hoping to make his fortune, Mr. Mathews joins a treasure-seeking ship's crew. After a stormy shipwreck, Mathews washes up on the sands of Lilliput, a surreal land inhabited by tiny people. Due to his large size, the Lilliputians fear and distrust Mathews. However, he negotiates a release from bondage and finds allies with little Lee Patterson (as Reldresal) and beautiful blonde Jo Morrow (as Gwendolyn)...

Mathews begins to build a large boat, hoping to return home and find his fiancée. But there is big trouble in Lilliput for their newest citizen. Mathews is caught up in local politics when the Lilliputians enlist his help in their war with another island of tiny people. The people of Blefuscu crack open their eggs at the larger end, in direct conflict with the Lilliputians method of opening eggs at the shorter end. The yolk's on war (as noted in writer Jonathan's Swift's original work). Later, Mathews' "Gulliver" finds his world turned upside down in a land of giants...

This is watered-down Swift, but it's still a great adventure for children of all ages.

******* The 3 Worlds of Gulliver (11/30/60) Jack Sher ~ Kerwin Mathews, Sherry Alberoni, Lee Patterson, June Thorburn

Bernard Herrmann's score is film's chief asset...

[Doylenf · 5/10 · 31 March 2007]

KERWIN MATHEWS makes a handsome but dull Gulliver in this somewhat slow moving, corny adaptation of Jonathan Swift's GULLIVER'S TRAVELS which might be better visited by watching the old Max Fleischer cartoon that came out during the year of SNOW WHITE.

Ray Harryhausen provides the special effects monsters, but it's strictly the sort of romp you might want your kids to watch before encouraging them to read the actual Swift story with all of its biting satire intact. With today's CGI effects so markedly superior, there's a datedness about the film (made in 1960) that gives it a "quaint" quality.

The story doesn't really take off until Gulliver is washed overboard at sea, landing among the little people as in the original tale. The sequence where he's tied up by the Lilliputians on the beach is remarkably well handled, as he finds himself the pawn of quarreling royalties. Yet, he manages to get them to release him from his bonds. He proves his worth to them and they think of him as their invincible weapon.

The story follows the familiar pattern of other "Gulliver" films, with the "giant" interacting with the little people and settling issues of morality and justice with occasional bits of sermonizing.

Should appeal to kids with its fascinating trick photography and handsome Technicolor trappings, enhanced by the delightful Bernard Herrmann score. But adults had better beware. They might find themselves losing interest after the first half-hour.

Children's literature for adults.

[mark.waltz · 8/10 · 25 November 2015]

In my senior year of high school, I took a class on children's literature and one of the books we were assigned to read was "Gulliver's Travels". At the time to me, it was very slow reading and I quickly lost interest. I knew the story from abbreviated versions of the novel and did not pick up on the political ramifications of the story. Almost 35 years later, the book remains a far- off memory. However, in studying cinema and watching this fetching looking version, the things that I missed are now as clear as crystal.

Difference in appearances, being more popular than royal leaders and the ability to solve issues easier than those in charge makes him enemy of the state. He is Gulliver, a friendly giants from England visit who has landed on the island of Lilliput, of little people the size of his finger. They first think that he is some sort of monster, but his abilities to do things for them it which they couldn't imagine being done making popular, for the moment. The underlying meanings hidden inside the plot are still very potent today, and even if you don't pick those up on your initial reading or viewing of any of the Gulliver's Travels movies, you can still enjoy the movie for the fun fantasy that it is.

As with several other Ray Harryhausen movies, the special effects use the best of stop motion. Kerwin Mathews is an excellent hero. Some tidbits of minor characters make you think that there will be a few subplots but they pretty much disappear with the rainstorm that Gulliver blows away. The film switched gears half way through when Gulliver finds himself in a world full of giants which gives the reminder that we are all small fish on a large planet and our differences are not meant that I divide us but make us closer.

Going to War Over An Egg

[whpratt1 · 6/10 · 6 April 2008]

Never viewed this 1960 film dealing with Gulliver's travels and found it very enjoyable to view along with excellent photography. The story starts out with Dr. Lemuel Gulliver, (Kerwin Williams) having a fight with his girlfriend, Elizabeth, (June Thorburn) about his wanting to go aboard a ship as a doctor and she does not want him to leave. The ship sails and becomes shipwrecked and Gulliver finds himself in a completely different land where there are miniature people and he appears to them as a huge giant who must be captured and tied up. The rest of the story will hold your interest from the very beginning to the end and I almost forgot, a war was almost started over cutting an egg on the top and other people who cut their eggs on the bottom of the shell. Enjoy.

Not Up to Par

[kirbylee70-599-526179 · 5/10 · 4 January 2018]

Growing up in the sixties I was one of those early fans of Ray Harryhausen films. I remember the first one I saw was JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS followed by MYTERIOUS ISLAND. I found the special effects in both to be fascinating and read what I could on how they were done. They were movies that captured my imagination and spurred me on to learn about Jules Verne and Greek mythology. Somehow THE THREE WORLDS OF GULLIVER eluded me and I looked forward to finally getting the chance to watch it.

Based on the GULLIVER'S TRAVELS by Jonathan Swift, the film uses only a portion of the novel here, the visits to Lilliput and Brobdingnag. Those familiar with the book will know that it was a political satire of the time that has been watered down over the years via first a cartoon version and lastly by a terrible Jack Black film. I'm sad to say this film doesn't do it much better.

Gulliver is a doctor who wants to marry his girlfriend Elizabeth. But he refuses to do so until he can financially support her. With this in mind he leaves England for the high seas. To his chagrin Elizabeth has snuck on board as well. During a storm Gulliver is washed overboard and comes to on the shores of a country called Lilliput.

This may not seem odd except that the people of Lilliput stand about 6 inches tall compared to Gulliver. Mistaking him for an enemy they tie him down to the beach. He soon wins their favor and in return for help building a boat aids them when he can. But problems arise when they want him to defeat their enemies, the inhabitants of Blefuscu. It seems the two islands are at war over which end of an egg should be broken before it is eaten, the small or large end. Gulliver tows away the navy of Blefuscu thinking that will end things but the Lilliputian king wants them destroyed. Before leaving Gulliver must find a way to bring peace to the two countries.

He does eventually leave and ends up washed ashore once again, this time on the island of Brobdingnag. This time the reverse is true, Gulliver is now 6 inches tall compared to the inhabitants here. Fortunately Elizabeth was stranded here and the pair are reunited. But an envious court alchemist warns the king that Gulliver must be a witch. Gulliver is pitted in battle against a crocodile that seems giant to him. Their idyllic life threatened Gulliver and Elizabeth must find a way off the island before they are tossed aside or killed for witchcraft.

In watching the film the story of Gulliver as told in the novel is obviously too intricate to bring forth from the written word to the screen. The subtle nuance of the story is lost in the over the top production values given the costuming and acting among the characters of both islands. It just doesn't work. Kerwin Matthews who had appeared in the earlier Harryhausen film THE SEVENTH VOYAGE OF SINBAD seems more bored than anything here.

But the most disappointing thing is the special effects used here. I realize that CGI was far in the future when this film was made but the matting process used makes one image seem slightly soft and out of focus while the other is clear. And the most loved thing that Harryhausen did, the stop motion animation of his films, is used sparingly here with just a short sequence of a squirrel that wanders off with Gulliver and the aforementioned crocodile.

In reading the background on the film in the enclosed booklet the reason for these problems is apparent. Columbia had been working on the film prior to Harryhausen and his team being brought in rather than this being a project he worked on start to finish. It may not have been a case of his heart not being completely in it but the difference between this film and those classics he left behind is obvious.

The best part of this package from Twilight Time is the extras, something they don't normally include much of. This time around we get an isolated score and effects track, an audio commentary track featuring film historians Randall Cook, C. Courtney Joyner and Steven C. Smith, THE MAKING OF THE 3 WORLDS OF GULLIVER short, THE HARRYHAUSEN CHRONICLES a short documentary on Harryhausen, THIS IS DYNAMATION! a short describing the process of stop motion animation Harryhausen used and the original theatrical trailer. The quality of the picture here is the usual top notch for any and all Twilight Time releases and once again is limited to just 3,000 copies. If you must have every Harryhausen film in your collection then you should make sure one of those copies is yours.

Perfect viewing for a rainy Saturday matinee or video fix

[george.schmidt · 31 March 2003]

The 3 Worlds of Gulliver (1960) *** Fantastic adaptation of Jonathan Swift's classic tale about Dr. Lemuel Gulliver (Kerwin Mathews) who embarks on an unusual odyssey involving the tiny denizens of Lilliput and the giants of Brobdignagnan including the adolescent giantess Glumdalclitch (Sherry Alberoni) with a wonderful blend of action and the great stop-motion animations of Ray Harryhausen's. Fun for the entire family. ** Personal note: Begging for a Hollywood remake with a female Gulliver (Gina Gershon anyone?)

Kids might like it

[preppy-3 · 6/10 · 18 May 2007]

This takes place in 1699 England. Dr. Gulliver (Kerwin Mathews) is poor and miserable in England. He takes an ocean voyage and is swept overboard during a storm. He comes to in a land named Lilliput which are all people shorter than him. He agrees to help the people of Lilliput to stop a war and build him a boat to get off. Then he ends up in another land where he's the small person and everybody else is a giant.

I never read the book it was based on so I can't make comparisons...but the book was a political satire. Obviously this does not make it into the movie--this is aimed squarely at kids. The characterizations are broad (to say the least) and some of the characters act like total idiots (to amuse the kids). It also has simplistic (if amusing) remarks on how war is evil and people have to live for themselves. The story moves haltingly--it seems large chunks were either not filmed or left on the cutting room floor. Also Mathews breaks into song (!!!) at one point. It's more than a little silly but Mathews does have a great singing voice. Also the special effects by Ray Harryhausen aren't really that special--they're more than obvious.

The film is very colorful and I was never really bored--most of the time though I was trying to figure out what was going on. Kerwin Mathews was easily one of the best-looking men ever to come out of Hollywood. His acting is just OK but really--the guy had to react to things that just weren't there. That couldn't have been easy. So the color and Mathews kept me entertained...but most adults will probably be thoroughly bored. I think kids will like it but I can only truthfully give it a 6.

Harryhausen and Gulliver

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 13 December 2020]

It's the adventures of Dr. Lemuel Gulliver. His fiancée Elisabeth is a stowaway on his ship to India. He is washed overboard and finds himself on an island of tiny people called Lilliputians. Unwilling to fight their war, he escapes to another island populated by giants called Brobdingnagians where he is reunited with Elisabeth.

The pettiness of the Lilliputian conflict is really compelling. This movie has stop-motion animation effects from Ray Harryhausen. He's a man of excellence and this is no exception. The battle against the crocodile is the best. The size differences make for some fun visual effects. The Brobdingnagians are supposed to be ignorant and superstitious. There are funnier ways to show that. Cracking the egg is such a great ridiculous idea from the Lilliputians. I wish the Brobdingnagians have an equally silly idea to rally around (hopefully something else about eggs). The movie tries to wrap it up with a word salad which is less than satisfying. The first part is great. The second island has great moments. If it could end with something better, this would be superb.

The 3 Worlds of Gulliver(1960)

[robfollower · 7/10 · 5 September 2020]

After being shipwrecked, a man finds himself on an island inhabited by tiny people, who soon make plans for him.

Director: Jack Sher Writers: Arthur A. Ross (screenplay) (as Arthur Ross), Jack Sher (screenplay) Stars: Kerwin Mathews, Jo Morrow, June Thorburn

Charming and Instructive Fantasy

[rmax304823 · 8/10 · 19 October 2010]

Jonathan Swift's novel, "Gulliver's Travels," is a classic satire from 1726. I once managed to get around to reading his "A Modest Proposal", in which -- apparently in all sincerity -- he suggests that the problem of overpopulation and malnutrition in his native Ireland can be cured simply by having the Irish eat their own children.

Well, that's what satire is, I guess. A send up of current social issues with an element of viciousness that's usually absent from a mere parody. Swift must have found the mores of his time easy targets, just by reducing their characteristics to the absurd. Are the Irish causing you problems? Get rid of them.

In "The 3 Worlds of Gulliver" the problems dealt with are (1) the causes of war among the tiny Lilliputians, and (2) science versus religion among the giant Brobdingnagians. I think some other adventures were deleted. I seem to remember Yahoos and Houyhnhnms and maybe one or two others. But the elisions are okay. Just two of the strange worlds Gulliver visits are enough for one movie. (The third world of the title is his home in England.) I don't know that this story has the same impact as it originally did. Maybe you need some kind of Skeleton Key to pick up the more arcane references, as with "Finnegans Wake," "Alice in Wonderland," or "The Master and Margarita." However, the broader points of the satire should be clear enough to everyone except the kids, who will be tickled by it because it's such a colorful fairy tale.

Kerwin Mathews is an idealistic English doctor, Lemuel Gulliver who is washed overboard at sea and finds himself on an island inhabited by tiny people, the vaguely Arabic Lilliputians. Once the little people get over their astonishment -- because compared to them Gulliver is really HUGE -- they try to talk him into using his immense strength to destroy their enemies on a neighboring island. Man, are the Lilliputians petty, especially the sputtering king. "I have abiding faith in the trustworthiness and reliability of any man that I can kill," he announces. He's dying to go to war and kill his enemies because they open their eggs from the big side rather than the small side, as civilized Lilliputians do. The perceptive adults in the audience are, at this point, permitted to explain to the children that sometimes wars are fought for silly reasons. He wants a warmonger for a Prime Minister, although, "I don't need a Prime Minister to fight a war. I need one to blame if it goes wrong." Here, please explain to the children the meaning of the phrase, "The buck stops there." Gulliver promises to end the war and he does, by stealing the enemy's fleet so they can never attack Lilliput. This doesn't satisfy the king because it wasn't a proper war. How can you have a war without sacrifice and heroism? And besides, since Gulliver robbed the enemy of their fleet, we now have no need for Admirals and everybody in the Navy is now out of a job.

A disgusted Gulliver finally manages to get off Lilliput but then lands on Brobdingnagia, a land of superstitious giants living a Medieval life style. (J. B. S. Haldane once wrote a famous essay explaining why giant humans were physically impossible.) At first they treat him well, an amusing toy for one of their gentle children, a pretty young girl named Glumdalclitch. But soon, after he beats the self-important king in a game of chess, and exposes the court magician as an ignoramus, he falls out of favor. He's smarter than they are. After all, he's a doctor and knows chemistry and science. The Brobdingnagians believe in witches and some of the stunts pulled by Gulliver -- treating the Queen's upset stomach with a mixture of opium and paragoric -- smack not just of elitism but of witchcraft. Besides, there is still that damme chess game. Who but a witch could check mate the King? So the Royal Court tries to burn him. Glumdalclitch makes it possible for him to escape.

Gulliver barely makes it back to England. We see him on the beach with his bride, who was swept up in his adventures. It's not a happy ending. Nobody finds satisfaction right in his own back yard, like Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz." His wife asks what will happen to the Lilliputians and the benighted Brobdingnagians. "They'll always be with us," he admits with chagrin. "And what of Glumdalclitch", the truly benign and compassionate kid who looked after them? "Waiting to be born," answers Gulliver solemnly. I don't think Dean Swift would have been surprised to find that 280 years later, she's still waiting. Maybe, as I age, my emotional apparatus is becoming more primitive or something, but I found that final exchange rather moving.

There are many special visual effects but only two instances of Ray Harryhausen's stop-motion animals, one a squirrel and the other a crocodile. This isn't a monster movie. Bernard Hermann's score doesn't sound much like that of a monster movie either -- no galumphing BROOP broop, BROOP broop. It echoes the light-hearted quality of the story itself and the composer only rarely lapses into his usual effects. I think it's the best score Hermann wrote for any of his fantasies.

"Glorious victory over the wrong-end-of-the-egg scum!" - Emperor of Lilliput

[Classic_Boxing_Matches · 7/10 · 20 May 2023]

Dr. Lemuel Gulliver finds himself trapped in the land of Lilliput which is occupied by tiny people and giants. Gulliver must navigate a series of indigenous events in the hope of returning home to England.

I cant say i was overly intersted in watching The 3 World's of Gulliver purely because of Jack Black's Gullivers Travels ruining it for me - I mean it was better than reviews indicate but still not great. The 3 World's of Gulliver is a little different though, premise wise it's obviously the same but the portrayal of the lead character and overall feel of the film is a lot more smart and generally family friendly. It's not that complicated to follow and it's fairly innocent, the acting isn't anything special but the special effects are well suited and still look pretty darn good for a film made in 1960! It moves at a leisurely pace but there are some slow spots usually when concerning the love story aspects.

Final Verdict: Innocent, fun and an easy watch. I liked it far more than I expected and it's better than Jack Black's film. The acting is a bit bland, story a bit simple and it has slow spots but the overall intrigue and the dated-but-fun special effects should keep you watching.

A Super-Dynamation Abomination

[strong-122-478885 · 2/10 · 10 December 2016]

Me-oh-my! - You know, it sure takes watching a 1960 Fantasy/Adventure picture just like this one to really make one realize just how totally spoiled we all are by today's CG imagery. Yep. We sure are.

And, if the creaky, old-school visual effects here weren't hokey enough as it is - Unfortunately - This picture's story-line was also a really irksome affair like nothing you could ever imagine.

It sure seemed to me that no matter which world Gulliver travelled to - Be it the big or the small - Everyone was forever bickering and complaining and finding yet another lame excuse for going to war with one another.... Sheesh! - Give me break, already!.... I can't begin to tell you how fed-up I got with all of this utter nonsense.

I mean, had the story been an interesting one, then, yes, I could have easily forgiven its laughable special effects - But, between the plot and the visuals it was all just second-rate entertainment from start to finish.

A delight for children!

[RodrigAndrisan · 10/10 · 11 December 2023]

A film that I have seen several times. The first time when I was very very small, almost like those people from Lilliput. As a child, you cannot help but be fascinated by the great difference in size between the main hero, Dr. Lemuel Gulliver, and the little men from Lilliput and then the giants from Brobdingnag. You are fascinated by the animals that King Brob has in cages and especially by the crocodile that Gulliver fights with. The whole story is fascinating and the most successful thing in the film are the multicolored costumes, so different and extremely funny. The actors are charming, especially Basil Sydney as Emperor of Lilliput, Grégoire Aslan the interpreter of King Brob (as Gregoire Aslan) and Sherry Alberoni as Glumdalclitch. Kerwin Mathews and June Thorburn are OK. Last but not least, Ray Harryhausen's effects are admirable for the year 1960, when the film was made.

The 3 Worlds of Gulliver

[phubbs · 6/10 · 19 October 2023]

Possibly the least known movie that contained stop-motion work by the legendary Ray Harryhausen, and that's probably mostly down to the fact his work doesn't feature a great deal within the story. This is more of a classical children's feature along the lines of 'Doctor Doolittle' (1967) where Harryhausen's animal effects are only showcased twice and not for that long.

Loosely based on a classic piece of English literature by Johnathan Swift that can both be for adults and children (although that was not the intention). As with many films like this the plot has been cut down quite a bit and focuses mostly on the first two parts of the original novel (which is made up of four parts). Having never read the original novel myself and not having any clues as to what actually happened plot-wise (although I have heard of Gulliver's travels), the fact that the film is obviously missing large sections of the original novel made no difference to me. And to be honest this fact shouldn't really affect anyone else's enjoyment either unless you know the original story well. But I think they made the right choice because you probably wouldn't be able to cram everything into one film.

The story of Gulliver's travels in this film sees him getting lost at sea and washing up on the island of Lilliput where he makes friends with the Lilliputians. Not long after he discovers he's also stumbled into a conflict between the Lilliputians and the next island of Blefuscu. Upon realising he can't handle the conflict between the two Gulliver escapes to the island of Brobdingnag, the island of giants. There with the help of a young girl, he wins over the King and his court but eventually falls afoul of the Prime Minister who accuses Gulliver of witchcraft.

The original story is supposed to be a satire on Human nature, religion, war etc...the usual stuff. In hindsight I can kinda see that now but whilst watching the movie I didn't really get that vibe. Overall the movie is definitely aimed more at the younger audience and more of a spirited boy's adventure yarn. The first part of the plot which sees Gulliver in Lilliput definitely has more iconic imagery that people will recognise from the original literature such as Gulliver being restrained with multiple ropes. There is some lovely over-the-top acting, great effects, great sets and costumes, and an engaging little plot focusing on the silly conflict between the two islands. The brief sequence where Gulliver steals the warships of Blefuscu gives us a glimpse of their people who appear to be based on Asians or Chinese people. The Lilliputians seem to have an Arabic styling about them and their dwellings which is in contrast to the more medieval look of the Brobdingnagians.

The second part sees Gulliver trapped on the island of giants, Brobdingnag. The whole Lilliput saga fades away into memory as Gulliver must now try to win the favor of the rather childish King Brob. Once again the effects, sets, costumes, and acting are all top-notch. In fact the over-the-top acting is probably the highlight of the movie. Grégoire Aslan is fantastic as King Brob, his bizarre infantile portrayal is most enjoyable with his mood swings. He kinda reminded me of Richard Lewis in 'Robin Hood: Men in Tights'. This is also the part of the movie where we see Ray Harryhausen's work with a squirrel and crocodile, the crocodile obviously being the more exciting. Despite being his early work what you get is still top quality, the surrounding sets and props all adding to the illusion perfectly.

Effects wise this film obviously is showing its age. The majority of the giant effects are simple rear projection or bluescreen effects that do admittedly look pretty ugly these days. On the other hand there is a lot of clever camera trickery being utilised to sell the illusion of size. The most obvious trick is the use of angles and positioning cameras at various heights to give the perspective of looking up or down at different scales. Surprisingly this does work a treat and with the inclusion of various props at various sizes, you have a nice overall effect.

Despite the literature this movie is based on what we get isn't really that original truth be told. The entire notion of adults acting childishly, being over-emotional and erratic, and prone to violence or anger; whilst the children in the story are much more level-headed is a somewhat common fairytale trope. Indeed this does come across much more like a classic fairytale than a sly attack on Human nature of the time, which Swift originally intended. One could argue there are offensive stereotypes within this tale but I'm guessing that was kinda the point of the original satire. It all looks like something out of a child's mind in this feature, a cobbled-together fusion of everything that almost seems LEGO-like in appearance. It all adds to the charm for sure, resulting in a very pleasant, relaxing story that's easy on the eyes and the perfect little piece of old-fashioned escapism.

Big man becomes little shrimp

[helpless_dancer · 5/10 · 26 February 2001]

This would be a good one for the kids: I found it to be a tad slow and corny. It did have good special effects, but the acting wasn't all that good. A pretty good lesson in how narrow minded folks are and mistrustful of anything that is different than they. Not a bad film, just wasn't my cup of tea.