Synopsis: Two
Greek fishermen, Demetrios (Anthony Hall) and his father, Petros (Wolfe Barzell), rescue a
beautiful woman whom they find floating unconscious on a raft. The next morning, Petros is
angered when the woman, Antillia (Joyce Taylor), scorns the food and lodging they have
provided for her. He speaks to her roughly, and she informs him imperiously that she is a
princess, and that her home is beyond the Pillars of Hercules. Petros scoffs, arguing that
the Pillars mark the end of the world, and orders Demetrios, who is smitten by the lovely
stranger, to leave her and go fishing. Scheming, Antillia makes herself as beautiful as
possible and finds Demetrios at his boat. She flirts with him, then tells him that if he
will take her to her home, Atlantis, her father will reward him. However, when Demetrios
tells her that she all he wants, she is angered and insults him. Waking early the next
day, Demetrios discovers that Antillia has stolen his boat. He swims after and catches
her. She again tries to convince him to take her home, and finally Demetrios agrees,
making Antillia promise that if they do not find Atlantis within a month, she will return
with him to Greece and become his wife. Despite violent storms, the two sail beyond the
Pillars of Hercules. When a dense fog makes Demetrios want to turn back, Antillia produces
a strange device that she insists they can navigate by, as it always points north. When a
month has nearly passed, Demetrios reminds Antillia of her promise. She insists on having
the full time, and as she speaks, a huge silver object rises from the waters nearby.
Demetrios is panicked, believing it to be a monster. To his astonishment, a door opens in
the side of the object, and Antillia is greeted by Zaren (John Dall), an Atlantean
nobleman. Antillia and Demetrios are taken on board, and the ship submerges again. During
the journey, Zaren becomes jealous and angry when he realises that Antillia is falling in
love with Demetrios. When the ship reaches Atlantis, Antillia is greeted by cheering
crowds, and is driven to the city in a carriage. Following her, Demetrios is suddenly
arrested and imprisoned. Antillia is reunited with her father, King Kronas (Edgar Stehli).
She tells him that she wants to marry Demetrios, and when he reminds her that such a
marriage would be against Atlantean law, she insists he change the law. Meanwhile,
Demetrios, who has been made a slave, saves the life of a fellow captive, Xandros (Jay
Novello). He learns that Xandros, too, is Greek, and that all of the slaves are foreigners
who came to Atlantis by mistake. He also discovers that many of the slaves are subjected
to a horrifying process that literally turns men into beasts of burden. Demetrios and the
other slaves mine crystals that are the source of Atlantis’ power. While out riding,
Antillia is appalled to see Demetrios, whom she was led to believe had returned to Greece,
among the slaves. Believing her responsible for his situation, Demetrios throws mud at her
and is savagely beaten. Antillia pleads with her father for Demetrios, but finds that
Kronas is no more than Zaren’s lackey. Antillia prays in the temple for Demetrios and
her father, but is interrupted by the High Priest, Azor (Edward Platt), who tells her that
she should pray to the one true God. With increasing frequency, Atlantis is wracked by
violent storms and earthquakes. Azor has Demetrios brought to the temple. There he finds
Antillia, who tries to convince him that she loves him. He spurns her angrily. Shortly
afterwards, Demetrios is taken to "The House Of Fear", where he watches in
horror as a fellow slave is converted into a boar. As Demetrios is about to undergo the
same process, two guards arrive and announce that he is to be given a chance at freedom by
undergoing the Ordeal of Fire and Water….
Comments: Based
upon Gerald Hargreaves’ play of 1949, Atlantis, The Lost Continent posits the
legendary land as the cradle of all human knowledge. It further contends that fragments of
this knowledge were carried all over the world by those who survived the destruction of
Atlantis, which occurred either as a result of volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, or of
Divine Wrath, however you choose to interpret it. The play itself was a serious work,
examining the way that genius and cruelty, soaring aspiration and miserable pettiness, can
exist side by side in the human nature; and there is no doubt that this film – like
most of George Pal’s production – was intended seriously also. But - well, we
all know that line about good intentions, don't we? This is supposed to be a tragic story,
that of a nation which, having reached the very pinnacles of knowledge in science,
medicine, engineering and art, brought about its own destruction by the abuse of its power
and the hubris of its people. There are some interesting ideas in the film, and
some of the visuals are impressive; but for every positive moment there are at least two
silly ones to tip the scales back the other way. The acting is, upon the whole,
indifferent, but the real problem is the script, which is both heavy-handed and full of
gaping plot holes (the film was produced during a writers' strike). In keeping with the
solemnity of its story (and its stage origins), the film is full of flowery,
mock-classical dialogue and characters who make speeches rather than simply talk to one
another. This is compounded in the case of the film's Bad Guys, who in the very best Bad
Guy tradition are incapable of saying anything with adding an evil "Mwoo-ha-ha!"
But what really drives the final nail into the coffin of Atlantis, The Lost Continent
is - believe it or not - the hats! Nowhere in the world - not even in Melbourne on
the first Tuesday in November - will you ever see a bigger collection of ludicrous
headgear. Now, you may think it unfair of me to condemn a film on the strength of the
actions of a misguided milliner, but the fact is that the hats worn by the characters in
this film make it next to impossible to take their actions seriously. It's bad enough that
everyone is stuck with dialogue that sounds like what Shakespeare might have written while
he was in kindergarten; having all this fruity oratory emanating from beneath bizarre
concoctions of fur, feathers, cardboard and spangles makes the whole thing irresistibly
risible.
Atlantis, The Lost Continent opens
with one of its plot holes, as Demetrios and his father, Petros, rescue Antillia from her
raft. Why she left Atlantis, how long she was away, and how she ended up on the raft
unconscious are points that are never addressed, even though the things that happened in
Atlantis during her absence are of considerable importance to the story. When Antillia
awakens the next morning to find herself in a fisherman’s cottage and clad in his
robes, she is less than pleased. Marching up to her two rescuers, she demands, "Where
is this miserable hovel and why do I wear the garb of slaves?" (Hmm....unprovoked
rudeness, a complete lack of consideration for others....I could suggest which
nation on earth received this attitude as their Atlantean legacy, but being a polite
Australian, I won’t.) Petros and Demetrios are, as you might imagine, a little taken
aback by this response to their rescue efforts, but being uneducated peasants rather than
royalty, they turn the other cheek and invite Antillia to have breakfast with them. Her
Royal Highness, however, isn’t through bitching, and launches into a string of
complaints about the clothes they have lent her ("They offend my skin!"), the
standard of the food ("It tempts me not!") and the ambience of the cottage
("It smells of fish!"). This is more than enough for Petros, who sets about
taking his ungracious guest down a few pegs, finally suggesting that if she isn’t
happy where she is, she can "bestow the honour of your presence on someone
else". With this parting shot, Petros leaves for work, dragging along Demetrios, who
is clearly smitten despite their reluctant guest’s atrocious manners. (Personally, I
think any man who falls for a woman this rude and selfish just because she’s pretty
deserves anything he gets.) Antillia does not miss the effect her looks have had on
Demetrios, and starts plotting how best to use her womanly wiles to get her own way. After
dressing in her own robes, fixing her hair and making up her face (in a nice scene, we see
Antillia using flour for face powder and cherry juice as lip stain), Her Highness swans
off down to the shore. After encountering Petros (who, bless him, takes one look at her
artificial complexion and asks her if she’s sick), she finds Demetrios at his boat
and flirts with him, encouraging him to chase her up the beach. When he corners her, she
gazes out to sea, telling him about Atlantis, and how her father will shower riches on him
if he takes her home. Demetrios responds that there is only one thing he wants (how
long has he known this woman?) and despite the fact that she’s been coming onto him
with all the subtlety of an atomic explosion, Antillia takes offence. "Fisherman!"
she hisses at him, and storms off up the beach. (Yeesh! - and some people want to hang
onto the monarchy!?)
The next morning, Demetrios is woken by
Petros’s hearty snoring, and looks outside to find Antillia stealing the boat.
Swimming after her, he climbs in and insists on her turning back, as no-one has ever
sailed beyond the Pillars of Hercules and survived. "I would rather risk it and die
than live in your village another day!" responds Miss Manners, adding sniffily that
"braver men" than he would "beg for the privilege of doing my
bidding!" Instead of taking a cue from his father and suggesting she go find one of
them, Demetrios makes her a deal: he will sail with her as she desires, but if they do not
find Atlantis within a month, she will return with him and become his wife - "My dutiful
wife," he adds, proving that he’s not entirely stupid. Antillia agrees, and
Demetrios takes the rudder. He does pause for a moment and look over his shoulder before
turning the boat away from the shore, but it’s only for a moment. Thus Our Hero,
calmly depriving his elderly father of both companionship and his only means of support,
and proving, if there were really any doubt about it, just how richly he and Antillia
deserve one another.
The voyage is a fairly dull one, enlivened
only by Antillia’s charming home-made compass, and a vision of a blue-skinned Neptune
that never does get explained. (A question: since Demetrios is Greek,
shouldn’t he be having visions of Poseidon rather than Neptune?) The best scene in
the film follows, however, as the end of Antillia’s month draws near and Demetrios
starts making plans for a domestic future. Looking smug, Antillia promises him that they
will be in Atlantis before nightfall. As she speaks, a mysterious silver thing
rises up out of the waters some distance behind the boat. Antillia and Demetrios, who have
gotten all cosy by this stage, continue to make smoochy talk while what looks like a
gigantic fish swims up behind their boat. Antillia finally points it out to the
less-than-observant Demetrios, who freaks out. She, however, merely laughs and prepares to
disembark. A door on the "fish" swings open, and several guards appear followed
by Zaren, who greets Antillia and gives Demetrios a sneering glance. Everyone re-embarks,
and the submarine dives. During the trip to Atlantis, it becomes clear to Zaren that
Antillia is falling for Demetrios, and he gives the newcomer a look that bodes very ill
for him.
Atlanteans must like their royalty uppity,
as Antillia's return is received with wild cheers. As the princess is whisked away,
Demetrios is seized by some of Zaren’s henchmen, and soon finds himself a slave.
Antillia is reunited with King Kronas, and confesses to him that she loves Demetrios. Her
father reminds her that it would be against Atlantean law for her to marry an outsider,
and in her usual fair-minded and unselfish way, Antillia demands that the law be changed
to accommodate her. Demetrios, meanwhile, is being forced to mine for the crystals that
are the source of Atlantis’s power. In the middle of the mining area is a chasm, and
the slaves are transported from one side of it to the other by dangling from a rope and
being slowly and jerkily winched across. As you might imagine, the attrition rate is
fairly high; and we see one slave plunge to his death as the guards all stand around going
"Mwoo-ha-ha!" A second slave nearly falls, but Demetrios manages to hold onto
him until they reach the other side. ("Mwoo-ha-ha!" says one guard as they reach
safety.) The man rescued introduces himself as Xandros, another Greek, and tells Demetrios
that the slaves are people from many lands who arrived in Atlantis by accident and were
held against their will. Screams come from nearby. Demetrios is horrified to see men that
appear to be part animal. Xandros tells him that these unfortunates were created in
"The House Of Fear". (Not "Of Pain". Definitely not.) The next
day, while Antillia is out riding, she encounters a group of slaves. "They’ll
have the filth cleared out of your way in a moment," promises her bodyguard
apologetically. As the guards apply the whip to the slaves, Antillia’s expression
changes, suggesting that loving Demetrios has softened her heart and that she’s
beginning to have doubts about the whole "slavery" thing. Well – that, or
she’s wondering whether she left the iron on. In any case, her Deep Thoughts are
interrupted when she sees Demetrios in the group. He flings a handful of mud all over her,
and is beaten for his trouble. Antillia rushes to the king, demanding to know why he told
her that Demetrios had chosen to leave Atlantis. Kronas ums and ahs and finally reveals
himself to be nothing more than Zaren’s puppet. (Zaren’s power over Kronas is
never explained. However, considering the brief glimpse we are given of Kronas receiving a
full body massage from two male slaves, I’m willing to hazard a guess: the Atlanteans
invented photography, and Zaren has the negatives.) In distress, Antillia goes to the
temple to pray, but is interrupted by Azor, Atlantis’s High Priest, who arrives clad
in full-length robes and wearing what appears to be an ice cream cake upon his head (poor
Edward Platt has easily the most embarrassing role in the film). Azor tells Antillia that
she is praying to the wrong gods. He takes her out to show her the night sky, explaining
that that is where she will find The One True God. "The One True God is the
moon?" says Antillia obtusely. Azor explains a little more clearly, and suggests that
she redirect her prayers for Demetrios.
That night, an earth tremor shakes
Atlantis, knocking over many of the sculptures and monuments around the palace grounds,
including a sundial. (It’s Later Than You Think.) Seeing Demetrios in the clean-up
squad, Azor takes him into the temple, where Antillia is waiting. She tries to explain,
but Demetrios isn’t in a very forgiving mood. "You did not think beyond your own
selfish desires!" he tells her (attaboy!), suggesting that the princess take her
"love" to Zaren and "buy back my freedom!" "Even your words
smell of fish!" hisses Antillia (zing!) and storms off. The next thing we
know, Demetrios is chained up in The House Of Fear, watching as a fellow slave is
animalised. The camera gives us a good look at the advanced science of the superior
Atlanteans – we see retorts, beakers, bubbling liquids, and – yes!
Atlantis’s eternal gift to all scientists down through the ages – conical flasks
full of mysterious coloured fluids! The House Of Fear is run by a surgeon who, as evil
scientists are wont to do, really enjoys his work. We see him adding the finishing
touches to a former slave who already sports cute little horns, pointy ears and a snubby
nose. As he forces something down his victim’s throat and hypnotises him with a
crystal, the surgeon intones, "You will be a boar! Strong – strong –
strong!" (Shouldn’t the victim have tusks rather than horns? Oh, well….)
The surgeon then turns his attentions to Demetrios, leaning in with a big smile and
wondering whether to turn Demetrios into a mule "with long foolish ears – here"
or a buffalo "with great horns – here and here". Two of the
mad scientist’s underlings then drag in a real pig on a leash, but whether as a model
or as an example of the surgeon’s handiwork is unclear. The surgeon announces he will
"let the Princess see you as you really are – a filthy pig!
Mwoo-ha-ha!" At that moment, two guards arrive with orders for Demetrios to be taken
away. "Why do they always take my best specimens away from me?" huffs the
surgeon. However, he becomes reconciled upon learning that Demetrios will undergo
"The Ordeal Of Fire And Water". "I will enjoy seeing you slowly roasted
alive!" the surgeon tells Demetrios. "Mwoo-ha-ha!"
A big crowd has gathered at the local
coliseum – so big, that we are led to infer that, despite the superiority of their
culture, there is precious little to do in Atlantis. Antillia enters with King Kronas, who
seems to have an inverted waste paper basket on his head. (Wicker? Rattan?) Zaren arrives
with Sonoy, the Evil Astrologer, and the games begin. Before the Royal Box is a sunken
triangular pit studded with spot fires. A door opens, and Demetrios appears. Horrified,
Antillia tries to leave, but Zaren’s guards block her way. The next moment we see
Demetrios’s opponent, and he is freaking huge. The enormous crowd cheers
wildly, which is odd considering that given the size and shape of the arena, about 98% of
them couldn’t see a damn thing. (The big surprise here is that the Atlanteans
don’t seem to have invented the Giant Screen.) The contest begins, with Demetrios
surviving being tossed onto one of the fires (ouch! and some nice gruesome close-ups of
his burns here) and managing to set his opponent’s hair on fire. Ticked off, Zaren
calls for the "Water" part of the Ordeal, and huge jets begin to fill the pit.
As the water level rises, Demetrios fails utterly to take advantage of the fact that he
can swim and his opponent can’t, and insists on actually trying to fight him,
rather than just elude him, at one time diving under the water and helpfully sticking his
head right between the other guy’s knees. (All through this sequence, I couldn’t
help thinking about the gladiatorial "contest" in The Life Of Brian, but
obviously, Demetrios doesn’t have a tenth of the brains of that little bloke.)
Finally, the rising waters engulf both fighters. There is a hush until the big guy floats
to the surface, dead, and Demetrios climbs from the pit. Then the crowd, which had cheered
enthusiastically at the prospect of Demetrios’s demise, cheers even more
enthusiastically as he is granted his freedom. Antillia and Azor exchange happy looks, and
Zaren, Sonoy and the surgeon sulky ones.
We now cut to a Council of the Governors
of Atlantis, and oh, my Lord! The hats! The hats!! Zaren tries to convince the
others that Atlantis can conquer the whole world, courtesy of a new and deadly
crystal-based weapon he is building. Azor (ice cream cake in place) appeals for sanity,
but to no avail: the Governor of the Mountains (wearing a metal cake tin) agrees with
Azor, as do the Governors of the Seas (a tea cosy), the Rivers (a crown out of a Christmas
cracker), Science (another ice cream cake) and the Animals (who himself sports a dead
animal). Later, Azor finds Demetrios looking in a puzzled manner into Azor’s empty
bee hives. Azor tells him that all the insects and birds have fled Atlantis (cue footage
from The Naked Jungle), heeding the warning signs that mankind alone is oblivious
to. (As my colleague Mr Begg would doubtless say – Animals: they always know,
don’t they?) Antillia comes to tell Demetrios that she has arranged for a boat to
take him away from Atlantis. The two part without reconciling. Azor tells Demetrios that
volcanic forces will soon destroy Atlantis. Demetrios asks why Azor chooses to stay. Azor
explains that he was not always a priest. He was once "well versed in the
sciences" (all of them?), and "hid my eyes when Atlantis began to use her
great knowledge for evil" (if only she’d used it for niceness, instead!).
Considering himself guilty, Azor plans to go down with his ship---er, island. Telling
Demetrios that Zaren’s weapon will be ready by the next full moon, Azor urges
Demetrios to escape and "tell the world". But Demetrios has other plans. He goes
to Zaren and, explaining that he has developed a taste for luxury, offers to draw him an
accurate map of "the outside world" in exchange for a nice cash settlement.
Suspicious, Zaren brings Xandros in. The slave takes one look at Demetrios’s
handiwork and shrieks that he is a "stinking traitor!" (Hmm, more rude
remarks about Demetrios’s personal hygiene! And they say your best friends won’t
tell you….) As Xandros is hauled away, Demetrios sees to his horror that the old man
has begun to be animalised.
More earthquakes occur, damaging some of
Zaren’s constructions. Desperate, Zaren allows Demetrios to convince him that the
slaves will work better if he will "remove their chains, discard the whip, give them
decent food" (yeah, real likely). The next thing we see, the formally abused
slaves are refusing seconds and patting their tummies as they have a nice after-lunch nap.
None of which would seem to be getting Zaren’s weapon built. One night, Xandros
sneaks into Demetrios’s tent, telling him that he didn’t really think he
was a stinking traitor (well – a traitor, anyway) and that a small band of slaves is
working to sabotage Zaren. Demetrios goes with them to an underground location
where---well, to be honest, I’m not sure what exactly is going on here. As far
as I can tell, the slaves have built a drill with which to bore into the lava underlying
Atlantis, to help trigger the pending eruption. Why Xandros wanted Demetrios there is a
mystery, as he doesn’t do any work. He simply stands back with a goofy smile as the
other slaves operate the drill, all the while intoning an odd little work chant led by
– surprise! – a funky black slave ("Hurry, hurry/Come up lava/Soon,
soon/Crystal be damned/Damned, damned/Zaren shall not conquer/No, no!"). Demetrios
returns to his tent, and is again disturbed, this time by Antillia. The chastened princess
asks Demetrios to marry her and take her away. Demetrios must tell her that he can’t,
and asks her to trust him. As she leaves him, Sonoy sees her. Shortly afterwards, while
the revolting slaves are leaving after another drill session, a squad of Zaren’s
guards descends upon them. During the fight, Xandros is killed, some of the others are
captured, and Demetrios escapes. Furious, Zaren has his weapon dragged to the steps of the
palace, re-instituting his "whip and chain" slave managing policy (which, to be
perfectly honest, does seem to work better). A huge crowd (the mob from the
coliseum, presumably) gathers to cheer Zaren’s weapon (I’m telling you, superior
civilisations are really boring!). Meanwhile, Demetrios goes to free his imprisoned
fellow rebels, killing one guard to secure the keys to their dungeon. As a second guard
attacks, he cries, "Free yourselves!" and tosses the keys so they land out of
reach of the prisoners. As they strain to reach them, the battling Demetrios kicks them even
further away. Despite this, the prison door immediately swings open and one of the
slaves kills Demetrios’s opponent just as he is about to triumph. The whole group
then crowds together and has a hearty laugh about that key business, and the guard
killing, and the rest of it. Suddenly, the skies darken, and the destruction of Atlantis
begins. (Most of the special effects footage here is lifted from The Last Days Of
Pompeii, but I think I recognised some scenes from Quo Vadis? as well.) At the
site of the slaves’ drill, a huge explosion occurs, followed by Azor’s predicted
eruption. As the prison walls crumble, Zaren’s slaves flee to ships in the harbour.
At the palace, the gathered mob finally doesn’t react to something with wild
cheers. Instead, they scream and run. "Insolent rabble!" grumps Zaren, and
decides to give his weapon a try out while he still can. Spotting the escaping slaves with
his telescope, Zaren lets rip, frying them and their boats. Mwoo-ha-ha! Meanwhile,
the animal-men turn on the screaming surgeon and give him what is not a Dr
Moreau-style comeuppance, not at all; and Demetrios forces his way into the
crumbling palace to rescue Antillia. Also in the palace, Azor stands still, gazing up into
the sky in calm approval of The One True God and His Divine Butt-Kicking. Demetrios and
Antillia make it to a boat, but as they near safety, Zaren sees them. He is training his
weapon upon them when Azor stabs him fatally with his own dagger. Despite his wound, Zaren
fights with Azor, managing to strangle him to death as they roll down the palace stairs
together. The weapon, left unattended, swings about wildly, and to no-one’s surprise,
Zaren is neatly fried by his own petard. And Mwoo-ha-ha! to you too, buddy.
Ships bearing survivors sail away from
Atlantis, watching from a distance as the eruption turns into a series of massive
explosions, until finally the continent of Atlantis sinks beneath the waves. As Demetrios
comforts Antillia, the narrator explains that the survivors of this catastrophe took
Atlantean knowledge to all corners of the globe (which seems odd, considering that all the
survivors appear to be slaves, rather than actual Atlanteans). The film ends here, with
Demetrios and Antillia setting sail for Greece, so we never do get to see how Antillia
likes being the wife of a Greek fisherman – nor indeed how she likes having Petros
for a father-in-law. Pity.
|
Director: George
Pal