ComedyAdventureFantasy

Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon

Phineas T. Barnum and friends finance the first flight to the moon but find the task a little above them. They attempt to blast their rocket into orbit from a massive gun barrel built into the side of a Welsh mountain, but money troubles, spies and saboteurs ensure that the plan is doomed before it starts...

Release Date : 1967-07-13

Language :EnglishFrench

Adult : false

Status : Released

Production Company : Jules Verne Films Ltd

Production Country : United Kingdom

Alternative Titles : Those Fantastic Flying FoolsBlast Off

Cast

Character Name : Phineas T. Barnum

Original Name : Burl Ives

Gender : Male

Character Name : Gaylord Sullivan

Original Name : Troy Donahue

Gender : Male

Character Name : Professor Siegfried von Bulow

Original Name : Gert Fröbe

Gender : Male

Character Name : Angelica

Original Name : Hermione Gingold

Gender : Female

Character Name : Sir Charles Dillworthy

Original Name : Lionel Jeffries

Gender : Male

Character Name : The Duke of Barset

Original Name : Dennis Price

Gender : Male

Character Name : Madelaine

Original Name : Daliah Lavi

Gender : Female

Character Name : Warrant Officer

Original Name : Stratford Johns

Gender : Male

Character Name : Bertram Grundle

Original Name : Graham Stark

Gender : Male

Character Name : Captain Sir Harry Washington-Smythe

Original Name : Terry-Thomas

Gender : Male

Character Name : Anna Lindstrom

Original Name : Renate von Holt

Gender : Male

Character Name : General Tom Thumb

Original Name : Jimmy Clitheroe

Gender : Male

Character Name : Lady Electra

Original Name : Judy Cornwell

Gender : Female

Character Name : Joachim Bulgeroff

Original Name : Joachim Teege

Gender : Male

Character Name : Henri

Original Name : Edward de Souza

Gender : Male

Character Name : Queen Victoria

Original Name : Joan Sterndale-Bennett

Gender : Male

Character Name : Colonel Scuttling - Scotland Yard Man

Original Name : Allan Cuthbertson

Gender : Male

Character Name : Puddleby

Original Name : Derek Francis

Gender : Male

Character Name : Announcer

Original Name : Anthony Woodruff

Gender : Male

Character Name : Carruthers

Original Name : Hugh Walters

Gender : Male

Character Name : Jack Flood

Original Name : Donald Bisset

Gender : Male

Character Name : Chambers

Original Name : Cecil Nash

Gender : Male

Character Name : Mr. Brown

Original Name : Vernon Hayden

Gender : Male

Character Name : Railway Guard

Original Name : John Franklyn

Gender : Male

Character Name : Professor Dingle

Original Name : Harry Brogan

Gender : Male

Character Name : French Officer of the Guard

Original Name : Derek Young

Gender : Male

Reviews

CinemaSerf

@Geronimo1967

2023-02-26

I was rather disappointed with this comedy drama. Despite having a cast of solid and experienced British stalwarts as well as a few visitors from across the pond, it comes across as a sort of hybrid of "Around the World in 80 Days" (1956) and "Mouse on the Moon" (1963) with neither the charm nor the fun of either. It all starts as Queen Victoria manages to destroy the all-electric home of the "Duke of Barset" (Dennis Price) before inaugurating the suspension bridge of acclaimed engineer "Sir Charles Dillworthy" (Lionel Jeffries) right into the gorge it was supposed to span. Meantime, Phineas T. Barnum (Burl Ives) is having similar difficulties with his projects in the US of A, so he flees to Britain where he encounters these aforementioned two gentlemen and together they alight on a plan to build a rocket to the moon. It's never going to be simple - especially as the Duke's business partner is none other than "Sir Henry Washington-Smythe" (Terry-Thomas) so you just know that caddishness in on the horizon as their project lurches from one disaster to another. They've recruited "Prof. von Bulow" (Gert Fròbe) to design the propellent and Troy Donahue ("Gaylord") is going to be daft enough to try and fly the thing. All the ingredients for an enjoyable film are here, but at just shy of two hours it just misfires as ofter as their rocket for far too long before an ending that I found curiously fitting for all concerned. It is too episodic and the story takes an age to get to a stage where the rocket-ship even features. It's just a messy assembly of characters and sub-plots that allows the actors to play their part, but ensures the story lumbers along weakly. Terry-Thomas stands out, but he is just doing what he aways does and the usually reliable Dennis Price features all too sparingly (as does Fröbe) to make much impact on these admittedly colourful and stylish meanderings. To be honest, I was a bit bored by half way through and that didn't really improve.