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Those Fantastic Flying Fools

Original title: Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon
  • 19671967
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 1h 35m
IMDb RATING
5.2/10
795
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Troy Donahue, Gert Fröbe, Burl Ives, Lionel Jeffries, Daliah Lavi, and Terry-Thomas in Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)
  • Adventure
  • Comedy
  • Fantasy
In Victorian England, an American showman uses a wealthy Frenchman's finances to build a German explosives expert's giant cannon designed to fire a people-filled projectile to the Moon, but ... Read allIn Victorian England, an American showman uses a wealthy Frenchman's finances to build a German explosives expert's giant cannon designed to fire a people-filled projectile to the Moon, but spies and saboteurs endanger the project.In Victorian England, an American showman uses a wealthy Frenchman's finances to build a German explosives expert's giant cannon designed to fire a people-filled projectile to the Moon, but spies and saboteurs endanger the project.
IMDb RATING
5.2/10
795
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Don Sharp
  • Writers
    • Harry Alan Towers(original story)
    • Jules Verne(inspired by the writings of)
    • Dave Freeman(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Burl Ives
    • Jimmy Clitheroe
    • Terry-Thomas
Top credits
  • Director
    • Don Sharp
  • Writers
    • Harry Alan Towers(original story)
    • Jules Verne(inspired by the writings of)
    • Dave Freeman(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Burl Ives
    • Jimmy Clitheroe
    • Terry-Thomas
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 17User reviews
    • 20Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Photos28

    Burl Ives and Terry-Thomas in Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)
    Burl Ives in Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)
    Joan Sterndale-Bennett in Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)
    Jimmy Clitheroe and Burl Ives in Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)
    Troy Donahue in Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)
    Gert Fröbe and Dennis Price in Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)
    Graham Stark and Terry-Thomas in Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)
    Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)
    Tom Irwin, Dennis Price, and Joan Sterndale-Bennett in Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)
    Tom Irwin, Lionel Jeffries, and Joan Sterndale-Bennett in Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)
    Troy Donahue in Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)
    Gert Fröbe, Stratford Johns, and Hugh Walters in Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Burl Ives
    Burl Ives
    • Phineas T. Barnumas Phineas T. Barnum
    Jimmy Clitheroe
    • General Tom Thumbas General Tom Thumb
    Terry-Thomas
    Terry-Thomas
    • Captain Sir Harry Washington Smytheas Captain Sir Harry Washington Smythe
    Graham Stark
    Graham Stark
    • Grundleas Grundle
    Gert Fröbe
    Gert Fröbe
    • Professor von Bulowas Professor von Bulow
    • (as Gert Frobe)
    Lionel Jeffries
    Lionel Jeffries
    • Sir Charles Dillworthyas Sir Charles Dillworthy
    Dennis Price
    Dennis Price
    • The Duke of Barsetas The Duke of Barset
    Troy Donahue
    Troy Donahue
    • Gaylordas Gaylord
    Daliah Lavi
    Daliah Lavi
    • Madelaineas Madelaine
    Edward de Souza
    Edward de Souza
    • Henrias Henri
    • (as Edward De Souza)
    Hermione Gingold
    Hermione Gingold
    • Angelicaas Angelica
    Judy Cornwell
    Judy Cornwell
    • Electraas Electra
    Renate von Holt
    Renate von Holt
    • Annaas Anna
    • (as Renata Holt)
    Joachim Teege
    • Bulgeroffas Bulgeroff
    Stratford Johns
    Stratford Johns
    • Warrant Officeras Warrant Officer
    Derek Francis
    Derek Francis
    • Puddlebyas Puddleby
    Anthony Woodruff
    • Announceras Announcer
    Hugh Walters
    Hugh Walters
    • Carruthersas Carruthers
    • Director
      • Don Sharp
    • Writers
      • Harry Alan Towers(original story)
      • Jules Verne(inspired by the writings of)
      • Dave Freeman(screenplay)
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

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    Storyline

    Edit
    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. —Rhino <rhino@blueyonder.co.uk>
    • french science fiction literature on screen
    • timeframe 19th century
    • spy
    • saboteur
    • welsh mountains
    • 24 more
    • Plot summary
    • Add synopsis
    • Taglines
      • Sky-High Laughs!
    • Genres
      • Adventure
      • Comedy
      • Fantasy
      • Sci-Fi
    • Certificate
      • Not Rated
    • Parents guide
      • Add content advisory

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Bing Crosby was attached to this project; he was going to play P.T. Barnum, but delays and rewrites caused him to drop out.
    • Quotes

      The Duke of Barset: A common device for swindling! In my day you'd be led to a room with a gun on the table. The door would be closed. A shot would ring out. A woman would scream.

      Captain Sir Harry Washington Smythe: I say, I did so like the part about the woman screaming!

    • Crazy credits
      Closing credits: and Queen Victoria JOAN STERNDALE BENNETT God Bless her !
    • Connections
      Spoofs Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines or How I Flew from London to Paris in 25 Hours 11 Minutes (1965)
    • Soundtracks
      We Must Always Trust the Stranger
      Music and Lyrics by Ron Goodwin

      Performed by Mike Clifford (uncredited)

    User reviews17

    Review
    Top review
    6/10
    Confused, rambling and silly, but funny at times
    Here is a 1967 British movie that is unsure whether it wants to be a straightforward 1890s Jules Verne fantasy, a 1960s farce or a romantic comedy. It uses the Jules Verne story as a reflection of the 1960s anxiety about the space race and the decline of Empire.

    "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea" and "Time Machine" are great 1960s films that remain watchable classics today. This one doesn't fall into that category at all.

    We see from the start that this is not just a send-up of Victorian science and engineering, but a parody of Victorian society in general. In the turbulent 1960s, the British Empire was in its death throes, and traditional British values and mannerisms were seen as fair game by movie makers.

    Some of the great lines: "By Jove, what a corker", "You're a cad and a bounder", "It's because of the colonies!" "Oh Grundle, what beastly hard luck" and "By George, this is splendid" (said by Burl Ives, no less). These lines were all delivered with great relish.

    However, the loving detail paid to these Victorian trappings adds a poignant air to it all. In the various elaborate scenes, they went to a lot of trouble to depict many different aspects of this British world in the 1890s. A British club, a Welsh village home, a picnic spread, local parades, and so on. The filmmakers seem to be saying, "Surely, it was a good thing while it lasted, even though we laugh at it now".

    In addition to the British self-mockery, foreigners are treated with disdain. The Americans are hucksters and pretty-boy astronauts. The French are flighty and unfaithful (but look good). The Russian is an inept spy lurking in the bushes who tries to ruin everything. The German is a mad scientist. All this is pure 1960s.

    Miscast Burl Ives isn't convincing as a fraudster; he plays himself: portly, amiable and handsome. Troy Donohue (at this point well into his personal and professional decline) delivers his lines with earnest woodenness. He wasn't gay, but it's hard not to snicker when Madeline cries out, "I love you, Gaylord…I love you, Henri". At points like this, the film becomes a "Carry On" farce.

    British comedians Terry-Thomas and Lionel Jeffries were an amusing pair. Jeffries in particular -- playing a bitter, eccentric engineer -- gets to sink his teeth into some juicy lines. By the second half they had become the villains, and played it to the hilt.

    It is somewhat of a rambling, disjointed movie that revolves around set-piece scenes rather than a coherent plot. There are quite a few scenes that add nothing to plot development. We spend a full five minutes, for example, watching a nervous 19th century British artillery crew prepare to fire a dangerous cannon. (Explosions gone wrong are an important theme in the movie.) Another five minutes was devoted to a chase scene involving a Frenchwoman on a penny farthing bicycle. (The filmmakers had a genuine "gas carriage" as a prop, so they made full use of it.)

    "Rocket to the Moon" is a silly movie that has not stood the test of time. However, it is witty and fun at times. If you like this sort of thing, you might enjoy this one.
    helpful•10
    2
    • Laakbaar
    • Mar 1, 2014

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 26, 1967 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Tolldreiste Kerle in rasselnden Raketen
    • Filming locations
      • Ardmore Studios, Herbert Road, Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland
    • Production company
      • Jules Verne Films Ltd.
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $3,000,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 35 minutes
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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    Troy Donahue, Gert Fröbe, Burl Ives, Lionel Jeffries, Daliah Lavi, and Terry-Thomas in Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon (1967)
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