Older science fiction films can be a hoot if they haven't aged well or if they were bad to begin with. Luckily, "Fantastic Voyage" doesn't fall into either category. Sure, the science could be dodgy (for those interested the premise of the film violates Planck's Constant about the mass of an object, the air pulled from the lungs of the person being operated on wasn't miniaturized so how can the crew breathe it, etc.) but putting all of that aside the film written by Harry Kleiner from a treatment by David Duncan (George Pal's "The Time Machine"), story by Jerome Bixby ("Star Trek", "The Twilight Zone") and Otto Klement deftly mixes the spy genre with fantasy. The novelization by the late noted science fiction writer Isaac Asimov actually appeared before the film creating the impression for many that Asimov wrote the source material (although the book credits the multiple authors). Asimov's adaptation cleaned up some of the science goofs. The science may not be perfect (after all, this wasn't an era when the science portion of science fiction was particularly strong) but the film is captivating with strong direction by Richard Fleischer ("20,000 Leagues Under the Sea", "Soylent Green", "Doctor Dolittle", "Compulsion" and "The Boston Strangler"), Oscar winning visual effects and a marvelously evocative score by Leonard Rosenman. The film manages to be fun (if you can put aside your disbelief) 40 years later. ***

Set during the Cold War, Grant (Stephen Boyd) is called in to escort Jan Benes (Jean Del Val) a man with information vital to the safety and security of the United States. When their motorcade is attacked, Benes is injured and goes into a coma. Grant is again recruited this time to accompany a team of a surgeon (Arthur Kennedy), government doctor (Donald Pleasance), nurse (Raquel Welch) and Navy pilot (William Redfield) on a journey of tiny proportions. They are going to be miniaturized be injected into Benes and travel in a state-of-the-art sub called the Proteus to destroy the blood clot threatening Benes life. Complications arise, however, when it appears they may have a saboteur in their midst. ---

Image & Sound:

A beautiful, rich looking anamorphic widescreen transfer is a highlight of the film. Fox has done an outstanding job. The flesh tones look extremely good here with deep, rich blacks. The film has been cleaned up as well eliminating much of the grime and dirt that might have otherwise marred the film. Audio sounds good as well. ---

First up we get a commentary track featuring film historian Nick Redman moderating a discussion with Variety and Hollywood Reporter writers/historians Jon Burlingame and Jeff Bond. The commentary focuses mostly on Leonard Rosenman's marvelous score as both writers are experts in film scoring. We learn for example that originally the producers proposed a jazz inflected score typical of spy thrillers of the time. Rosenman wouldn't have that. He also suggested that the first 30 minutes of the film NOT feature his score-a brave and brilliant decision. Sure, there are sound effects but listen carefully and you'll hear no music which in many respects heightens the tension. The three men comment on everything from the unusual casting (Donald Pleasance in his first role as a villain when previously he had been primarily cast in sympathetic roles) to director Richard Fleischer's inspired direction. ***

Next up we get a featurette "Lava Lamps and Celluloid: A Tribute to the Visual Effects of Fantastic Voyage" featuring Richard Edlund (Oscar winner for "Close Encounters") discussing the difficulties of creating convincing visual effects at the time and his appreciation for some of the stunning work done by Art Cruickshank. ***

The rest of the special features are a varied lot. "Whirlpool Scene" allows you to do a storyboard to film comparison of that sequence. Finally we get Rosenman's rich score isolated on the second audio track. We also get a gallery that allows us to see two of the surviving miniatures of the Proteus from multiple angles as well as deleted scenes from the script illustrated by storyboards for the sequence. Fox has assembled a nice collection of lobby cards, posters, production art and an interactive press book (actually the original press book that you can look through on the DVD). We also get the original theatrical trailer and two TV spots produced for the film. ---

Final Words: