Ray Harryhausen: Magic, Monsters & Mythology Part 2

 

THE FANTASTIC VOYAGE OF RAY HARRYHAUSEN  

"There is no comparison to his technique, none at all. Anyone who is in the special effects business will tell you that he is the leader of the field."--Charles H. Schneer

With the Fabulous 50s coming to a close (and also America's fascination with big bugs and beasts attacking major cities), Ray Harryhausen turned his attentions towards a subject that meant a great deal to him. Finally putting atomic age science fiction behind him, he was now free to explore the realm of fantasy that he'd loved ever since discovering dinosaurs as a small boy. The next collaboration between Harryhausen and Schneer would prove to be a box office sensation, and one of the most enduring examples of fantasy cinema ever devised.

THE BEST OF RAY'S BEASTS #5

While many fans have great affection for the giant cyclops seen throughout THE 7TH VOYAGE OF SINBAD (1958), arguably the best sequence of the entire picture would be the sword duel with the living skeleton. It's a marvelous piece of motion, timing and effects trickery. The duel itself had its genesis in a sketch drawing that proved to be instrumental in the film getting made. The finished sequence was highly touted, and deservedly so. It also set a precedent for Harryhausen that he would continue to top himself for the duration of his career.



Harryhausen dusted off an earlier outline, and sketches for what he had titled SINBAD THE SAILOR. The task of greenlighting a costume production of this magnitude for a style of film that had fallen out of favor in Hollywood was as daunting a task as the voyage in the finished film. After going through a few title changes and dropping numerous sequences and tweaking others, THE 7TH VOYAGE OF SINBAD (1958) set sail before the cameras in late 1957.

Working with an incredibly ambitious script, some of the changes and eliminations included: the purpose of the voyage (to find a valley of diamonds) was changed; two Roc's were trimmed down to just a single giant two-headed bird; a villainous female character was dropped; attacks by giant rats and bat creatures were eliminated as was a battle between two cyclops among some others.

In addition to the overabundance of fantasy elements, Schneer was able to convince Harryhausen they should shoot in color this time per the subject matter. The esteemed animator relented, but was cognizant of the problems color film stock would present in achieving the best results possible for what he wanted to capture onscreen.



This VOYAGE was the biggest obstacle for Ray up to this point. By comparison, the animated effects in THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS (1953) took five months to complete. The skeleton fight in 7TH VOYAGE took three months by itself. The films final cost came in at $650,000 (nearly $76,000 went to effects). The theatrical unveiling proved celebratory for all involved, and that their efforts were not in vain. The huge success guaranteed more such fantasy pictures were forthcoming.

"[Dynamation is] a photographic process which combines a live background, in color, with a three-dimensional animated figure in combination with flesh and bone actors."--Charles H. Schneer in Famous Monsters June 1963 pp51. 




THE 7TH VOYAGE OF SINBAD (1958) also debuted the christening of 'Dynamation'; the name of the stop-motion process Ray Harryhausen was using to bring his creations to life. Both Harryhausen and Schneer experimented with the process for more than a year before they perfected the technique. The term would be modified on a few occasions over the years with little to no change to the process outside of a different name for marquee value.

To say this production was influential is an understatement. For example, Italy became notorious for producing clones of American movies that hit dangerously close to their source. However, United Artists commissioned a film whose similarities weren't confined solely to the storyline -- it also utilized some of the major principal cast (Kerwin Mathews and Torin Thatcher) and even VOYAGEs director, Nathan Juran. That film was JACK THE GIANT KILLER (1962), which was animated by a friend and colleague of Ray's named Jim Danforth. That picture had a bounty of pleasing sequences. Even though it felt like a companion piece to Columbia's Sinbad movie (to put it mildly; others would call it a rip-off), the fantasy film realm is all the better for like-minded imagination being brought to the screen.

MONSTER MOVIE MEMORIES OF RAY HARRYHAUSEN #2

7TH VOYAGE was not my first exposure to Ray's Sinbad tales. The first was GOLDEN VOYAGE, which I caught on television in the early 1980s. Not long after when video stores were cropping up everywhere, my dad rented Ray's first journey with the Arabian adventurer, and also JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS (1963). He really hyped up 7TH VOYAGE and it definitely did not disappoint. As much as I enjoyed it, I still preferred the second Sinbad picture of the three. However, it was quite an epic evening to catch two of Ray's best efforts back to back. Both the colossal cyclops and JASONs towering Talos left a huge impression on me.

Ray's next was a totally different type of voyage, but still a fantasy picture. That the 3 WORLDS OF GULLIVER (1960) retained the services of Kerwin Mathews and also featured a number in the title was a good gamble that lightning would strike twice. Despite a slew of effects (lots of mattes and forced perspective) including a battle with an alligator, GULLIVER didn't replicate the sizable success of its predecessor. The Dynamation process was re-named 'Super Dynamation' to promote the production, although there was no difference in the process. Despite not being of the caliber or excitement of the Sinbad movie, it's a fun film filled with child-like wonder; but for those seeking creature thrills, you'll be sorely disappointed.

DYNAMATION COMES ALIVE IN YOUR HOME!



Back in the mid 1960s and onward, it was common occurrence to run across ads for regular, and super 8 movies in Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine. By then, Ray Harryhausen's movies had become extremely popular with kids and adults and his films were among those selectable for purchase. These reels had approximately 10 to 15 minutes of footage per reel. The technique of stop-motion was taking off and being undertaken by a new crop of artists. Where Ray had surpassed his master, Willis O'Brien, others were likewise inspired by Ray's work and making their own movies such as Jim Danforth (WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH) and Dave Allen (EQUINOX). 

THE BEST OF RAY'S BEASTS #6



The battle with the giant crab in MYSTERIOUS ISLAND (1961) seems like any other action melding of stop-motion with live action, but it's special in that the crab is not a construct of a rubber outer layer built around a metal armature. For this sequence, it's an actual crabs exoskeleton with the armature inside. The usage of an actual crustaceans shell provides an added layer of realism to this scene.

Harryhausen would then turn his attention back to giant beasts with a sequel to Disney's 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA (1954). Jules Verne and H.G. Wells were two of his favorite authors growing up, so bringing one of Verne's tales to life offered an exciting opportunity. Harryhausen contributed four giant threats for this movie. They were all unique for their variety within the animal kingdom -- one's a crustacean, another is a bird, an insect, and finally a cephalopod.



Considering this was a sequel to the 1954 film, there was interest in having James Mason reprise his role of Captain Nemo. For budgetary reasons, it was decided to go with another actor, so Herbert Lom was willing to step into the role.

MYSTERIOUS ISLAND (1961) grew on me over the years, and seeing it now, it's a fine piece of adventure filmmaking. It has a wonderful story of people coming together to survive amidst a tumultuous time (the setting is the Civil War) on the title atoll while battling enormous adversaries, meeting Capt. Nemo and escaping an erupting volcano at pictures end. Backed by a boisterous score from Bernard Herrmann, the pounding musical cues compliment the effects sequences nicely.

Even with all its magnificent set pieces and matinee thrills, Harryhausen and Schneer's Verne influenced epic failed to reap Sinbad level box office spoils. Since its release, MYSTERIOUS ISLAND has become a classic example of stop-motion enhanced fantasy filmmaking. Turning now to Greek Mythology, the dynamic Dynamation Duo gambled on their most ambitious adventure yet.

THE BEST OF RAY'S BEASTS #7 



To try and limit to a single best scene in JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS (1963) is an exercise in futility, so the scene that made the biggest impression on me was the Talos sequence. While most folks fondly remember the skeleton battle above all else, for me, the giganticism of the Talos sequence made my jaw drop when I was a kid. The scene as executed is a suspenseful sequence of fantasy perfection.

In the late 50s and early 60s the Italian Sword and Sandal movies were popular attractions around the world. Their appeal was waning around the time Harryhausen and Schneer were working on the awe-inspiring grandeur of what was then called JASON AND THE GOLDEN FLEECE. It's ironic that Harryhausen held little interest in Greek Mythology when he was younger, but by this time in his career, the subject matter was ideal for the Dynamation process. The project ultimately proved to be one of the teams most ambitious undertakings, as well as their most expensive up to that time.

This story had been told in 1960 by Riccardo Freda as THE GIANTS OF THESSALY, but minus the stop-motion animated monstrosities. It also made up a chunk of Pietro Franscisi's HERCULES from 1957. Speaking of the Greek demi-god, the character of Hercules had been previously portrayed by American actors like Steve Reeves and Mark Forest in Italian movies, but the makers of GOLDEN FLEECE didn't want a musclebound Hercules to detract from Jason's journey. To differentiate from the Italian style pictures, Nigel Green (he was a burly man, but lacked the ripped musculature) was cast in the supporting role of the fabled strongman.

THE BEST OF RAY'S BEASTS #8

While #7 on this list left me in awe, the duel with Jason and two men versus an army of seven skeletons (they were originally to have been moldy corpses) is an amazing piece of choreography and animated brilliance. Where the mano a mano between Kerwin Mathews and a reanimated, bony adversary set a precedent for movie special effects in 7th VOYAGE, this sequence intensified that on a much grander scale. Harryhausen's painstaking effects magic in this much trumpeted scene is deserving of its accolades; and one of the best such instances of spectacular special effects in cinematic history.



I'm sure everybody has a JASON memory, or a fondness for this picture. It's nigh impossible to not be entranced by the wonders that transpire onscreen for the films 104 minutes; a running time bolstered by a bombastic score from Bernard Herrmann that is as big as the adventure of Jason and his Argonauts. Draped in an overwhelming sense of pageantry and two years in the making, the 3 million budget is one of those cases where every penny is up on the screen. Harryhausen displayed an indefatigable hand in capturing his most spectacular work up to that time. The skeleton sequence -- which is often cited as the movies most accomplished moment -- took four and a half months to complete all by itself.  It became one of Ray's favorites of his career.

Unfortunately, despite such sights as Jason battling a seven headed Hydra and a duel with seven skeletons among others, JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS performed below expectations (it did much better on its re-release). On the bright side, Ray Harryhausen married his wife Diana on October 5th, 1963 after production had wrapped. Over the years, this superb motion picture has amassed an incredible following, and is a favorite of many. Sam Raimi's ARMY OF DARKNESS (1992) for example, has Harryhausen's work stamped all over it.

After passing on a script titled 'Breakout of the Loch Ness Monster', Harryhausen and Schneer moved onto other subjects. Having missed out on animating the aliens in WAR OF THE WORLDS (1953), and having always wanted to shoot a film based on H.G. Wells, adapting 'First Men In the Moon' was looking to be an enticing proposition. However, Columbia Pictures was hesitant to touch it.

Remaking Wells' novel (the George Melies version from 1902 was famous for its effects work) was a curious choice, but one Schneer and Harryhausen had faith in. Both the studio and Schneer wanted to shoot in widescreen for the first time, but like resisting 7TH VOYAGE in color, Ray did likewise here, but relented once more. In the end, producing stop-motion photography via a wider expanse proved problematic and not worth the effort. The finished product was certainly a different, and unusual motion picture than what the duo were accustomed to. It performed poorly in America and overseas, and was the least profitable of the pictures Harryhausen worked on. It has some interesting ideas, and faithful to the Wells story, but it's also my least favorite Ray picture. However, the film playfully bridged fact and fantasy considering the moon race at the time.



Ray Harryhausen's next project would see him fully realize one of his childhood passions. He would be bringing dinosaurs to the screen. But this wasn't a documentary ala THE ANIMAL WORLD (1956); this would be a remake of 1940s ONE MILLION B.C. The films evolution would eventually grow into a monster hit not just because of its dinosaurs, but also for one of its stars.

To be continued in PART 3...

Ray Harryhausen: Magic, Monsters & Mythology Part 1

A RAY OF LIGHT

"I often have to act the role of a dinosaur, or an ape, or even a flying saucer to feel how to move the models in portraying a certain kind of scene." -- Ray Harryhausen, Famous Monsters pp24, March 1967.

For those who grew up before computer generated imagery took over the special effects world, the magic of stop-motion animation will no doubt have been a part of your movie-viewing childhood. While Willis O'Brien will always be closely associated with the technique for his work on such notable movies as THE LOST WORLD (1925) and KING KONG (1933), the name Ray Harryhausen is synonymous with this nearly extinct art. Not only was Ray the leading stop-motion animator for some three decades, but he also inspired a legion of filmmakers that went on to successful careers of their own. Some of these include fellow animators Jim Danforth and David Allen. Others include special effects artists Dennis Muren and Phil Tippett. Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Joe Dante and Peter Jackson are directors of note who were inspired in some way or other by Harryhausen's ingenious creations.



Raymond Frederick Harryhausen was born in Los Angeles on June 29th, 1920. He displayed a predilection for creating things at an early age, and his parents encouraged him in what was soon to become his chosen field. His father being a machinist, this helped him in later years in building armatures and inner workings of the models that would make up Ray's marvelously imaginative creations. 



Possessing a fascination for dinosaurs (also shared by his lifelong friend Ray Bradbury), Harryhausen was dutifully inspired after witnessing the monstrous grandeur of the original 1933 KING KONG on the big screen. While Ray's parents had taken him to see THE LOST WORLD in 1925, it wasn't till seeing the King of Skull Island thrash dinosaurs and carry off Fay Wray that he knew what he wanted to do with his life.

A chance to meet his idol came while Ray was in High School, and O'Brien's advice to the young animator in training led to art and anatomy classes to further hone his skills. Harryhausen eventually got a job on George Pal's PUPPETOONS series of animated shorts in 1938. The enterprising artist also counted WW2 shorts for Frank Capra as resume enhancers. 

Having kept in touch with Willis O'Brien (affectionately referred to by his friends as Obie) during this time, the KONG animator asked his young apprentice to assist him on the troubled production of MIGHTY JOE YOUNG (1949) in 1945. The bloated 2 million picture (by comparison BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS only cost $200,000) didn't perform well, but it left Harryhausen undaunted. While, O'Brien's career would slowly dissipate, Ray's was rapidly ascending. The student was soon to surpass the teacher.



After failing to animate the aliens in both THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD (1951) and WAR OF THE WORLDS (1953), Harryhausen instead pursued another opportunity to design the creature for a potential movie that was then called 'The Monster From Beneath the Sea'. After purchasing the story, 'The Fog Horn' from his friend Ray Bradbury (and also the title 'The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms' since the Fog Horn title was changed by the Saturday Evening Post), Harryhausen embarked on his first solo creature feature. With the massive success of THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS (1953), more opportunities for Harryhausen to indulge his passion for stop-motion animation were on the fast track to becoming a reality.

MONSTER MOVIE MEMORIES OF RAY HARRYHAUSEN #1

For this monster movie fan, my first exposure to Ray Harryhausen was via his B/W science fiction movies. It wasn't till much later that I discovered the wonders of Dynamation. Prior to that, I was both shocked and amazed by what I saw transpiring on television. Now, former favorites like The Wolf Man and the Creature from the Black Lagoon -- and even Godzilla -- had some new competition. There were new monsters on the block. My first exposure to Ray's wonders was with 20 MILLION MILES TO EARTH (1957). This movie quickly became a huge favorite of mine, and the Ymir was arguably my favorite domestic monster growing up. I remember cutting out pictures of it in a book once along with other creatures to make my own adolescent version of Famous Monsters of Filmland Magazine -- which became my favorite periodical from the time I was three in 1978.



Like Harryhausen, I had a passion for prehistoric monsters. I loved dinosaurs, and anything about them I had to get my hands on. The creations of Harryhausen were among my fondest childhood memories watching monster movies as a kid, and also reading about them in various books and magazines including Famous Monsters of Filmland. This early exposure to his B/W threats from outer and inner space fueled my own passions for drawing my own monsters. While I remained content watching, and drawing them, Ray Harryhausen continued creating them for moviegoers like myself to enjoy.

THE BEST OF RAY'S BEASTS #1



The scene above from THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS (1953) was the genesis of the production. Ray Bradbury's short story, 'The Fog Horn' was about a sea beast summoned from the briny deep by the sound of a lighthouse foghorn believing it to be another dinosaur. This haunting sequence also reinforced my childhood fears of something big watching from outside a window, and also for whatever enormous mysteries that lay beneath the surface of the ocean.



THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS (1953) shocked many upon its release when it reportedly made 5 million during its original theatrical run. Ray's work, and the film itself inspired a slew of like-minded movies for the remainder of the decade. One major success that owes its origin to THE BEAST is Japan's own GODZILLA (1954). If not for the success of Warner Brothers 'monster from the sea' movie, we might not have ever gotten a Godzilla, or not in the form in which the titanic creature is popularly known. 

O'Brien himself also did effects for a couple movies that mined similar territory to Ray's rampaging Rhedosaur with THE BLACK SCORPION (1957) and THE GIANT BEHEMOTH (1959); the latter of which had BEASTs director, Eugene Lourie; himself an accomplished art director and special effects artist (he was nominated for Best Visual Effects for 1969s KRAKATOA: EAST OF JAVA and also assisted on the effects for BEAST).



With a few projects failing to get off the ground (The Elementals -- see image above; The Flying Cyclops -- this eventually became 20 MILLION MILES TO EARTH), or an inability to secure Ray's involvement (Columbia's The Flying Claw, which later became THE GIANT CLAW), the success of BEAST ultimately led to a partnership that would last nearly three decades.

THE BEST OF RAY'S BEASTS #2 



The destruction of the Golden Gate Bridge and portions of San Francisco by the massive cephalopod of IT CAME FROM BENEATH THE SEA (1955) are the major highlights of this film. That Harryhausen was able to conceal the fact that his octopus was in actuality a sextopus is a testament to his ability to create believable illusions. It's also easily the best movie about a gigantic killer octopus.

Charles H. Schneer was -- like Tomoyuki Tanaka envisioning Godzilla -- inspired to make his own monster movie, but about a creature that exists in the real world. After a few title changes, IT CAME FROM BENEATH THE SEA (1955), a SciFi monster movie about a rampaging octopus, went into production in 1954. With a budget of only $150,000, and pressure to keep costs down, Harryhausen used his ingenuity to devise cost-effective means to accomplish his visual artistry. Harryhausen later revealed that he saved time by only animating six tentacles instead of eight. 

After filming was over, the octopus creation would also serve its purpose in a variety of ways by having its parts used to formulate monsters in later Harryhausen movies!

Additionally, famed Japanese SPX artist Eiji Tsuburaya was fascinated with octopi, as well as stop-motion animation. He experimented with the art, and also a giant octopus of his own in 1962s KING KONG VS. GODZILLA. While Willis O'Brien is Kong's creator, the success Ray Harryhausen was enjoying for his technical prowess no doubt left an imprint on Japan's effects master.

With IT bringing in big box office, it was only natural that more monsters were in Ray's future. But before he and Schneer co-opted to create aliens attacking the Earth, the stop-motion master accepted an offer from future disaster movie mogul Irwin Allen.

This particular production was a documentary entitled THE ANIMAL WORLD (1956). The film was a reunion of sorts for Harryhausen and his teacher, Willis O'Brien. Both men worked together for the last time in designing the dinosaur portions of this ambitious documentary. The dedication of both men is indicative in a brontosaurus birthing scene wherein some 200 eggs were used before a satisfactory shot was accomplished. That's a lot of protein!

THE BEST OF RAY'S BEASTS #3



The destruction of famous United States landmarks were undoubtedly the major selling point for EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS (1956) in addition to showcasing some staggeringly impressive effects magic (some of which is merged with real shots of planes blowing up) The movie is possibly the best such film post WAR OF THE WORLDS (1953) to feature the Earth invaded by warring aliens from outer space. 



After completing his stint working with Irwin Allen (who clumsily remade THE LOST WORLD in 1960 without the use of stop-motion effects), Harryhausen went back to Columbia to create a startling array of flying saucers destroying famous landmarks, and being destroyed by human ingenuity. Directed by 'B' movie maven Fred F. Sears (THE GIANT CLAW, THE WEREWOLF), the name of this new picture was EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS (1956). 

This is another movie I remember vividly from childhood. My young eyes were stunned in amazement at the sight of UFOs and their alien inhabitants marching on mankind before their defeat prompting some spectacular scenes of calamity. What's particularly notable about this movie is that, not only are the UFOs animated, but the buildings that are destroyed are animated as well. The saucers are suspended by wires, but considering Harryhausen painted them out frame by frame, you never see them. When one puts his painstaking, and meticulous work into perspective, a viewer can appreciate his craftsmanship even more; especially when comparing them to SciFi and Fantasy pictures of a similar nature from the same time period. Destruction footage seen in the film made its way into the giant turkey, THE GIANT CLAW -- also directed by Sears.

Despite being a favorite of many (the demise of the aliens was seemingly recycled for Toho's INVASION OF ASTRO MONSTER from 1965), EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS was the animators least favorite of his works.

THE BEST OF RAY'S BEASTS #4

The Ymir is a special creation for many, including its creator. Instead of being an antagonist, the Venusian is depicted as a pitiable creature who is taken from its natural habitat and essentially oppressed till its own actions result in its inevitable destruction. There are many memorable moments in 20 MILLION MILES TO EARTH (1957), but one that stands out is the finale atop the Roman Coliseum. This sequence mirrored the finale of KING KONG (1933) set atop the Empire State Building.

The next Ray-Schneer collaboration went through a few title changes before settling on 20 MILLION MILES TO EARTH (1957). It's also ironic that it was envisioned by Schneer as a color production (it was released colorized on DVD a few years ago), but Harryhausen talked him into staying within the monochromatic realm one more time. The European locale was different, as was the creature. Harryhausen wanted to instill a humanistic quality in the Ymir monster in the hopes of eliciting an emotional response from the audience. Ray's intention was successful, at least to me it was. I do remember crying when the Venusian monstrosity was killed at the end.



The Ymir was originally designed to be a cyclops with cloven hooves, but this was scrapped. Of course, the cyclops idea would later surface in 1958s THE 7TH VOYAGE OF SINBAD. The Ymir would serve another purpose 25 years later becoming part of the Kraken seen in CLASH OF THE TITANS (1981). Possibly the most memorable sequence in the film is the battle with the (rather large) elephant. Harryhausen would recapture this battle in color when bringing Willis O'Brien's failed 1942 project, THE VALLEY OF GWANGI, to the screen in 1969.



Columbia promoted the films spectacular stop-motion effects as 'Electrolitic Dynamation', which was a new christening which Harryhausen hadn't heard of (although the term Dynamation would cement itself in 1958, and morph over the years). The film was very successful, and maintains its stance as a fondly remembered monster movie. It was among the last such pictures of the 1950s, and also Ray's final film in glorious B/W. The animation entrepreneur was soon to set a precedent for not only himself, but also for the now vibrant art form known as stop-motion animation -- an effects technique that Harryhausen was now the leading authority.

To be continued in PART 2...