SCIENCE-FICTION SUBMARINES
In the beginning, the submarine was the incarnation of science-fiction well before the term was invented in the 20th century: “20000 Leagues Under the Sea,” and its sequel “Mysterious Island” may be considered as the first true modern science-fiction novels, the subject and object of which are the submersible. This phenomenon was amplified by the Richard Fleisher film (produced by Disney), so much so that the real actor may be said to be the Nautilus, outshining even James Mason (Nemo), Kirk Douglas (Ned Land) or Peter Lorre (Conseil). You only have to surf on the net to observe the phenomenon: there are even sites and an association dedicated to the sole Disney Nautilus!
Following the phenomenal (and global) success of the film, just as the Calypso was beginning its adventures, other “submarine” film productions followed:
- The Japanese “Atragon,” a giant flying submarine;
- “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea” and Admiral Nelson’s “Seaview;”
- The “Stingray” of Gerry Anderson’s “Thunderbirds” TV series;
- The “Proteus,” another production by Richard “Genius” Fleisher (“Fantastic Voyage”);
- The Gungan submarine (the only one in the Star Wars saga) in Episode I, “the Phantom Menace.”
- More recently, a baroque and deviant view of the “Nautilus” in “League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.”
- not to forget TV series like « Man from Atlantis » or « Seaquest, » the DVD reissue of which we still await, together with models of the extraordinary subs they show...
I linked the original works to their merchandise (DVDs, VHS...) whenever possible!
For instance, in the second part of the “Dinotopia” TV film, there is a nice pocket submarine which, as far as I know, was never reproduced, but the original of which, used for filming, was until recently exposed in Disneyland (Paris), at Disney Studios. The same goes for the pocket submarine attacked by the giant squid in “the Beast,” a TV film inspired from a Peter Benchley novel.
Finally, it is difficult, in the country of Jules Verne, to buy those items that are an American collector’s joy; Disneyland Paris does not(as far as I know) sell merchandise derived from its cult film... You have to go hunting on specialized US (lucky Yankees!) or UK commercial sites... or go to Japan if you can! Tokyo Disney Sea issued magnificent specimens, including a steel Nautilus in a wooden box, limited to 500 copies, all of which sold before even reaching the shops...
In short, this section is destined to develop and diversify, depending on what specialized sites sell and the possibilities of the model-builder that assembles the museum’s findings.
One last remark: besides the models that strictly represent the subs from those films, there sometimes were toys “derived” from merchandising. I once saw a surprising rubber-band bathtub “Seaview;” Sutcliffe made a “Disney Nautilus” (just like it says, it’s written on it) derived from its basic model, “Unda Wunda...”
(1) The “Neptune” in the French version.
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