This is certainly not my favorite Harryhausen fest, but there are a few cool creations that make this worth a view. The giant bee is a great looking effect, maybe one of Ray's best. The giant crab is also fun and the fact that it ends up being naturally boiled is a hoot. The best scenes are the opening minutes with the hot air balloon. There is some great tension between the Union and a Confederate soldier. All of the standard fear-of-heights tropes are covered here, too. When the soldiers finally crash on the beach on the mysterious island the movie stalls. From this point on it's mostly a lot of "Hey! Look over there!" or "Come see what I found!" moments. Captain Nemo makes an appearance in the last third of the movie. He's not nearly as strange and quirky as you'd think and it's disappointing that his submarine, the Nautilus, is permanently docked. There are a number of careless or intentionally ignored mistakes with the sets or props that gave me the feeling that this was thrown together and finished in a hurry. It also doesn't help that the last 20 minutes seem jammed with details that would have had more impact if fleshed out earlier. There was a lot of stock volcano footage that left a lazy impression. I believe a master effects guy like Harryhausen could have built something more impressive. One thing that doesn't disappoint is the Bernard Herrmann score. It's really fun and sticks with you long after the movie is over. Gary Merrill is also terrific as the worldly Journalist/Cook.