If you haven’t had enough of your Brendan Fraser fix in the latest Mummy sequel, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, you can always catch him in Journey To The Center Of The Earth.

Fraser plays Trevor Anderson, a professor who specialises in volcanology. With his nephew, Sean (Josh Hutcherson) in tow, he sets out to Iceland in search of Sean’s father and engages Hannah (Anita Briem), an Icelandic mountain guide to accompany them on their journey.

The not so logical plot

A few death-defying 200-metre falls and dangerous roller coaster rides in the underground later, they finally reach the center of the Earth, deep inside a dormant volcano situated in Iceland. As you can expect, after their adventures they’d want to return to the world outside, so the second half of the movie revolves around their repeated attempts to escape from the center of the earth.

The many near-death encounters that they face while trying to find an exit to civilisation, such as the prehistoric creatures that try to eat them up, and the maneuvering around the delicate rock floors, really make you wonder what the 3 characters did in their past lives to survive countless close shaves.

Even though those thrilling elements set your heart-pounding non-stop, the plot which makes reference to the seminal work of Jules Verne, holds far-fetched and illogical ideas. This shouldn’t be too surprising, considering the sci-fi novel was penned in 1864, when people had a far more primitive notion of what is possible.

Eye Candy

The centre of the earth looks like a depiction of paradise from a fantasy painting with its lush greenery and luminous waterfalls. And the prehistoric animal that dwells in the center of the earth looks so believable that you can almost picture it sitting next to you in the movie theatre. Adding another point to the movie’s “eye candy” factor are the shots of the mountains filmed on location in Iceland.

With so many CGI effects such as the throughout the movie such as the flashes of lightning at the underground beach and the gorgeous scenery at the centre of the earth, the actors managed to work cleverly around the green screen, and did a remarkable job of making their interactions with the surroundings appear natural and convincing. The actors also have good chemistry with one another, which only makes the movie more of a joy to watch.

The Verdict

If you can suspend disbelief, Journey to The Center of the Earth is an action-packed, CGI-filled, and science fiction movie for those who enjoy a thrilling movie experience similar to that of Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull and The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Movie Details

Opens: 7 August 2008
Movie Rating: PG
Running Time: 93 mins
Language: English
Director: Eric Brevig
Cast: Brendan Fraser, Josh Hutcherson, Anita Briem