The Three Worlds of Gulliver (1960) is a Columbia Pictures fantasy feature film loosely based upon the 18th-century English novel Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift. The film stars Kerwin Mathews as the titular character, June Thorburn as his fiancée Elizabeth, and child actor Sherry Alberoni as Glumdalclitch. Filmed in England and Spain, Gulliver was directed by Jack Sher and featured stop-motion animation and special visual effects by Ray Harryhausen. The film has been broadcast on American television and is available in both VHS and DVD formats.

Plot and cast

Lemuel Gulliver (Kerwin Mathews) is a ship's doctor and one day embarks on a vessel. He is surprised to discover his fiancée Elizabeth (June Thorburn) has stowed away to be near him. A storm arises; Gulliver is swept overboard and washed to the shores of Lilliput, a land of tiny human beings. The Lilliputians are apprehensive regarding Gulliver but he eases their fears by performing acts of kindness. An old quarrel between Lilliput and neighboring Blefscu is revived and Gulliver lends a hand in the proceedings by towing Blefscu's war ships far out to sea. The Emperor of Lilliput (Basil Sydney) then views Gulliver as a potential threat to his power and arranges his execution. Gulliver escapes in a boat he has built.

He finds his way to the isle of Brobdingnag, a land of giants. A peasant girl named Glumdalclitch (Sherry Alberoni) finds him on the shore and carries him to the castle of King Brob (Grégoire Aslan). There, Gulliver is delighted to find Elizabeth, who was washed ashore after a shipwreck. The King installs the two in a dollhouse. When Gulliver cures the Queen (Mary Ellis) of a stomach-ache, Prime Minister Makovan (Charles Lloyd Pack) accuses Gulliver of witchcraft. The King orders Gulliver's execution. Glumdalclitch saves Gulliver and Elizabeth by placing them in her sewing basket and tossing the basket into the sea.

Gulliver and Elizabeth wake on a beach. A passer-by of their own size and shape indicates they are only a short distance from their home in England. Cast includes Martin Benson as Flimnap, Lee Patterson as Reldresal, Jo Morrow as Gwendolyn, Marian Spencer as the Empress of Lilliput, Peter Bull as Lord Bermogg, and Alec Mango as the Minister of Lilliput.

Reception

In the New York Times of December 17, 1960, Eugene Archer praised the film's technical achievement in stop-motion animation and enthusiastically recommended it for children but noted, "...adults will find it all too mechanical to really capture the imagination, and may resent the unclear ending that seems certain to provoke some youthful queries. They should be grateful for a children's film that treats a classic without condescension or burlesque."

Merchandise

Dell Comics released a comic book adaptation of the film.

See also

• List of stop-motion films

References