Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004) – Nostalgia Central

New York City in 1939 is suddenly besieged by squadrons of giant flying robots.

Intrepid reporter Polly Perkins (Gwyneth Paltrow) investigates the origin of the robots with the help of her ex-boyfriend, Harry Joseph “Joe” Sullivan (Jude Law) – the heroic “Sky Captain” who leads the Flying Legion.

They discover a link between the mechanical invaders and the mysterious disappearance of the world’s most brilliant scientists, and the pair follow clues that lead them around the world, from the streets of Manhattan to the snowy mountains of Nepal.

They are supported by a group of colourful allies, including Dex Dearborn (Giovanni Ribisi), Joe’s genius technical assistant who tracks the robots’ control signals, and Captain Francesca “Franky” Cook (Angelina Jolie), the eye-patched commander of a British Royal Navy flying aircraft carrier who provides critical aerial and amphibious backup.

They eventually uncover a plot by the reclusive and villainous Dr Totenkopf (played via digitally manipulated archive footage of Sir Laurence Olivier), and their trail leads to his secret island base, which resembles a prehistoric “Space Ark”.

Totenkopf has planned to launch the giant ark into space, containing the genetic material for a new master race and to restart life in space.

When the rocket launches, its massive boosters will ignite the Earth’s atmosphere, incinerating all remaining life on the planet.

Reaching Totenkopf’s inner sanctum, they discover he has been dead for over 20 years, and his automated machines and robots have been blindly carrying out his final orders for decades.

In a desperate final battle, Joe and Polly board the rocket as it launches and safely eject all the animals in escape pods. Joe then uses a captured electric weapon to fry the rocket’s controls, causing it to explode safely in space.

The duo escapes in the last pod and splashes down in the ocean, surrounded by the rescued animals.

The film, directed by Kerry Conran, was shot entirely on blue screens using high definition video – which was a groundbreaking technique at the time – in just 26 days at Elstree Studios in England.

NB: The “World of Tomorrow” portion of the title is a reference to the 1939-40 New York World’s Fair, which was named “The World of Tomorrow”.

Polly Perkins
Gwyneth Paltrow
Sky Captain (Harry Joseph “Joe” Sullivan)
Jude Law
Captain Francesca “Franky” Cook
Angelina Jolie
Dex Dearborn
Giovanni Ribisi
Dr Totenkopf
Laurence Olivier (archive footage)
Editor Paley
Michael Gambon
Kaji
Omid Djalili
Mysterious Woman
Bai Ling
Dr Jennings
Trevor Baxter
Dr Vargas
Julian Curry
Dr Kessler
Peter Law
Creepy
Khan Bonfils
Scary
Samta Gyatso

Director
Kerry Conran

Video