ListNook

tchnmusic Mar 28, 2026 +788

20 year old me loved this movie. Definitely not a piece of art, but it was a fun adventure

788

Variable_Shaman_3825 Mar 28, 2026 +301

For teenage me who grew up on the works of Verne, Stevenson, Wilde etc this was the literature version of the Avengers.

301

Anxious_Temporary Mar 28, 2026 +83

You should probably read the comic book, of the same name and written by Alan Moore, this film was based on.

83

acidprophet Mar 28, 2026 +37

I can't second this enough. The comic series of The League of Extraordinary Gentleman is amazing. Well worth the read. Alan Moore is one of the best comic writers. He did among many other things Watchman, V for Vendetta, the best run of Swamp Thing, From Hell, Batman The Killing Joke and so many others.

37

roastbeeftacohat Mar 28, 2026 +12

there are two certifiably mad comic writers from the 90's, and Moore's work has aged a lot better than Miller's.

12

SilverSurfer92 Mar 29, 2026 +12

Grant Morrison would like a word.

12

roastbeeftacohat Mar 29, 2026 +3

>Saddam Hussein trying to take over the world and turn everyone into "poofs" with the aid of some scary aliens. Big Dave, "the hardest man in Manchester", manages to stop Saddam's plan with the help of Terry Waite. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terry_Waite so I'm only familiar with allstar superman.

3

SilverSurfer92 Mar 29, 2026 +1

I've never even looked at their 2000AD output but I am 0% surprised it strengthens my argument past what I thought. GMo is the other side of the Moore coin (don't read into the beef, it's bullshit. GMo/Mark Millar beef is real tho) in terms of quality/weirdness/influence imo. Two GOATs with similar philosophies but very different approaches.

1

acidprophet Mar 28, 2026 +2

100% agree

2

SGTBrutus Mar 28, 2026 +9

So much better. And i liked the movie.

9

Quisqeyano Mar 29, 2026 +5

It’s kind of sad that this is the most faithful representation of any of Jules Verne’s characters in all of visual media.

5

MaxSupernova Mar 28, 2026 +34

The sets were wiped out by a storm like 3/4 of the way through filming, so the studio just said “F*** it, edit what we’ve got and release it.” It could have been much better. I’m surprised it’s as good as it is.

34

Starrr_Pirate Mar 28, 2026 +10

Honestly, considering that happened it's amazing they put out something that felt even remotely cohesive.

10

Fuck_auto_tabs Mar 28, 2026 +31

Yeah I remember watching this on FX as a teenager and being like this is dope. I guess we were in the minority lol

31

Dusty_Old_McCormick Mar 28, 2026 +20

I like it too! Captain Nemo is my favorite!

20

Timespender8 Mar 28, 2026 +5

That little guy kicked ass

5

davecrist Mar 28, 2026 +37

Agreed! I never felt like it deserved all the hate it gets.

37

Supermite Mar 28, 2026 +42

It both does and doesn’t. As an adaptation of the comic, it absolutely deserves the hate. Judged as it’s own thing, it definitely gets too much hate.

42

gildedbluetrout Mar 28, 2026 +14

Fun fact, Connery’s experience on this film / with Norrington is what caused him to retire. Norrington has been more or less blackballed ever since.

14

Swolyguacomole Mar 28, 2026 +5

This film is nostalgic as hell for me. No clue why but my dad bought it on that PSP disc

5

TrainAss Mar 28, 2026 +3

43 year old me still loves this movie.

3

thiswasmysixthchoice Mar 28, 2026 -10

I was 15 when it came it. It was, and still is, one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen.

-10

MRintheKEYS Mar 28, 2026 +382

I have a soft spot for this movie. It was The Avengers before we got the Avengers. Thought Connery was a real good Quatermain.

382

canadiancarlin Mar 28, 2026 +77

Well put. I never thought of it that way but it definitely was an avengers-type movie. My favourite was Captain Nemo, with all his cool tech and fighting style, he just looked so cool.

77

LowCartographer2290 Mar 29, 2026 +18

Played by Naseeruddin Shah. One of the best parallel cinema actor in India.

18

canadiancarlin Mar 29, 2026 +4

Correct! I'm still a beginner in hindi cinema but I watched him in Main Hoo Nah. Good stuff!

4

pokeybill Mar 28, 2026 +52

Connery famously retired from acting (with one exception as a voice over actor) due to this film. The studio was blocked from being true to the comics because they couldn't secure licensing for all of the IP involved.

52

immortal1982 Mar 28, 2026 +17

Not necessarily true on the comics part as both stories were developed somewhat separate. The problem is the studio was sued for plagiarism after release and settled, but threw Alan Moore under the bus as well. There's a recent episode of "What went wrong" on the making of the film that goes into more detail. [What went Wrong - The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.](https://open.spotify.com/episode/33Aaqpia59lSgNnmznQaDe?si=N6_R0SD6TIm9wdn_UO_Rdw)

17

mynameizmyname Mar 28, 2026 +13

What were they blocked from making it a true adaptation? The script was nonsense. They shoe-horned Tom Sawyer in there and completely changed Mina Harker.

13

Khelthuzaad Mar 28, 2026 +19

Some of the literally works are not public domain and the inheritors of the IP's were against the movie. For example Dr. Seuss forbade most adaptations of his work during his lifetime, only his widow accepted and had stringent rules for casting and directors.She wanted Jack Nicholson to be Grinch but Carrey absolutely changed her mind during his performance for casting.

19

wudyudo Mar 28, 2026 +10

She must have not been as involved when the cat in the hat was made. The choices made on the script and going with Myers. The whole thing felt like a fever dream

10

paultheschmoop Mar 28, 2026 +10

IIRC the cat in the hat is what caused the Seuss estate to ban live action Seuss adaptations lol Bummer because the movie f****** rules

10

Khelthuzaad Mar 29, 2026 +1

Another fun fact Jim Carrey stars in 2 Dr Seuss movies.In the 2nd one he plays the protagonist in Horton hears a Who and it's an animation.

1

ClassicT4 Mar 28, 2026 +5

They couldn’t use “Invisible Man,” so the character that was invisible was only ever referred to as “Skinner.”

5

guimontag Mar 28, 2026 +31

Connery WAS in a movie called The Avengers actually..

31

kennedye2112 Mar 28, 2026 +9

We don't talk about that one.

9

TheLostExplorer7 Mar 29, 2026 +4

I was a huge fan of Sean Connery and it was sad that Quartermain was his last acting role. That said, he was damn good playing the mentor to Tom Sawyer in this one. IMO, this was a team up movie for characters spanning science fiction and fantasy from the 1800s. I jokingly called it the proto-Avengers. I know that they made a bunch of changes to the original story presented in the comics and there was some controversy with the addition of Tom Sawyer to the cast, but I still enjoyed it quite a bit. A lot of the scenes echoed and was a mirror image to what Marvel did with its Avengers later on.

4

zosterpops Mar 28, 2026 +3

*Quatermain. I only mention it because I read from King Solomon’s Mines to Child of Storm before I noticed his name wasn’t “Quartermain” 😵‍💫

3

wallyrules75 Mar 29, 2026 +1

Funny that this was the movie that forced him to retire! He hated the whole production. And I agree he was the best part of the movie by far. I think it gets a bad wrap it’s a fun watch

1

Coldspark824 Mar 29, 2026 +1

I mean it even has hulk and red hulk

1

jackcatalyst Mar 29, 2026 +1

Yeah it's weird how The Strange Case ripped off Marvel

1

Coldspark824 Mar 29, 2026

You mean jekylll and hyde? Jekyll’s medicine in the book neither works like the film, nor is there a red hulk that steams hot.

0

edicivo Mar 28, 2026 +57

It's a lot of fun provided you didn't love the comics and eagerly await this movie's release. I was so amped to see it and man, was it disappointing how different it was. But it's a fun movie on its own.

57

Nwsamurai Mar 28, 2026 +21

If I had never read the source material, I could enjoy this movie a lot more.

21

Hip_Fridge Mar 29, 2026 +3

Can confirm, have never read the source material and absolutely enjoy the hell out of this movie. Almost afraid to delve into the comics now as a result. -- That being said, saw The Hunt for Red October before reading the book, and now love both, so it's still tempting.

3

blong217 Mar 29, 2026 +1

This was me an Bourne Supremacy. Read the original book and was wholey dissapointed by the film. However as a film apart from the book it was good fun.

1

hobbykitjr Mar 29, 2026 +1

They couldn't get all the book characters like James Bond

1

GirthKong Mar 28, 2026 +52

Does anyone else find themselves still going "Not the whole thing" in a Dr Jeckyll voice?

52

FighterJock412 Mar 28, 2026 +38

No but my wife does.

38

BaconAllDay2 Mar 28, 2026 +11

This guy fucks

11

Enthusiasms Mar 28, 2026 +7

No, but I will randomly say, "I walk a different path."

7

Vadriel Mar 29, 2026 +5

I love it when he's talking about the serum and he says, "No! Hyde will never use me again!" And Dorian Gray looks at him with contempt and says, "Then what good are you?"

5

fronchfrays Mar 28, 2026 +5

This is the one part of the movie I remember lol, and yes! Not the whole thing…

5

Geek_King Mar 29, 2026 +1

No, but I do say "Home is where the heart is" in Mr. Hyde's voice.

1

SpaceOdysseus23 Mar 28, 2026 +316

This is peak campy cinema and anyone trying to convince you otherwise hates having fun

316

Correct_Inspection25 Mar 28, 2026 +52

Only issue is some of the characters were kinda opposite of the comic, that said I would have paid major money to see Connery quatermain like this for the whole movie. I am happy we did get some more of this camp (intentionally) of this in Timothy Dalton’s Penny Deadful Quatermain and he was awesome

52

czarczm Mar 28, 2026 +6

How so? I've never read the comic

6

SGTBrutus Mar 28, 2026 +19

In the comic, Quartermaine is a weak, old heroin addict. Mina Harker is the leader of the group. There's a part where Mr. Hyde punishes the Invisible Man for something horrible he did. It would never be in this movie. It was a potent part of the story.

19

mechanicalhuman Mar 29, 2026 +3

I love that scene in the comics. The way it plays out. so good. Don't want to spoil it

3

Recover20 Mar 28, 2026 +77

I've always enjoyed this movie. Not everything needs to be a 10/10. Surprisingly well made and a lot of practical effects. Some decent visual effects for the time too.

77

artwarrior Mar 28, 2026 +31

"Practical effects" Mr Connery, we ran out of money for the Invisible Man in your room scene so you'll have to wing it old chap" And action!

31

Recover20 Mar 28, 2026 +11

Not quite sure what you're trying to say here I'll be honest, are you suggesting there wasn't any practical effects throughout the movie?

11

artwarrior Mar 28, 2026 +20

I was making a joke about him "acting" throwing out an invisible man in the scene on Nemo's boat.

20

Recover20 Mar 28, 2026 +8

Sorry man that went right over my head haha I remember the scene you're on about actually and it was very clearly "pretend you're throwing someone" haha

8

artwarrior Mar 28, 2026 +17

From Connery's own words.. "Connery claimed that making the film and the quality of the finished product convinced him to permanently retire from acting in movies. He told The Times: "It was a nightmare. The experience had a great influence on me, it made me think about showbiz. I get fed up dealing with idiots".

17

paggo_diablo Mar 29, 2026 +1

Bob Hoskins would like a word.

1

paggo_diablo Mar 29, 2026 +2

The Mr Hyde stuff was great!

2

Impossible-Welder404 Mar 28, 2026 +70

This and Van Helsing are amazing movies

70

onehedgeman Mar 28, 2026 +27

To me they are the same universe

27

Olivitess Mar 28, 2026 +18

Both villains are played by Richard Roxburg. Maybe Moriarty is a descendant of Dracula? Would make an interesting premise.

18

radar_backwards Mar 28, 2026 +4

Whoa, great callout. Dude was the elite camp actor. See Mission Impossible 2.

4

BertieDastard Mar 28, 2026 +2

The dude played every nationality but his own. To me, he'll always be the Duke from Moulin Rouge.

2

gold13 Mar 29, 2026 +1

You just blew my mind! TIL

1

medhop Mar 28, 2026 +3

Mr. Hyde features in both, I see it as a crossover, so why not?

3

No_Statistician9289 Mar 28, 2026 +14

Once again I will never be convinced this is a bad movie

14

siraolo Mar 28, 2026 +13

It actually gets better if you read the books from which these characters come from.

13

Instant_Ad_Nauseum Mar 29, 2026 +1

In what way? I’ve read all the books the characters are taken from. The film is garbage, and none of the characters even remotely resembles the characters from the books.

1

siraolo Mar 29, 2026 +1

At least for me it's like an absurd anime interpretation. The stupidity of their interpretation for me is part of the charm.

1

Hefty-Strike-6171 Mar 28, 2026 +59

Connery had no idea what this movie was about having never read the source material. He had turned down Lord of the Rings previously and thought this was something similar.

59

NoTitleChamp Mar 28, 2026 +30

And The Matrix.

30

dragunityag Mar 28, 2026 +16

And Harry potter.

16

Rezart_KLD Mar 28, 2026 +7

And my axe!

7

ontheweed Mar 28, 2026 +3

And Jurassic Park

3

GenericUsername2056 Mar 28, 2026 +6

They're taking the hobbits to Ishengard. Also he would've made Sauron sound like Sharon.

6

Ehzranight Mar 28, 2026 +9

I always see people talk about this, but I think its probably for the best he turned down lord of the rings. It is such a lightning in a bottle trilogy that I feel like would have retracted from because it would always be Sean Connery on screen, not the character.

9

ScarHand69 Mar 28, 2026 +4

It also turned him off of acting. I forget the details but the production was such a mess or something to that effect that Connery said F this, never again. Seriously. He has a few credits after this movie as a narrator/voice actor…this movie is for all intents and purposes his last movie.

4

dragunityag Mar 28, 2026 +11

Dude would of gotten paid 445 million across all 3 movies too for lotr.

11

Jorvik287 Mar 28, 2026 +3

He had no idea who those men were and just started fighting like in his Glasgow days

3

WilliamSwagspeare Mar 28, 2026 +1

Thank God. Connery Gandalf would have been painful

1

Variable_Shaman_3825 Mar 28, 2026 +11

Where's your sense of patriotism? God save the Queen! Well that's about as patriotic as it gets here.

11

redwriterhand Mar 28, 2026 +6

How come Moriarty was in it but Sherlock Holmes wasn’t ?

6

sjeik_yerbouti Mar 28, 2026 +4

Spoiler: >! in the graphic novel, he was believed to have died after falling into the Reichenbach Falls after a fight with Moriarty, based on the 1893 story, "The Final Problem" !<

4

redwriterhand Mar 28, 2026 +2

Oh so it was set before he returned?

2

sjeik_yerbouti Mar 28, 2026 +3

Spoiler: >! Apparently. He does appear alive in the graphic novel, having faked his death !< The movie takes a lot of interesting liberties from the original works and the graphic novel, a lot of with in a fan of. It’s like three different versions: books, comics and movie.

3

IngeniousDummy Mar 28, 2026 +2

Sherlock was going to appear in the mid credits but apparently the studio didn’t agree. /s

2

geologicalnoise Mar 28, 2026 +7

I always thought this movie was really fun. And would absolutely be interested in seeing a more faithful remake/rehash of it. The victorian era type stuff always gets me good.

7

argoslx Mar 28, 2026 +18

The league of Exshraordinary gentlemen

18

Fidel_Costco Mar 28, 2026 +6

Such dumb fun.

6

gwils_cupleah6240 Mar 28, 2026 +3

I don’t get why people think this movie is so awful. It’s kinda meant to be awful isn’t it? Just an adventure hero movie with classic monster/storybook people

3

Individual_Thanks309 Mar 28, 2026 +3

God I love this movie, was so surprised to see years later that people didn’t like it

3

Ok-Local138 Mar 28, 2026 +2

I loved it

2

p00ki3l0uh00 Mar 28, 2026 +4

This and Van Helsing with Hugh Jackman are underrated gems. Campy nonsense we all love.

4

AsexualNinja Mar 28, 2026 +4

Alan Moore fans always have a fit when I inform them I prefer the film to the comics.

4

Internal_Wheel_89 Mar 28, 2026 +3

the comics drop off hard after the first collection

3

mynameizmyname Mar 28, 2026 +2

The What Went Wrong podcast did a pretty good piece on this movie. Holy cow what a confluence of terrible decisions.

2

fronchfrays Mar 28, 2026 +1

I enjoyed How Did This Get Made’s episode about it, specifically because of how much they didn’t like it and that it was a listener suggestion, and how much they resented their fans for picking it lmao. But they cover a lot of cool facts many of which are in this thread, like Connery picking it because he didn’t want his lack of understanding prevent him from landing a blockbuster like the Matrix or LOTR

1

jarvisesdios Mar 28, 2026 +3

This was the first AND LAST movie I snuck from one movie to the next. I saw Italian Job and then League why I left with such a headache I never did it again lol Though, most of that is because of how incredibly League was. I expected more, as I had read the comics... And it failed in EVERY way possible. It's actually incredible how badly they fucked that up lol

3

OOBExperience Mar 28, 2026 +1

Shoutout to Tim Goodman-Hill in the pic. He’s an incredibly versatile screen actor and radio player. Love everything he does!

1

hiro111 Mar 28, 2026 +1

I've never seen the movie, but the graphic novels (comics?) are great.

1

PlatinumKanikas Mar 28, 2026 +1

My brother and I watched this in theaters but we had to sit in the front row and I remember getting dizzy. We bought the DVD when it came out and it was so much better when I didn’t get sick from watching it

1

Rememberancy Mar 28, 2026 +1

It should have been so much better than it was.

1

thisistherevolt Mar 28, 2026 +1

I just want that damn library.

1

cosplayshooter Mar 28, 2026 +1

this movie was almost good but was either one draft away or one draft too many

1

MagicBez Mar 28, 2026 +1

I forgot all about the "most unsporting...must be Belgian" line and am glad to have been reminded of it

1

StormMourn Mar 29, 2026 +1

I know I’m the exception here but I freaking loved this movie when it came out. I grew up reading about these characters in literature and having them packed into one movie was amazing. One of these days I need to read the actual comics. Alan Moore made some of the best ones.

1

SirZapdos Mar 29, 2026 +1

I don’t care what the critics say. I adored this film. A clip show of recognizable literary giants is a great premise. The twist about the identity of M, and what it stood for, is awesome.

1

Plastic_Ad_8248 Mar 29, 2026 +1

Guilty pleasure movie

1

WeAreOurDeeds Mar 29, 2026 +1

This movie is a guilty pleasure of mine

1

loblegonst Mar 29, 2026 +1

This and the Van Helsing movie with Hugh Jackman is perfect for a back to back movie night.

1

in1gom0ntoya Mar 29, 2026 +1

critics be damned this was an... extraordinary(good) movie

1

spinfinity Mar 29, 2026 +1

I like this movie a lot, but I've never read the comics. Mina Harker is especially cool.

1

mecon320 Mar 29, 2026 +1

My favorite part of this movie was the car chase in a city with zero drivable streets.

1

Instant_Ad_Nauseum Mar 29, 2026 +1

Possibly the worst film ever made.

1

Scared-Engineer-6218 Mar 29, 2026 +1

Do my eyes deceive me or the dude in the thumbnail looks like Jim Cameron?

1

qpgmr Mar 28, 2026

A movie so bad it ended Connery's career. He retired immediately after wrapping it. It had great potential but completely wasted it and the actors. Ebert gave it 1 start (his review is spot on).

0

Legitimate_Eye8494 Mar 28, 2026 -9

When you wish the assassin hadn't missed...

-9

tigermelon Mar 28, 2026 +6

How did they even miss? He was out in the open when they opened fire with 3 machine guns. Worse than storm troopers.

6

Cromuland Mar 28, 2026 +14

SPOILERS...for a 23 year old movie. They missed, *because they were told to miss!* The entire point of the attack was to get Sean Connery angry enough that he would join up and help form the League. The Big Bad *wanted* Connery to join up. With Nemo's help, Connery was then able to lead the team, as they captured Hyde. And this gave Dorian Gray a way to find a serum for Hyde, Harker, and the Invisible Man, that would replicate their powers. This was what the Big Bad wanted, all along. Nemo and Connery had no powers, but they were supposed to be the driving force that helped each member join up. Ideally, this point would have been easier to understand, if Connery also helped recruit Harker and the Invisible Man. The subterfuge seems silly, just to capture Hyde.

14

Legitimate_Eye8494 Mar 28, 2026 -1

Ideally, it wouldn't have been a terrible script.

-1

hooptycamy0 Mar 28, 2026

This is the only movie I've ever seen where I've gotten up and walked out of the theater midway through.

0

DrKillBilly Mar 28, 2026

Not to get political but I always think of Connery’s “if you can’t hit him with one shot, don’t shoot him at all” as the best argument against the people that want automatic weapons because it’s their 2nd Amendment right. Like “okay, that tells me is that you know you’re a terrible shot” lol

0

aarrtee Mar 28, 2026 -2

i found this movie too preposterous to enjoy it and it was full of over-acting

-2

chainedtomydesk Mar 28, 2026 -2

I heard this movie was so atrocious, it made Connery decide to quit making movies altogether?

-2

rtozur Mar 28, 2026 +3

Eh, it is bad (despite Listnook often trying to convince you it's not), but not an embarrassment for the actors. It was more of a terrible experience for him because shooting took too long (there were floods that destroyed the sets), and he had to deal with a young, detail-oriented director he did not respect. I don't think his acting days would have gone on much longer anyway. He could not stop saying sexist shit in interviews, and clearly didn't have the patience -or the need- to work in big movies anymore.

3

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003, dir. Stephen Norrington) Assassination attempt on Allan Quatermain (Sean Connery) in British Kenya

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