The Lost World [DVD] [2001]

Now I am one of these who read and loved the book. It was written by Arthur Conan-Doyle the Sherlock Holmes author and is of it's time in that in those times natives were not treated in the same light as we are more fortunate today. The story is timeless and groundbreaking.Conan Doyle wanted to get right away from Sherlock Holmes so wrote an adventure book that had it all.A fabulous larger than life professor a genius but flawed- a timid Newspaper man trying to impress the love of his life who wants to marry a great heroic figure, a knowledgeable professor to counter the lead hero in scientific argument and a Great White Hunter who has bags of experience in exploring the unknown, meeting new animals and shooting them!Conan-Doyle chose the exciting discovery of the day- Dinosaurs and virtually invented the genre.(Dinosaurs at that time were not as widely understood out of the scientific field- to illustrate Doyle showed `rushes' of his film story to the magic circle of New York and some of them were convinced the dinosaur fight between the T Rex and Triceratops was genuine footage!)So it was written for the times BUT the BBC are forced to entertain so some of the story has been changed for effect and two central characters Peter Falk as the missionary Theo and his `niece' Agnes.Now some reviewers complain that this dilutes the story and makes it worse.I for one am sympathetic to their views BUT I disagree.Tony Mulholland and Adrian Hodges who have introduced the two new characters but have cleverly included the background that Falk's `Father Leo' is a Christian Fundamentalist who believes the world is a mere 6000 years old so the possible presence of the apemen- a missing link blows his beliefs out of the water.Now when the original story was published in the early 19th Century this is one of the big debates of the day when Darwin had published his theory of evolution so Mulholland and Hodges have not just included Agnes as a love interest but have cleverly intertwined a sub plot which takes this story on to a whole new level.Falk's has been included because his show Columbo's repeats was still pulling in 45 per cent viewing figures on French TV at the time so his name on the credits would help to `sell' the production to other markets. However Falk is really excellent.The simple fact that he is an excellent actor who plays a convincing good role well and matches Bob Hoskins and James Fox really well. His arguments on fossils with Fox' Summerlee is good.I for one did not thing Bob Hoskins was right for the part of Professor Challenger but I doff my cap to his performance as I viewed the film he became Challenger.You can see that as time went on he 'grew' into the part.This is well explained in the extras that films are often better shot with the openings being done towards the end of the shooting because the actor has really got into the part.Mathhew Rys and Tom Ward are competent.The special effects are good. I for one unlike some other reviewers could not see the 'joins' between puppetry and CGI.The dinosaurs are projected really well.True the movie could have easily have been twice as long and still not outstayed its welcome.Any film adaptation always changes, drops or adds stuff and what counts is that this is still a cracking story well told.My suggestion is to do exactly what I have done watch the movie then play the extras a documentary which explains the background and the story of the novels writing it's background - then watch the whole thing again with the commentary the Producer Christopher Hall and the Director Stuart Orme and you will be regally rewarded with an excellent understanding of what was changed from the original and why and you will have a wonderful knowledge of why Conan Doyle wrote his book and the influences on the story.This is what DVD extras are all about.Totally Recommended.Now buy the book and read that!

This is the story of a great adventure. At the beginning of the 20th century four very different men leave London on a strange expedition: they follow the map of a long dead missionary, who thought that he had seen dragons somewhere in the middle of the Brasilian rainforest ...Professor Challenger is convinced that these dragons are dinosaurs, his dour collegue Summerlee thinks that it is a hoax, Lord Roxton likes the adventure and the reporter Edward Malone wants to impress Claire, the girl he is in love with. Somewhere in the Brasilian jungle they are joined by Alice and her uncle, a missionary - for reasons that you have to see for yourself! The expedition finds the "lost world" on a plateau deep in the rainforest. And then the real adventure begins and Tyrannosaurus Rex is not the only danger they have to face ...I loved the film, because it is not only action and special effects, but has some deeper levels as well. Darwin's theories come into it and also the idea that being human means that you have to make choices and that you are responsible for them. That makes it really, really interesting to watch. Much more than Spielberg's "Jurassic Park", which has more action, no psychological depth at all and spends not much thought on the scientific and philosophical questions of Doyle's story.And the acting is excellent! I especially like Bob Hoskins as Challenger. His enthusiasm and his awe in view of the things he sees and experiences in the "lost world" seems so genuine that you are absolutely drawn into the story and see it all with his eyes. And Matthew Rhys as the awkward Edward Malone is quite good as well. The look of dumb shock on his face, when he is faced with another catastrophe (which happens quite often ;-)) is absolutely hilarious!

When Michael Crichton had plagiarised the title of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's terrific and heart-pounding adventure novel, following which Steven Spielberg had gone on to make an even worse & shoddy movie based on the same name, I am quite sure that many a Doyle-lovers' blood would have boiled at the indignation and frustrated anger. And then came BBC, with their brilliantly new take on Doyle's novel. Yes, it takes a lot of liberties with the storyline. Yes, it makes the character of Professor Challenger much more subdued, takes away a lot of acidity from the tongue of Professor Summerlee, makes Lord Roxton more of a Playboy-styled adventurer rather than the South American hero as envisaged & portrayed by Doyle, introduces two extremely significant characters (inevitably one of them being woman), makes Gladys the daughter of the abominable Professor Illingworth (who does not receive his comeuppance here, unlike in the book) and therefore makes her even more artificial & unsympathetic, and completely alters the ending (perhaps more in-sync with the eco-friendly approach of the present day viewers). But despite all this nitpicking, I am forced to admit that it was great fun to watch this movie, with its thrills, frills and (OH YES!!) Dinosaurs. Throw away those Spielberg discs and set this one inside the DVD-player for some real entertainment.

Loved this one when it was on telly, so when I saw it on DVD it was a a no brainer but for me.

Very good and with a fine performance by the actors, especially Bob Hoskins who is always a pleasure to watch.