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The expedition is headed by Professor George Challenger (Bob
Hoskins), whose discovery of a recently deceased pterosaur
sparked much debate in the Royal Society about the existence
of dinosaurs.
Rival colleague and doubter Professor Leo Summerlee (James
Fox) joins the expedition, which is financed by the wealthy
and hunting-mad Lord John Roxton (Tom Ward). Tagging along
is a newspaper reporter (Matthew Rhys).
Once in Brazil they join with a strange old reverend, Theo
Kerr (Peter Falk) and his attractive niece Agnes (Elaine Cassidy).
The party heads off to find the plateau and discovers that
someone has blown up the only easy access to the top of the
mountain. A harsh climb ensues and then a perilous crossing
of a ravine via a fallen tree bridge.
From there on in things start to get sticky for the adventurers
with encounters with the previously mentioned brain-munchers,
dinosaurs and a tribe of local Indians.
It's fair to say that The Lost World is a mix of A
Boys' Own adventure tale and the high-tech wizardry of
the mob that produced Walking With Dinosaurs and Walking
With Beasts.
The locations are stunning, the dinosaurs excellent - you
even get to see their feet scuffing leaves and debris - and
the acting pretty good.
Despite this, The Lost World just didn't quite do
it for me. Maybe it was the fact that since the days of Conan
Doyle we've had such movie treats as Jurassic Park,
where sexy dinosaurs and adrenalin-pumping action have all
but made the more sedate style of the Victorian and Edwardian
eras extinct.
Still, if you enjoy older-style Saturday afternoon adventures,
then this will be worth a look.
Conclusion: Movie 75%, Extras 70%
Continued:
DVD details at a glance >
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