tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8212867859094085036.post3947205201319658184..comments2024-03-28T17:53:45.682-04:00Comments on GREAT OLD MOVIES: THE LAND UNKNOWNWilliamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03053290865549099074noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8212867859094085036.post-43298777822588934362023-10-31T10:50:37.018-04:002023-10-31T10:50:37.018-04:00Mark, like other films I've reviewed, I didn&#...Mark, like other films I've reviewed, I didn't actually see this in the theater -- when I was a kid I was unaware of it for some reason -- but first watched it on the Late Show all chopped up, with sections missing, and no widescreen format. When I finally saw it the way it should be seen, it was like watching a whole new movie. Suddenly one could see the scope and detail of the huge prehistoric soundstage set and the large lake with its monster. I had never before seen the sequence with the huge (real) lizard coming after the group and responding to the horn, as it was usually cut to fit into the time period. I realized that it was a much better picture than I thought and that a lot of work had gone into it. <br /><br />Three years later there was all sorts of hoopla for THE LOST WORLD, which they wisely released in technicolor (which they should have done with LAND UNKNOWN). But it isn't necessarily a better picture although the actors might have been better-known.<br /><br />As for "big lizards and lost worlds," I still love 'em and always will!Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03053290865549099074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8212867859094085036.post-78876928160187828382023-10-31T06:34:48.225-04:002023-10-31T06:34:48.225-04:00"Verdict: For big lizard and lost world lover..."Verdict: For big lizard and lost world lovers." Man, does that ever describe ME! When I was 8 years old my family lived in Abilene, Texas where there was a wonderful old movie theater called The Metro. It was basically a cast-off military-style quonset hut and played second and third-run films as Saturday and Sunday kiddie matinees--and mostly showed older science fiction and fantasy films, I assume because they were huge crowd-pleasers. It's where I saw nearly all the old Universal 1950s' sci-fi films, as well as countless other movies that I'd never have gotten a chance to see at that age, since TV hadn't yet discovered their pulling power. Anyway, my parents abruptly decided I was spending way too much time sitting in the dark watching monster movies and in order to slow me down, cut off my allowance and decreed that if I wanted to continue my habit, I'd have to earn the money myself. So I'll always remember THE LAND UNKNOWN as one I was so desperate to see (I'd watched the preview for it the week before) that I mowed lawns and did yard work so I could afford to go. Suffice to say, it didn't disappoint. I wasn't naive, I realized the Tyrannosaurus wasn't convincing and the Plesiosaurus (or Elasmosaurus, or whatever it was) was just a big prop, but what I loved about it was its convincing lost world setting. Wow, those weird, upside-down trees, the vast matte work and the hazy, foggy atmosphere was exactly what I was looking for (not to mention the photographically-enlarged lizards). In fact, I realize now that the special effects, aside from the two centerpiece dinos, were more or less a cut-above for movies of this kind. I was delighted when Universal released it on DVD--and in Cinemascope, no less! It's still one I like to slap on fairly often and just revel in the nostalgia and prehistoric ambience it evokes. This is another one that gets little respect from film critics--I was particularly disappointed in Bill Warren's review of it in KEEP WATCHING THE SKIES, as I thought he was unusually harsh. He wasn't inaccurate--but it was obvious he had no childhood attachment to it like he did for many others he was much less critical of (and IMO, didn't deserve it). Well, sorry for the lengthiness, but this one evokes many fond memories. It's another movie I completely enjoyed your positive (and frankly, unique) look at. Yet one more reason I'm so loving your perceptive reviews!<br /><br />--Mark Mark Shawnoreply@blogger.com