Land Of The Lost (DVD)

Perhaps Land Of The Lost is a work of genius. It’s about alternate universes and quantum theory, where two things can be true at once. It seems to have taken that to heart, as the movie is simultaneously filled with funny ideas but doesn’t make you laugh, the main character is supposedly a genius while being a complete idiot at the same time, the film appears to have a plot while actually just being a random succession of things happening, it looks like a family friendly movie but it’s actually too risqué for the youngest member of the family who would otherwise probably enjoy it the most. Maybe all this is deliberate and Land Of The Lost is actually a work of metaphysical brilliance, however I suspect that actually it’s just a complete mess and not entertaining in the slightest..

Will Ferrell plays Dr. Rick Marshall, a scientist who’s been ridiculed for his theories about alternate universes and time warps (as well as for attacking TV host Matt Lauer). However research assistant Holly (Anna Friel) encourages him to finish his tachyon amplifier, which leads them to some caves where they plan to test the device. When he switches on the machine, Rick, Holly and tour guide Will (Danny McBride) are whisked to an alternate universe, where they befriend an ape-man, get chased by a hyper-intelligent T-Rex, and come up against the reptilian sleestaks, who want to take over the universe.

It all sounds like it could be good fun, but the whole thing is so ineptly scripted that it makes no sense, quickly becomes tedious and isn’t funny. The main problem is that it there’s no logic to the film. Nothing is explained, plot developments leap out of nowhere then disappear, only to reappear later, there’s no consistency to the characters and it really does have the feel of people making it up as they go along. It’s more like a series of sketches, which may have worked in isolation, but don’t make a satisfactory movie when they’re added together. It’s a lot of special effects for very little impact.

Despite the studio’s plans to make Land Of The Lost one of the big summer movies, it’s not surprising that the film flopped, or that they haven’t haven’t bothered putting together a full-on DVD package for the film. Instead all we get are a few deleted scenes, mainly from the beginning of the movie. Although the opening of the movie, before they get to the alternate universe, is indeed too brief and doesn’t make much sense, the deleted scenes add very little, just providing a couple more unsuccessful attempts at sketch-like comedy.

Land Of The Lost is a completely missed opportunity for an entertaining action comedy. There are all sorts of elements in the film that could have made a fun film, but the way there put together makes it an annoying and dull watch, which fails to raise more than a couple weak smiles.

Overall Verdict: Land Of The Lost is a misfire that fails to make good use of an awful lot of fun ideas, as wastes some great special effects.

Special Features:
Deleted Scenes

Reviewer: Tim Isaac