Review of Lost in Space

Introduction

Lost In Space is one of those shows that I look on with a sense of nostalgia. A lot of serials made in the sixties made a big impression on television viewers everywhere, and while our rose tinted memories give a warm glow of appreciation, when it comes to revisiting these programmes today, the real thing often pales next to our recollections, which aren`t affected by low production values or cheesy scripts. It`s no wonder then that filmmakers with the same nostalgia are often tempted to remake the shows with an eye on contemporary audiences. So it was in the late 90`s that the Jupiter 2 once again set forth on it`s great cosmic diversion, the faces were different but the names were the same, the Robinsons, John, Maureen, Judy, Will and Penny were joined by Major Don West and Dr Smith and of course Robot. The story and effects were updated to reflect the more sophisticated science fiction audience of the time, brought up on Star Wars and Alien.

The middle of the 21st Century sees the Earth`s resources dwindling rapidly. Two global superpowers fight for superiority over a dying world, and the crowded masses turn to the stars for salvation. Fortunately, Professor John Robinson has devised a means of faster than light travel that will open up the cosmos. By means of hypergates constructed in orbit around Earth and Alpha Prime, instantaneous travel will be possible, enabling Earth`s teeming masses to colonise. While Earth`s gate is being constructed, Professor Robinson and his family will be in suspended animation for ten years, travelling in the Jupiter 2 to Alpha Prime, where they will oversee the construction of the hypergate. But the ruthless Global Sedition has other plans, and when killing the pilot of the Jupiter 2 merely results in a replacement in Major Don West, they use their agent, Dr Smith to sabotage the spacecraft, and then betray him and leave him unconscious on the ship. 16 hours into the flight, the robot reprogrammed by Smith to destroy the Robinsons awakens and proceeds to wreck the Jupiter 2. By now the evil Dr Smith has regained consciousness and in an attempt to preserve his life he revives the crew. The robot is eventually subdued but the Jupiter 2 is on course for immolation in the Sun. Activating the hyper engines without a hypergate will result in a random vector, but the Robinsons have no choice. They activate the hyperdrive and are launched across the cosmos to emerge hopelessly lost. But it is no ordinary world they find themselves in, as strange bubbles of time manifest themselves near their ship and send them on a wild adventure.

Video

Lost In Space is presented in a 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer. By and large it is a fine transfer of a contemporary film, with the image nice and sharp and the colourful future world recreated well on the small screen. I noticed one moment of strong pixellation 34 minutes from the end, but that is the only technical flaw that was apparent. The film is a curious mix of good and bad when it comes to special effects. Like any modern space movie, this relies heavily on CGI, and in some cases it works really well. The space sequences with the Jupiter 2 and the other spacecraft are particularly impressive with some excellent action sequences. It is when the real and computer world interact that the film begins to fall down somewhat. The compute representations of Earth`s future cities look very cartoonish as do the space monkey, Blarp. The spiders themselves variable, seen from a distance the numerous arachnids look menacing but close up they seem ridiculous. Finally all of the alien planet scenes are studio bound, which seem out of place in a high budget motion picture.

The film`s design is impressive though, with the Jupiter 2 looking impressive and sleek. The costumes are imaginatively conceived and a credible future world is created. There are also some nice touches as a homage to the original series, the launch vehicle Jupiter 1 is similar to the TV series spacecraft and explodes to reveal the updated nineties design. Also the new robot is a menacing behemoth that Will gradually turns into the original robot that children from all over fell in love with.

Audio

The sound is presented in a DD 5.1 English track, and is competently put to use. Like any action adventure of this vintage you would expect copious use of the surround speakers and Lost In Space doesn`t disappoint. The music by Bruce Broughton is excellent and really conveys the fast paced adventure feel of the script. Then of course there is the revised theme tune by Apollo 440 that is another sign of the updated feel of the film. I did notice though, that some of the dialogue was buried beneath the music and the effects, particularly Dr Smith`s musings with the robot. Thankfully subtitles are provided.

Features

The sleeve is erroneous when it comes to the extras, with some things missing and other things unadvertised. The menu design is of little help either, and while it looks good, it is hardly the most intuitive of interfaces. There is a continue button on every screen that will either reload the menu from scratch, or start the movie depending on which page you are viewing. This is despite discreet menu and movie start buttons on every page.

Despite searching the disc for minutes on end, I couldn`t find hide or hair of the Production Design Stills, but the Cast and Crew filmographies are there. You will be taken to a list of names that you can highlight. Selecting the desired name will take you to a screen where text comprising that person`s filmography scrolls up under that name. But if you select that name again, you will be taken to some interview snippets with that person regarding the film. As I said, hardly intuitive. The interviews are the usual PR junket stuff that comes with every movie these days.

There is a 16-minute featurette regarding the Special effects and it is interesting, if a little technical. It is a nice visual record of how the effects were created. There are two music videos as opposed to the one implied by the sleeve. You get the Apollo 440 video as well as one by Crystal Method. There are also the two trailers.

There are 9 deleted scenes totalling some 12 minutes of running time. The Special effects haven`t been completed so some of them look a little rough and ready, but they are an interesting addition, as they point to a markedly different film to the finished product, with a more complex storyline set in many time periods, and they also explain some clumsy narrative and continuity errors in the final movie.

Finally, not apparent on the sleeve or in the extras menu is the Director`s commentary. To access this you have to look in the languages menu. Stephen Hopkins and screenwriter Akiva Goldsman provide this and it is in the form of two commentaries spliced together. It`s fairly dry and technical and they are quite honest about what worked and what didn`t, their problems getting the effects in on time and having to lose scenes because of it. They also refer to a second commentary track by the Special Effects crew that is absent on this R2 release.

Conclusion

Lost In Space succeeds and fails in equal measure, but I find that I am somewhat fond of this film. True, the excessive use of CGI does make this look like a cartoon at times, and perhaps some extra money and time would have resulted in a better-looking product, Blarp being a specific case in point. The spiders are a little too Freudian for my liking too. But the characters are well developed and move the story along well.

Gary Oldman is deliciously malevolent as Dr Smith and is far more menacing than the original. He has some choice lines and the kind of mayhem that he sows on the Jupiter 2 is fun to watch. William Hurt as Professor Robinson is a little too absent minded and new age to be wholly credible and the character does seem a little too detached at times. I guess I have been watching Friends too long, because every time I watch this film I ask "What`s Joey doing flying the spaceship?" Matt Le Blanc has become synonymous with his Friends character and I can assume that his future career will be informed by his performance as Joey. Even when Major West was hitting on Judy, I expected him to start with "How you doin`?" It takes a little time but eventually I accept Matt Le Blanc as Don West. Heather Graham makes an early appearance as Judy Robinson and is pleasant enough in the role, but the chemistry between her and West isn`t all that palpable. Lacey Chabert is excellent as Penny Robinson, making for a sassy and individual character. Her little byplay with Jack Johnson as Will is entertaining, which is a good thing, as Will Robinson`s precocious scientist does tend to irritate.

The reinvention of the Space Family Robinson as a more modern dysfunctional family group is probably the best thing about the film, with the relationships between them more enjoyable than the story. Throw Major Joey West and Dr Smith in the mix and the performances are really enjoyable. It`s just a shame then that the story is such pap. Yet another sci-fi movie goes down the old time travel route. It doesn`t even do it that well and makes something of a hash of it. The minute that happens, audiences start picking holes in your story. The time travel story is just a little too complicated and pointless in this film and it`s only purpose is to reconcile father and son. It just distracts from the movie, which is a shame as there are many things to recommend Lost In Space. The dialogue is excellent and there are many fine moments with the characters. Dr Smith`s fervent "We`re doomed!" always brings a nostalgic smile, and of course Robot supplies the classic "Danger Will Robinson!" The Walton`s homage is definitely worth a chuckle as well.

The story isn`t worth much, but Lost In Space is still an entertaining two hours, and this disc is added value considering the unadvertised commentary. Nostalgia rules!