More Land of the Lost Thoughts

(I have far too much time on my hands this evening. We are upgrading our PACS software at work and it is taking multiple nights to do so.)



"Oh look, a deceased equine! I believe I shall pummel it with my fists."

I've been a little disheartened at the reviews of the 70's era Land of the Lost that I've stumbled across. It is as if no one can see past the production values of the time.

Land of the Lost was a strange mix. As I see it, it was an Action – Horror show aimed at children. That may sound bad, but it is actually a lone jewel in a sea of toy-tie-in-cartoons and learning programs aimed at toddlers.

I’ve seen Steven Spielberg criticized for doing the exact same thing in movies (and I’ll come back to this in a moment) but look at it this way:

A small family unit consisting of a child daughter, teen son and their father are thrown through a rift in both time and space to what may be a different planet in another universe. The planet is populated with dinosaurs, giant blood-thirsty yet intelligent insects, exploding crystals, decrepit hive-cities consisting of tunnels filled with the giant insects, aggressive proto-humans, intelligent aliens who experiment on humans, giant carnivorous plants and other dangers. They have no means to get home and limited means to defend themselves in the hostile alternate universe.

Michael Crichton and Steven Spielberg created a similar story with Jurassic Park. Substitute a remote island for the alternate universe and retain the dinosaurs. I think that Alan Hammond is Enik. Hammond pulls together a small group of scientists he wishes to impress in order to get their approval for his dinosaur-centered tourist trap. Two scientists along with Hammond’s two grandchildren serve as the family group for the story. Hammond’s ability to gather the imperiled family group together mimics what I always thought was Enik the Altrusian / Sleestak’s colossal failure. In the sixth episode “The Stranger” written by Walter Koenig, Enik of the Altrusian race (think “evolved Sleestak”) is introduced. His race created an advanced crystal-based technology, one use of which is travel through time and space. He has suffered some accident while traveling and found himself as lost as the Marshall family, though he feels he is only lost in time.

I had always felt that the timing had to be more than coincidental. Unlike Enik, the Marshall’s control no time traveling technology. It seemed to me that Enik had inadvertently doomed himself and the Marshalls, along with many others, with his traveling accident.

In any case, both Enik and Hammond are wise, older beings in possession of advanced technology. The technology is misapplied and results in tragedy. For both, the main tragedy is the inadvertent stranding of a family unit in a desolate locale where they are threatened mainly by dinosaurs.

Jurassic Park, both novel and movie, were notable for the application of science in the resurrection of both dinosaurs and extinct flora.

Land of the Lost had a more varied list of dangers, the main danger still being dinosaurs, but an extended list is needed for a series.

So, I perceive Land of the Lost as a 70’s era, children’s show predecessor of Jurassic Park which was Science Fiction / Horror / Action movie and novel.

I have seen Steven Spielberg criticized for placing juvenile characters in peril, yet there are literally hundreds of novels, movies, stories, television series and comics that derive their tension and drama from employing exactly that same story device. Land of the Lost employed that story device but I think the reason that it was never criticized for constantly endangering the Marshall children was the unbelievability of the effects of the show. I also feel that Jurassic Park lends itself to easier suspension of disbelief due to the excellent special effects.

That is why I invited readers in an earlier post to imagine Land of the Lost with believable effects in an action / horror movie instead of the newly released comedy with Will Ferrell. I think if it was done correctly with the science fiction / horror / action basis of the original series, Land of the Lost could have been a blockbuster!

Land of the Lost

Land of the Lost
As soon as I heard that Will Ferrell was the star of the new Land of the Lost movie, I knew they had missed the mark.

Land of the Lost was a Saturday morning show from the 1970’s that followed a family of three who are thrown into a completely improbable world. That world contained a mixture of giant insect-men, aliens, dinosaurs and proto-humans (something like Australopithecus) along with lost civilizations, time travel and ancient (yet more advanced) technologies.

The series was created and produced by Sid and Marty Krofft who produced such series as H.R. Pufnstuf, The Bugaloos, Sigmund and the Sea Monsters and The Lost Saucer.

The show shouldn’t have worked. Cheesy, low-cost production values, plaster sets and hand puppet dinosaurs intercut with stop motion animation, desktop miniatures and early Chroma key were used to try to convey the strange and mysterious world.

Why did it work? The very heart of the show was the family of three: Rick Marshall, the father and Will and Holly Marshall his son and young daughter who would frequently bicker and argue but would come together and help each other in times of need. That message of mutual aid and respect, even for one’s enemies, made the characters sympathetic. This was a major departure from the other Krofft programs.

Many of the writers were notable science fiction authors, including David Gerrold (who wrote The Trouble with Tribbles for Star Trek), Larry Niven, Theodore Sturgeon, Ben Bova, Norman Spinrad, Walter Koenig (Chekov from Star Trek) and Dorothy C. Fontana. These imaginative writers introduced dimensional portals controlled by high tech pylons, crystal tools, aliens composed of light, time travelers from the distant past and the far future as well as civil war era miners and nine foot tall insect-men.

I think the film’s producers (which include Sid and Marty Krofft) made a colossal mistake. They traded on the kitsch of the series instead of recognizing the inherent drama of a small family surviving in a world of completely juxtaposed nightmare elements.

That’s the movie that I want to see: a science fiction adventure filled with fantastic creatures and people who demonstrate the better side of humanity in their efforts to survive. Imagine a movie mix of Jurassic Park, Aliens, Terminator 2 and The Day the Earth Stood Still.

The special effects that are possible today could fully realize the fascinating and nightmarish creatures that populated the original Land of the Lost. Just imagine … fast Sleestak!

Sleestak (for those who didn’t see the series or the movie) were the nine foot tall insect-men who perpetually menaced the Marshall family.