Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

Land of the Lost Blu-ray Movie Review

An uninspired re-imagining of a kitschy childhood classic...

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown October 15, 2009

I distinctly remember three things that terrified me when I was a child: the possibility and, in my mind, probability of a Crite (from Critters, of course) rolling into my bedroom and bristling its spines in the dead of night, keeping my eyes open as Mola Ram plucked out a panicked Hindi's still-beating heart, and the thought of running into a creature that moved, hissed, or looked anything like a Sleestak. While "Land of the Lost" had been off the air for a full two years before I was born, 80s reruns gave the scaled beasties a chance to worm their way into my darkening dreamscapes. In retrospect, the glassy eyed man-in-suit creations are the least frightening things I encountered in my childhood, but for whatever reason, the mere sight of them -- even in a comedy like director Brad Silberling and funnyman Will Ferrell's misguided cinematic adaptation of the cult-favorite series -- still sends a shiver up my spine. If only some other aspects of Silberling's Land of the Lost were as effective...

Keep your eye on Danny McBride. He pickpockets entire scenes from Ferrell...

Dr. Rick Marshall (Will Ferrell) has a theory about time and space; a theory that makes him the laughing stock of the scientific community when an interview with Matt Lauer goes awry. Three years later, Marshall is stuck in a dead-end job delivering lectures to children. That is until a visit from a young woman named Holly Cantrell (Anna Friel) gives him another chance to prove there's something to his theories. Traveling to a desert cave with a high concentration of tachyon particles, the pair -- along with a local tour guide named Will Stanton (Danny McBride) -- find themselves pulled into a vortex that drops them in a strange alternate universe where time and space collide. While there, they meet a friendly simian called Cha-Ka (Jorma Taccone), attract the wrath of a tenacious tyrannosaurus rex they dub Grumpy, and encounter a race of green-scaled creatures called Sleestaks whose leader, Zarn (voiced by Leonard Nimoy), plans on using a device Marshall created to open a portal to modern-day Earth. With some ingenuity and the help of a gold-skinned Sleestak named Enik (John Boylan), the good doctor and his companions have to prevent an invasion and find their way home.

It's quite evident that Silberling has plenty of fond memories of Marty and Sid Krofft's "Land of the Lost" (his nostalgia and attention to detail is actually the film's greatest boon), but he and his screenwriters depart from the series so often and so drastically that his film is often little more than a flashy homage. While small touches pay respect to the Krofft's low-budget gem -- a raft careening down a surging waterfall, a hand-scrawled "Beware of Sleestak" warning, and some rather faithful renditions of Cha-Ka and the Sleestak -- Silberling's characters and storylines are arbitrary additions that, costumes aside, feel completely disconnected from the original series. It doesn't help that Ferrell indulges in his usual manchild shenanigans, producing yet another cocky, self-assured variation of Ron Burgundy that, frankly, grows tiresome after fifteen minutes. It wasn't so long ago that the former SNL wunderkind could send me into fits of laughter with the simple flick of an eyebrow. But after succumbing to his schtick for so long, I've begun craving new material, new gags, and a new charm his derivative portrayal of Marshall fails to deliver. Worse still, Friel is wasted in a role designed primarily to push the plot along. Her straight-laced reactions do make Ferrell's antics a bit funnier, but she's assigned so many expositionary duties that she isn't able to emerge as anything other than a love interest, a damsel in distress, and a source of sophomoric setups.

Once again, it's McBride who steals the show, outmaneuvering the film's bankable star and fielding the most memorable dialogue Silberling dishes out. His Will Stanton is privy to the same alpha-male hilarity as Marshall, but his deadly-serious stares and quick-witted reversals are more potent and, ultimately, more endearing than anything Ferrell manages to conjure up. When he takes command -- be it to proudly present Stanton's two-towered casino, hit on Holly, banter with Cha-Ka, or express distrust of anything wearing a tunic -- the film suddenly feels fresher, smarter, and sharper for it. It's just a shame the rest of Silberling's misfire is so forgettable. The special effects aren't cheesy enough to playfully recall the original series or strong enough to stand on their own merits. The frequent chase scenes grow repetitive and listless, transforming each dinosaur into slow-footed background noise. Even the funniest scenes (a nasty mosquito bite among them) feel like re-runs in light of their over-exposure throughout the film's trailers and television ads. More distressingly, the cast's stumble-stare-gasp-run routine becomes increasingly stale, giving the Marshall-led trio plenty of point-A to point-B momentum, but very little to actually do in between each stop.

Even so, comedy is a fickle mistress. I'm sure there are those who will enjoy Land of the Lost far more than I did for any number of legitimate reasons. At the end of the day though, it will be because they laughed when I didn't. Fans of Ferrell, McBride, and the Krofft's now classic children's series would do well to rent Silberling's adaptation and judge for themselves.

Land of the Lost Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Blu-ray edition of Land of the Lost features a strong 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer that, despite hitting a few small snags along the way, obliterates its standard DVD counterpart with a savory palette and oft-times striking clarity. Colors are warm and vibrant, primaries pop, and contrast is stunning. Skintones are occasionally over-saturated and whites a tad hot, but I suspect each scene falls in line with its filmmakers' intentions. And while a handful of nighttime scenes struggle with unresolved blacks and lackluster delineation, the picture typically boasts deep blacks, natural shadows, and excellent fine detail. Facial textures in particular are impressive, establishing shots showcase every computer-generated stone and scale, and foreground objects are sharp and well-defined. More importantly, I didn't detect any significant artifacting, banding, unintentional noise, aliasing, DNR, or any other pesky technical anomaly. Granted, some edge enhancement invades the film's high-contrast desert scenes, but it's kept to a bare minimum. All things considered, Ferrell fanatics and nostalgic thirty-somethings will be more than satisfied with Universal's high definition presentation.

Land of the Lost Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Land of the Lost's jokes may fall flat, but Universal's robust DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track does not. Dynamic and weighty, the mix boasts crisp, clear dialogue, near-impeccable prioritization, and booming, resonant LFE support. Tyrannosaurus roars, crumbling rock, swirling vortexes and, of course, the trio's first, chaotic plunge into time and space sound fantastic. Hushed declarations, buzzing mosquitoes, Sleestak hisses, hatching dinosaurs, and soft, desert winds are just as effective, lending the track a refined quality often missing from comedy mixes. Rear speaker activity is persistent and aggressive as well, granting jungles much-needed ambience and caves relatively convincing acoustics (at least as far as Silberling's exaggerated set pieces require). Moreover, pans are smooth and directionality is precise, creating an immersive soundfield that envelops and draws listeners into Dr. Marshall's various misadventures. Even though I found myself tapping the volume up and down a bit throughout the film, I was quite pleased with the results. Fans and audiophiles alike will find it to be the disc's unequivocal highlight.

Land of the Lost Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Land of the Lost tumbles into the Blu abyss with a respectable supplemental package; one that boasts an extensive feature-length production documentary, an audio commentary, and a variety of extras fans will adore, all of which are presented in high definition.

• Audio Commentary: Silberling plows through the proceedings with a commentary that, due to the disc's documentaries, features a somewhat repetitive overview of the film. The director does a commendable job including personal anecdotes and details not mentioned elsewhere in the package, but he inevitably covers some of the same ground. Regardless, his commentary is a strong one, touching on his affection for the original series, how he came to make a feature film adaptation with Will Ferrell, his casting decisions, working around a looming SAG strike, and the various easter eggs that appear throughout the flick. His chat is an unexpectedly cerebral one, leaving me to wonder why such an intellectual filmmaker would choose to make such a derivative comedy. It's also fairly ridiculous to hear someone use words like "Kubrikian" and reference films like Children of Men when dissecting something like Land of the Lost, but it's better than the alternative. Ah well, as is the case with the rest of the supplemental package, this special feature was more satisfying than the film itself.
• This is Not a Routine Expedition (HD, 83 minutes): Divided into three parts, this surprisingly lengthy, extensive, and candid behind-the-scenes documentary covers virtually every aspect of the production. But it's the sincerity the filmmakers and actors bring to their interviews that make it such an engrossing overview. Even though I found my attention drifting throughout the film itself, I thoroughly enjoyed this thoughtful exploration of pre-production, the shoot, and the final cut of Land of the Lost.
• Bradley, Sid and Marty: A Conversation with the Kroffts (HD, 23 minutes): Director Brad Silberling interviews Marty and Sid Krofft, the creators of the original "Land of the Lost" television series. This one had my nostalgic rockets firing for twenty-three straight minutes. The Kroffts don't gloss over anything, discussing their occasional disagreements, the departure of one of their lead actors, and the challenges they faced in each season. Best of all, the entire interview is as serious and honest as "This is Not a Routine Expedition." Love or hate Silberling's film all you want, it's gems like this featurette that make the supplemental content such a joy to dig through.
• Deleted Scenes (HD, 20 minutes): Silberling offers informative (and optional) commentary bits on ten alternate, extended, and deleted sequences, many of which involve a different series of events that introduce Rick to Holly and lead him to the Land of the Lost. Like the movie though, a handful of Danny McBride scenes are the funniest, leaving Will Ferrell with little more to do than run through the motions. It's an altogether decent collection of deletions
• Dr. Marshall's Food Diaries (HD, 6 minutes): An in-character trio of diaries that document Rick's diet during his journey through time and space. Cute but dull, Silberling delivers more optional commentary for each one.
• A Day in the Life of a Big-Time Movie Star (HD, 11 minutes): This low-key, tongue-in-cheek featurette follows actor Danny McBride on a "typical" day on the set. It isn't as funny as I hoped, but it nevertheless earns a few laughs.
• Devil's Canyon Gift Shop (HD, 7 minutes): A faux television commercial and subsequent in-character tour of Stanton's desert souvenir shop.
• My Scenes Bookmarking
• BD-Live Functionality

Land of the Lost Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Unfortunately, Land of the Lost lacks soul and direction, two crucial components to a film with so much to prove. I'm sure some will find it funny but, aside from McBride's performance, I didn't enjoy my time with Dr. Marshall and his companions. Luckily, the Blu-ray edition is more reliable, offering fans an excellent video transfer, a powerful DTS-HD Master Audio track, and an unexpectedly engaging and extensive supplemental package. Anyone who enjoys what Ferrell and Silberling have on tap will be thrilled with Universal's efforts.