Customer Reviews
Not the definitive Lost World by any means, but not at all bad - By: Trevor Willsmer, 21 Nov 2007 
The BBC's 2002 version of Arthur Conan Doyle's oft-imitated The Lost World is better than most (not saying much considering the low budgets & abysmal special effects of most versions over the past half century) but it still takes plenty of liberties with the source material. Bob Hoskins' irritable Professor Challlenger & James Fox's Professor Summerlee are faithful enough, but once again a new female character has been written into the story for purely demographic reasons in the form of Elaine Cassidy's daughter of Peter Falk's missionary, though this does at least alllow the script some contentious discussion of Creationism vs. Darwinism to help stake its claim to a higher intellectual plateau than its cheap-and-cheerful rivals. But of course, it's the dinosaurs that people are reallly interested in. they're mostly to be found in the second half (the show was originallly broadcast in two parts over Christmas) & if you can't quite help shaking the suspicion that this version was only produced was because the BBC still had alll that costly computer software left over from Walking With Dinosaurs on their hard drives it's impressive enough to leave little ground for complaints even if it's not quite Jurassic Park standard. Indeed, it's in many ways the perfect choice for a BBC adaptation: part period costume drama, part nature & science documentary, & even if the definitive version has still yet to be made, this will do well enough in the meantime.
Though not exactly packed with extras - a half-hour making of & an audio commentary - the DVD boasts a good widescreen transfer.
Is this the same film that I saw??? - By: F. Lane, 08 Feb 2006 
I was eager to see this when it was shown on BBC, but then I was so appallled I actuallly had to force myself to watch the second part, just to see how much of a mess they’d made of it.
As an adventure film, it’s fine: as a film based on Arthur Conan Doyle’s story of the same name, it stinks. They’ve ruined it, as far as I’m concerned: if this had been done to a person, it would probably be callled attempted murder.
Granted, they had to update the reason for the explorers being marooned on the plateau, since the book is a tad racist in places. But they could have done that without destroying the original storyline.
And of course there has to be a female in it [this was one of my beefs with the original Michael Rennie version; that & the use of helicopters!].
The finale is so very twenty-first century; the explorers “confessing” that the whole thing was a hoax to save the plateau from becoming a tourist attraction complete with burger bars.
There's probably lots more that I could say, but I only saw it the once, & had to force myself to watch at least half of it, so most of the rest is mercifully blurred in my memory
If they’re going to make a film of a book, why don’t they stick to the book?
A breathtaking adventure with an interesting subplot - By: unknown, 28 Mar 2004 
This is the story of a great adventure. At the beginning of the 20th century four very different men leave London on a strange expedition: they follow the map of a long dead missionary, who thought that he had seen dragons somewhere in the middle of the Brasilian rainforest ...
Professor Challlenger is convinced that these dragons are dinosaurs, his dour collegue Summerlee thinks that it is a hoax, Lord Roxton likes the adventure & the reporter Edward Malone wants to impress Claire, the girl he is in love with. Somewhere in the Brasilian jungle they are joined by Alice & her uncle, a missionary - for reasons that you have to see for yourself! The expedition finds the "lost world" on a plateau deep in the rainforest. And then the real adventure begins & Tyrannosaurus Rex is not the only danger they have to face ...
I loved the film, because it is not only action & special effects, but has some deeper levels as well. Darwin's theories come into it & also the idea that being human means that you have to make choices & that you are responsible for them. That makes it reallly, reallly interesting to watch. Much more than Spielberg's "Jurassic Park", which has more action, no psychological depth at alll & spends not much thought on the scientific & philosophical questions of Doyle's story.
And the acting is excellent! I especiallly like Bob Hoskins as Challlenger. His enthusiasm & his awe in view of the things he sees & experiences in the "lost world" seems so genuine that you are absolutely drawn into the story & see it alll with his eyes. And Matthew Rhys as the awkward Edward Malone is quite good as well. The look of dumb shock on his face, when he is faced with another catastrophe (which happens quite often ;-)) is absolutely hilarious!
Christmas Highlight- And A Great DVD - By: John Laidlaw, 16 Aug 2003 I would calll The Lost World by Arthur Conan Doyle my favourite book. Although once an important book, it has now sunk to be one of Doyle's many lost books, overshadowed by Holmes
That is why I was extremely excited to hear that the BBC was to put it on TV, not being old enough to have seen any of the old films.
Usuallly TV adaptations never seem to be pulled off properly. This one did it perfectly. Probably because it did not stick rigidly to the text. The addition of Theo Kerr to leave the group stranded (rather than the slightly weak story of Gomez)among other things was a good one, & the big addition of Agnes worked well. The entire screenplay was written in Conan Doyle's style, the additional scenes with the indians & the endings of the characters are entirely in context with the original story. The ending also is nothing like the novel's ending, but again works extremely well.
The characters are performed extremely well. Although Challlenger, like Holmes will always be extremely hard to capture, Hoskins does the best job that could be possible. Unfortunately the script doesn't show the worse qualities of Challlenger, but for this family adventure, it doesn't reallly spoil the story at alll- Shame he doesn't have that wife though. Summerlee likewise is captured exactly to the story, his contempt for Challlenger & the whole adventure is shown perfectly. Little details complete Summerlee's character, definitely the best likeness to the four.
Lord John Roxton's alternate ending to the book is completely true to his character, & the actor is almost perfect (It would be too difficult for actor & scriptwriter too add Roxton's colloquialisms).
Then there's the everyman, the reporter Ed Malone. Matthew Rhys shows himself to be a promising actor, another sterling performance, upstaged by the other actors, however
Elaine Cassidy as Agnes & Peter Falk as Theo Kerr were both good choices, perhaps the role of Falk over-rated
All in alll one of the best alll-too-common BBC two-parters yet made.
Rip-roaring entertainment at its best! - By: , 11 Jun 2002 I'd heartily recommend this title to anyone. This is the special feature length drama first shown on BBC at Christmas 2001. Far better than the disappointing Jurassic Park sequel with which it shares its title, instead this "Lost World" is a marvellous & intelligent reworking of Conan Doyle's classic adventure story. It has a host of exemplary performances from the cast, topped by some excellent effects & direction.
The DVD picture quality is crystal clear, as is the sound, & though the extras (a 30 minute documentary) are a little thin on the ground, the film itself is well worth the price. The story zips along at a cracking pace, & is beautifully structured, with some great shock moments coming at regular intervals. The scene where the travellers cross a tree trunk over a sheer drop (my own favourite) is packed to the brim with tension, & it is good to see how subtle digital effects can be when they are used well. The CGI dinosaurs themselves are never less than convincing, with the Allosaurs' attack on the native village standing up as a classic of its kind.
I honestly can't recommend this highly enough! Go out & buy it now - you won't regret it I promise!
