"Lost in Space" the movie... worth watching for any reason?

[nobody]

I'm sure a lot of you have seen the 1998 remake "Lost in Space"... does it have any redeeming qualities whatsoever? Is $5 too much to pay for a DVD copy of it?

[Menard]

My kneejerk reaction is: no, it is not worth watching; yes, $5 is too much. You may want to rent it first so you can decide for yourself. If you like very silly movies that are confused in their own plot with disappointing special effects, hey, you might like this.

[Scott]

Yea, I saw this one at the theater and it isn't very good. The ship was ok, but the film is very forgetable.

[Menard]

You actually paid money to see it? I saw it on cable and felt ripped off. I'd demand my money back.

[Scott]

Yep, paid money to see it and wasn't thrilled. All I remember was that the volume was way to high. The TV show was one of my favorites. Danger Will Robinson Danger. Oh and Dr. Smith.

[ulthar]

I agree with Menard 100%.  I watched the tv series as a kid and was really looking forward to the movie.  What a total let-down.  "Confused in their own plot" is about the best, most apt phrase to describe LiS.

[Fearless Freep]

"and the monkey pushes the button"

[Menard]

Let's face it. The TV show had cheesy effects, cheesy plots, and nobody took themselves too seriously; it was a treat. The movie had cheesy effects, a confused plot (actually, I don't think the writers had a completed story even half way through production), even worse science than the series, zero chemistry (a big zero) between Leblanc and Graham, and they took themselves seriously. (Other than that Mrs. Lincoln, did you enjoy the show?)----( :

[dean]

I'd buy it for five dollars, but then again we are talking different currency [which means it would be closer to $2.50US] and factoring my unusual fetish for trashy sci fi films like Wing Commander and Battlefield Earth...

I thought the film was stupid in all, but I found it semi-enjoyable to watch.  Damn plot was annoying as all hell.

Ah well, trash is trash...

[Spiffy Niffy]

Nah

[Yaddo 42]

Saw it at the theater, was majorly let down. Thought the opening dogfight was decent looking, if pointless other than to show off the effects they did to Leblanc's eyes and to demonstrate he was a typical "maverick hotshot pilot".

Not even the hamming it up of one of my favorite actors, Gary Oldman, could save this flick. The acting was either dull (William Hurt, Mimi Rogers), annoying (the two yougest kids) or nonexistent (Heather Graham). The CGI pet they found was so fake it distracted from every scene it appeared in. And the plot was such an episodic, boring mess, the final climatic was so jumbled and stupid I was convinced it was one of those "room full of monkeys with typewriters" rough drafts. It was the first time I learned to hate the name Akiva Goldsman, who has written or co-written plenty of stinkers since.

[Vermin Boy]

The one thing that would've saved it (for me, anyway) would be if they got Bill Mumy-- the original Will Robinson-- to play the older version. Mumy's a very cool guy; if you didn't know, he went on to be half of Barnes & Barnes (of "Fish Heads" fame), who I've always thought should be ranked up there with Devo and the Residents as one of the great gonzo underground bands of the 70s. I'd be willing to wager that they offered him the role, and he understandably turned it down.

[peter johnson]

I had a friend who could do a perfect Dr. Smith imitation:  "Oh, the pain!  The pain!!", which he would trot out to ceaseless acclaim for all the appropriately painful episodes of childhood -- We all loved the robot & wanted one for ourselves -- when we played "Lost in Space", everyone wanted to be the robot, nobody wanted to be the father or the pilot 'cause they were so colorless.
Robby the Robot from Forbidden Planet made a few guest appearances as the robot's nemesis.  The only show we were all devoted to even more strenuously was The Wild Wild West.
'60's prime-time TV was created for 10-year-old boys:  The Man From Uncle, Lost in Space, Wild Wild West, The Avengers(We all agreed that if we had to like girls, then they would have to be minimally as cool as Diana Rigg), Honey West, The Outer Limits, It's About Time, Time Tunnel, The Prisoner, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea -- I could go on . . .
I look at modern TV & see . . . what?  Where are all the great trash/camp/imaginative shows like these?  I've had people tell me I should give The Lost a try, but I watched an episode & well . . .
It seems like syndication is the only place for things like this today, eg. Stargate, etc.
peter johnson/denny crane

[BeyondTheGrave]

peter johnson wrote:
> I look at modern TV & see . . . what?  Where are all the great
> trash/camp/imaginative shows like these?  I've had people tell
> me I should give The Lost a try, but I watched an episode &
> well . . .
> It seems like syndication is the only place for things like
> this today, eg. Stargate, etc.
> peter johnson/denny crane

yeah I have to agree with you Peter. Theirs maybe one or two shows I watch faithfully that last like 5 seasons then are off. Buffy, Angel ,X- Files are some of the shows I used to watch. people raved about the lost so I checked out also. Couldnt stand it.

[ulthar]

I watched part of one episode of The Lost and thought it did not look too bad, but was not really in the mood for it.  It seemed like a waste of time, in the sense that I was thinking how in the world are they going to make this go on and on?  Maybe as a miniseries I would have been interested.  Can we say modernized Gilligan's Island?

(The little bit I saw seemed to trot out plot devices to keep the suspense..)

I don't have cable (or sat), so whenever we stay in a motel, it's a treat for me to watch cable.  When I can tear myself away from The History Channel, I watch SciFi (usually).  A couple of years ago, I was in Portland for a week, and due to the time change, was getting up about three hours earlier than I needed to; it was great, sci-fi then had Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea on every day, and I was glued to it.  Brought back many memories from hanging out watching it with my Dad when I was young.

TV is terrible now in comparison, no doubt about it.