Lost Horizon (1937)

A plane crash delivers a group of people to the secluded land of Shangri-La - but is it the miraculous utopia it appears to be?

Director:

Frank Capra

Writers:

Robert Riskin (screenplay), James Hilton (novel)

Stars:

Ronald Colman, Jane Wyatt, Edward Everett Horton

Won 2 Oscars. Another 1 win & 6 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Ronald Colman	...	Robert Conway
Jane Wyatt	...	Sondra
Edward Everett Horton	...	Lovett
John Howard	...	George Conway
Thomas Mitchell	...	Barnard
Margo	...	Maria
Isabel Jewell	...	Gloria
H.B. Warner	...	Chang
Sam Jaffe	...	High Lama

Storyline

British diplomat Robert Conway and a small group of civilians crash land in the Himalayas, and are rescued by the people of the mysterious, Eden-like valley of Shangri-la. Protected by the mountains from the world outside, where the clouds of World War II are gathering, Shangri-la provides a seductive escape for the world-weary Conway.

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Plot Keywords:

tibet | skinny dipping | swimming | national film registry | psychotronic film | 

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Taglines:

At Last ! . . . The Masterpiece Of America's Foremost Film Genius Blazes To The Screen !

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Fantasy | Mystery

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Mandarin

Release Date:

1 September 1937 (USA)

Also Known As:

Lost Horizon of Shangri-La

Filming Locations:

Bronson Caves, Bronson Canyon, Griffith Park - 4730 Crystal Springs Drive, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

132 min 95 min (1952 reissue) 118 min (general release) 132 min (restored)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Its budget was $1.5 million and the film ultimately cost almost twice as much as that, a sum significantly higher than most of Columbia's other output combined.

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Goofs

Father Perrault, a priest from Belgium, stumbled into Shangri La in 1734. Belgium did not exist then and when was only established in 1830.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Book Pages: In these days of wars and rumors of wars - haven't you ever dreamed of a place where there was peace and security, where living was not a struggle but a lasting delight? / Of course you have. So has every man since time began. Always the same dream. Sometimes he calls it Utopia - Sometimes the Fountain of Youth - Sometimes merely "that little chicken farm." / One man had such a dream and saw it come true. He was Robert Conway - England's "Man of the East" - soldier, diplomat, ...

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Crazy Credits

Bob Gitt of the UCLA Film & Television Archives claims the original opening sequence in 1937 had title cards "Conway has been sent to evacuate ninety white people before they're butchered in a local revolution" was changed in 1942 for a special reissue during WWII. The title cards read "before innocent Chinese people were butchered by Japanese hordes." This was to bolster propaganda against the Japanese.

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Alternate Versions

The original ending shown in theaters had Sondra waiting at the cave entrance for Conway, waving to him as he comes down the mountain, and sending one of the villagers to notify Chang that Conway has returned. After just a few days in theaters, the ending was replaced with the one of Conway coming down the mountain and seeing the entrance to the cave leading to Shangri-La, but no one is there waiting for him.

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Connections

Referenced in George Stevens: The Filmmakers Who Knew Him (2001)

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Soundtracks

Wiegenlied (Brahms' Lullaby), Op. 49, No. 4
(1868) (uncredited)
Music and Lyrics by Johannes Brahms
English translator unknown
Sung a cappella by children at Shangri-La

User Reviews

Maligned classic

Fantasy filled film that shows the different facaets of human nature. Beautifully conceived by Frank Capra whose brilliant at making films with sentlemenity as main force. A masterpiece which was brutally cut during its threaitcal run and only recently has the film been somewhat restored. Thus, the complete version of Lost Horizon(1937) is one of many lost classics in history of film. Acting is excellent with everyone giving deep performances. An wonderful story with intriquing spirital symbolisms. Ronald Colman does a marvalous job as the good natured and tolerate Robert Conway. Personally I perfer Lost Horizons(1937) over Its a Wonderful Life(1946) because the main character in the former is more complex.