The Lost World (1960)

Professor Challenger leads an expedition of scientists and adventurers to a remote plateau deep in the Amazonian jungle to verify his claim that dinosaurs still live there.

Director:

Irwin Allen

Writers:

Charles Bennett (screenplay), Irwin Allen (screenplay)

Stars:

Michael Rennie, Jill St. John, David Hedison

1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Michael Rennie	...	Lord John Roxton
Jill St. John	...	Jennifer Holmes (as Jill St.John)
David Hedison	...	Ed Malone
Claude Rains	...	Prof. George Edward Challenger
Fernando Lamas	...	Manuel Gomez
Richard Haydn	...	Prof. Summerlee
Ray Stricklyn	...	David Holmes
Jay Novello	...	Costa
Vitina Marcus	...	Native Girl
Ian Wolfe	...	Burton White

Storyline

Professor Challenger leads team of scientists and adventurers to a remote plateau deep within the Amazonian jungle to investigate reports that dinosaurs still live there.

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Plot Keywords:

anthropologist | plateau | volcanic eruption | amazon jungle | professor | 

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Taglines:

The Most Amazing of All Possible Worlds!

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Genres:

Adventure | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

13 July 1960 (USA)

Also Known As:

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,515,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Irwin Allen Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

3 Channel Stereo (Westrex Recording System) (5.0) (L-R)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

David Hedison was at the Warner Theatre in New York for the world premiere of "The Lost World". He was signing autographs and gave out free Lost World comic books to the children July 13, 1960.

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Goofs

In the scene where Ed Malone and Jennifer Holmes meet up in the forest before the "Brontosaurus" chases them, Ed Malone says dialogue, but his mouth doesn't move. Also, Jennifer's mouth moves, but no dialogue comes out.

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Quotes

Professor George Edward Challenger: [to the people at the Zoological Institute] Live dinosaurs!

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Connections

Edited into When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth (1970)

User Reviews

Who needs Spielberg?

It's such a damn shame that the youngest generation of cinema buffs only knows about "Jurassic Park", because they have been making really good dinosaur movies since the silent era already! Particularly Arthur Conan Doyle's legendary novel has always been a very popular story that received decent film versions in practically every decade. In case you know nothing about the plot just yet: the obnoxious and self-centered professor Challenger assembles a troop of unlikely adventurers to go on an expedition deep in the Amazonian jungle, because there's supposed to be a plateau where the dinosaurs never got extinct. The expedition sure is no field trip, since the plateau also homes giant funky green spiders and an aggressive tribe of aboriginals that don't really like intruders. Unavoidably the group also falls apart due to personal intrigues and two adventurers' mutual love-interest for the same girl. "The Lost World" by Irwin Allen by no means is a good film, but it's vastly entertaining, partly because the special effects and set pieces are so incredibly crummy! The dinosaurs are just ordinary reptiles, like lizards and even a crocodile, with fake horns glued onto them and filmed with a fish-eye lens so that they appear to be gigantic. Well, they obviously remain simple reptiles and totally don't evoke feelings of fear or engagement. The decors are quite nice, though, and this film definitely has the irresistible early 60's charm that never fails to put a smile on your face. Claude Rains, here in the final stage of his well-filled career, is excellent as the boisterous professor Challenge and he obviously amused himself with yelling at people and hitting them on their heads with an umbrella. The rest of the cast is rather forgettable, expect from the stunningly beautiful Vitina Marcus who plays the sexy native girl. Even though I only remember it vaguely, the 1925 version of the same story is a much better film, but this version will definitely appeal more to larger audiences.