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 Director
: Steven Spielberg
Starring
: Jeff Goldblum, Julianne Moore, Pete Postlethwaite, Arliss
Howard, Richard Attenborough.
Picture 1.85:1 Anamorphic, DD
5.1, Single-Side Dual-Layer, Keep Case
Running
Time : 123 mins
The
story:
Something has survived
The
story continues, this time on the Jurassic Park breeding
island, otherwise known as 'Site B'. It's been 4 years since
the adventures on Jurassic Park and the dinosaurs have been
left to breed and roam free on Site B. John Hammond (Richard
Attenborough) has sent a 4 man team to photograph and document
the different species of dinosaurs. However, Hammonds profiteering
company, InGen have sent in their own team to capture the
creatures and transport them back to mainland to build a
smaller dinosaur theme park. Needless to say, neither team's
mission goes to plan..
The
summary:
Straight
to the point - comparing Jurassic Park with The Lost World,
the latter does not come off favourably. The originality
is obviously lacking from the sequel (but this is also true
of most sequels), but the story seems to lack the punch
and sparkle that kept me hooked on JP. But set aside the
Jurassic comparisons and you'll find a film that pretty
much survives on it's own merits. The dialogue is clever
and witty at times (mainly Goldblum's lines), there's action
aplenty and some stunning special effects not seen since...
Jurassic Park!.
The
downside of all this is a storyline that slowly splutters
into life with the unlikely existence of 'Site B' (why no
mention in the first film?) then stops and starts as one
action sequence pauses for the next. Apart from Dr Ian Malcolm,
I care very little about the other characters, especially
the 'InGen baddies' and Malcolm's pesky daughter (you just
KNOW the gymnastics are going to come in handy). Perhaps
a better blend of storyline and action, with more emphasis
on evolving the characters would have made this seem less
like a trailer for Industrial Light & Magic.
The
Lost World is another tribute to how good big-budget movies
can look on the DVD format. The picture is flawless and
the sound is every bit as good as that of Jurassic Park.
Certainly some of the rear effects will make you jump as
they boom out at you from behind. It's a powerful 5.1 mix
that sets the standards for others. The extras offer a good
selection of supplemental viewing, so it's really only the
film that stops you rushing out and adding this to your
collection! However, though we may think twice about buying
The Lost World, those clever folks at Universal have taken
the choice away from us by offering it as a box-set with
JP. For this price, it becomes an attractive purchase. In
fact, for those of you 'region 2 only' buyers, it's the
only way to get this film. It is, of course, available separately
on region 1.
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Extras:
*
Documentary - "The Making Of The Lost World".
The cast and crew take us behind the scenes giving us an
insight into the making of The Lost World, from ideas through
to sound effects and filming. This is an excellent, quality
made documentary that's a definite must-see. 53 mins 12
secs.
*
Trailers - The theatrical trailers for Jurassic
Park, The Lost World and an early teaser trailer for Jurassic
Park 3 (out in 2001)!
*
Dinosaur Encyclopaedia - Some text-based notes
on several species. The same as the one on Jurassic Park
but updated to include the new species featured in The Lost
World.
*
Production Notes - Extensive and well-written
text-based production notes.
*
Deleted Scenes - Two deleted scenes - the first
an InGen board meeting showing the company's money grabbing
antics, the second delves further into the character of
Roland Tembo (Pete Postlethwaite). Neither scene help the
story along much and just slow down the story further. A
good inclusion though. 6 min 34 secs.
*
Illustrations & Conceptual Drawings - A
gallery of 121 pics showing various dino's and scenes from
the film.
*
Storyboards - 10 storyboards in total. Some are
scenes from the film, others are deleted scene storyboards
that never saw the light of day.
*
Models - 9 photos of models of the Lost World
sets.
*
The Magic of ILM - A gallery of stills from George
Lucas' Industrial Light & Magic's work.
*
Marketing:Posters & Toys - A photo gallery
of the many promotional posters from around the world, early
concept drawings for the logo and associated toys for the
promotional campaign.
*
Talent Profiles - Brief notes and filmographies
of the cast and crew.
*
Weblinks - "Jurassic Park" and "Jurassic
Park III" links.
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