Directed by: Brad Silberling
Written By: Chris Henchy & Dennis McNicholas
Cast: Will Ferrell, Anna Friel, & Danny McBride
Runtime: 93 min
Rating: PG-13
Trailer

Land of the Lost is a film without a past, present, or future. The film mixes so many genres, styles, and tones that the result is an uneven, uninspired, and bland high-concept comedy suitable for no one. Based on the popular children’s television show, the film is ostensibly aimed at younger audiences, and yet, the humor—much of it coming from supporting character and scene-stealer Danny McBride, usually at the expense of Anna Friel—is aimed at much older audiences. The story follows disgraced scientist Dr. Rick Marshall (Will Ferrell, doing his regular man-child routine), Holly Cantrell (Anna Friel) and Will Stanton (McBride), traveling to a land in between time and space, after Marshall creates a machine capable of manifesting time warps. After being sent careening into another dimension, the group must find a way back home while avoiding a vengeful Tyrannosaurus and a tribal conflict between races of lizard creatures. Anyway, this all leads to one stylish but empty-headed set piece after another. While the production design is pretty to look, overall excitement is muted and rendered ineffective because of the film’s threadbare plotting and uninspired characters. Will Ferrell is usually funny and likable, but here, in a film that has loads of potential, he gets lost in the shuffle, totally upstaged by a Tyrannosaurus and a half-man, half-monkey named Cha-Ka (Jorma Taccone). His scenes with this creature are especially embarrassing to watch, especially when you consider just how much screen time this “relationship” take up. For a film purportedly aimed at children, it’s inappropriate and not nearly exciting enough. The jokes are juvenile and tasteless, and the action is never edgy enough to be fresh nor exciting enough to be fun. One point of contention with me is the offensive and degrading treatment of the only female character in the cast, Anna Friel. Initially, Friel’s character, Holly, is introduced as an intelligent and inspired scientist who helps rouse Ferrell’s character out of depression, spurring him on to his greatest invention. But after they are sent back in time, the plot and the producers of Land of the Lost call on her to strip down to a tank top and short-shorts. For what purpose, no one knows. Apparently, director Brad Silberling and the screenwriters had nothing for Friel’s character to do other than to be ogled at and constantly groped by Cha-Ka. Apparently, no amount of time traveling can stop filmmakers from creating female characters as useless as Land of the Lost ultimately is.

Richard X
© Cinephile Magazine, 2009