Will Ferrell, Danny R. McBride, Anna Friel

On his latest expedition, Dr. Rick Marshall (Ferrell) is sucked into a space-time vortex alongside his research assistant (Friel) and a redneck survivalist (McBride). In this alternate universe, the t...( read more  read more... )rio make friends with a primate named Chaka (Taccone), their only ally in a world full of dinosaurs and other fantastic creatures. Can they all make it back to our world alive, and if so: Will Dr. Marshall can go from zero to hero with his discoveries?

Flixster Users

38% liked it

514,715 ratings

Critics

26% liked it

168 critics

PG-13, 1 hr. 33 min.

Directed by: Brad Silberling

Release Date: June 5, 2009

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DVD Release Date: October 13, 2009

Stats: 15,143 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (15,143)


  • November 11, 2009
    Of course the critics ripped this movie, hard. It is a big overblown ball of hollywood junk, like a big-budget version of the show, which was popular due to it's cheese and phoniness. You ain't gonna get a good review by making a movie out of a bad tv show. A lot of people hav...( read more)e grown tired of Will Ferrell's man-child antics and dumb remarks, but I still enjoyed them in this movie. This movie is bad but a decent watch.
  • November 8, 2009
    Because life is too short to waste on bad movies, we turned this one off about 30 minutes in. I watched the series when I was young, but I never called myself a fan and this film wasn't doing anything to help. Stilted acting and a dearth of funny moments makes this film imminentl...( read more)y skippable.
  • October 27, 2009
    While I did laugh at times I was bored for 95% of the movie with a horrible story based on a horrible TV show.
  • October 16, 2009
    "If you don't make it, it's your own damn "vault." That's a bitch slap of truth right there."


    The 1970's television series Land of the Lost was ripe for hilarious parody. If a screen adaptation was produced that poked fun at the series and the low-budget, stop-m

    ...( read more)otion genre, a gem would be imminent. However, as it is, 2009's Land of the Lost is just a lightweight adventure in the form of a standard Will Ferrell movie. Throughout the feature, Ferrell's character runs from things and screams, and between these sequences he's engaging in semi-improvisational speeches designed to make himself look like a moron. One can watch Ferrell doing the aforementioned in literally any movie in which he features, so why would anyone want to see him repeat his same old routine under the guise of a cinematic reimagining of a '70s TV show? From the outset, it's unclear who this movie was meant to be pitched to. Was the aim to introduce the show's campy zest to a new generation of children? Or appeal to the now adult fans of the show with a combination of cheesy nostalgia and postmodern mockery? Unwisely, Land of the Lost tries to be both; peppering the story's juvenile antics with smutty adult humour. That said, it at least makes the cut in the dumb but fun department, and it's still watchable.


    In the TV series, a father and his two children on a rafting trip become sucked into a portal which teleports them to an alternate universe that fuses elements of the past (namely dinosaurs) with elements of fantasy and science fiction. This fundamental concept remains in the movie adaptation, but rather than a family of protagonists there's an unlikely trio of mere acquaintances - Dr. Rick Marshall (Ferrell), Holly (Friel), and Will (McBride) - who plunge into an alternate universe as the result of Rick's invention, a "Tachyon Amplifier", which was the cause of his banishment from mainstream science several years prior (following a career-ending appearance on The Today Show with Matt Lauer (who gamely played an extra-glib version of himself)).


    Once in this alternate dimension, the protagonists forge a tenuous friendship with a primate named Chaka (Taccone), and encounter the kind of scenarios that the two screenwriters (Dennis McNicholas and Chris Hench) were able to conceive when given $100 million to play with - namely, loosely connected skits tailored to the improvisatory skills and free-wheeling talents of the primary stars. There are rampaging dinosaurs, fast-crawling bugs, a race of lizard people (called the Sleestaks) and an assortment of cultural signifiers from different eras of human history (a Viking Ship, the Golden Gate Bridge, a roadside motel) scattered throughout the desert. Those involved with the production preserve creature designs and locations from the original series, as well as adding the occasional inside joke to please old fans. But the inconsistent quality of the special effects is jarring. The Sleestaks, for example, look very phoney, and the sets frequently look goofy. This is all well and good, since it's an obvious homage to the low-budget origins of the show. So why is it, then, that the dinosaurs were brought to life with state-of-the-art CGI? Early in the movie, Matt Lauer asks Rick Marshall in disbelief "You've spent $50 million studying time warps?". Meanwhile, the filmmakers blew $100 million making this motion picture when it could've been produced for half that amount to better effect.


    Contrary to common sense, Land of the Lost is absolutely not for children. Perplexingly, the filmmakers elected the hard PG-13/borderline R-rated route. Sex jokes, abrasive profanities, vulgarities, breast grabs, drug-induced hazes and a few expected bits of rather graphic violence are all incorporated into the film; imparting a darker edge to the material that's foreign to the franchise. It'd be one thing to fully commit to a gross-out, hilariously violent, curse-ridden R-rated send-up of the television program, but the filmmakers seem afraid to pursue this. The alienating approach they end up taking will most likely charm teenagers and young couples who enjoy such films as Anchorman or Talladega Nights, but it will appeal to very few others. Admittedly, there are several amusing moments scattered throughout Land of the Lost. A few one-liners delivered by McBride and Ferrell, which feel improvisational, at least achieve chuckles. The fact that this cast is better suited to a vulgar comedy environment and that the raunchiness affords the best comedic moments is compelling evidence that the filmmakers should have selected the R rating option.


    Director Brad Silberling - who was responsible for the 2004 screen adaptation of Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events - serves up a wonderful visual feast, supported by the efforts of production designer Bo Welch. A peculiar universe has been accomplished here, so it's a shame that the movie built around it isn't up to standard. Another key problem with Land of the Lost is that of unbelievably sloppy filmmaking. The editing in particular is simply ghastly. For instance, whenever the Tyrannosaurus Rex is chasing the characters, the spatial relationships are a mess. One moment the T-Rex is within biting distance of the characters...then in the following shot the characters have magically jumped forward about 10 or 20 metres. In a scene towards the climax, Marshall and Will rescue Holly from about eight or nine Sleestaks...they end up dispatching three or four, and suddenly they're all gone. Do the filmmakers assume we're not paying attention?


    It's possible to see the flop-sweat of desperation on Will Ferrell's forehead as he battles to mine laughs from this barren screenplay. However Ferrell's ability to play self-deluded and conceited is admittedly somewhat amusing. Danny McBride has his moments and happily pings off Ferrell, while Anna Friel delivers a pretty stoic performance as the scientist incarnation of Lara Croft...which is all the script asks of her. The only other member of the cast worth mentioning is Leonard Nimoy, who is given a cameo.


    Land of the Lost has its pleasures - the always-charming Anna Friel in small outfits, a few funny Will Ferrell moments - but it's ultimately forgettable and uneven. It's too schlocky and adult-minded in its humour for a family audience, but too dumb in its broad strokes to appeal to adults. To its credit, though, it's still enjoyable fluff, and it qualifies as one of the trippiest movies of the 2009 summer season - think the prehistoric version of Anchorman as written by Hunter S. Thompson...except it's no-where near as awesome as that sounds.

  • October 8, 2009
    Amusing but not great
  • November 21, 2009
    without a doubt, one of the worst movies that I have seen in my life. further reinforces why I avoid Will Ferrell movies. cant stand him. he is awful
  • November 20, 2009
    It was not like the tv series, but it was funny.
  • November 20, 2009
    i cant believe that the DIRECTOR OF LEMONY SNICKET ( one of my all time fave movie) would make a film such as this!!!
  • November 19, 2009
    So stupid it was funny. Reminded me of the 'Land of the Lost' series , when I was a kid.
  • November 19, 2009
    Hahahaha so very very funny. If you enjoyed Talladega nights or even Borat, you will enjoy this.

Critic Reviews


July 31, 2009
Nigel Andrews, The Financial Times

Will Ferrell capers earnestly through a Journey to the Center of the Earth-style comic romp witless of script, wan of invention and pasty of imagery. full review

June 7, 2009
Pete Hammond, Hollywood.com

This big screen re-invention of the hokey old saturday morning series is a passably silly summer guilty pleasure thanks to the antics of Will Ferrell and Danny McBride. full review

June 5, 2009
Colin Covert, The Minneapolis Star Tribune

This isn't the Land of the Lost you remember from childhood, but get on its antisocial wavelength and it's fitfully laugh-out-loud funny. full review

June 5, 2009
Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle

It all amounts to a certain brand of comedy -- something closer to long-form Dada than conventional humor. full review

June 5, 2009
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

Land of the Lost is harmless enough. It just isn't, with the exception of a few odd air pockets, particularly funny. full review

June 5, 2009
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal

This dramatically, thematically and artistically bankrupt comic fantasy cost something in the neighborhood of $100 million to make and isn't worth the celluloid it's printed on. full review

June 5, 2009
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

The only discernible intention in Land of the Lost, the latest comedy starring Will Ferrell acting like Will Ferrell, seems to have been to take a slight idea and make the least of it in a very expens... full review

June 5, 2009
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

Will Ferrell and Danny McBride can find the dumb fun in anything. Too bad that Land of the Lost is so much less than anything. full review

June 5, 2009
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

Not exactly a hundred million dollars' worth of classic comedy. full review

June 4, 2009
Ty Burr, Boston Globe

Genially terrible, Lost is lazy, sloppy multiplex filler, good for a few solid giggles and not much more. full review

View more Land of the Lost reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


  • sportboy
    August 7, 2009
    It will be a kids movie and will always be it wasn't offensive enough for it to be an adult one.

    However the story was bad the effects were awful this was a bit like Jurassic Park but 2 times worsed the dinasours were awful in it this doesn't stand a chance to win an award.
  • thomasbrown87
    June 25, 2009
    Damn funny, but otherwise stupid. Should be considered a kid's movie if it didn't have as much swearing.
  • josephdunphy
    June 11, 2009
    Fun fact - the movie wasn't released until June 5, yet we have somebody reviewing it in May. This movie would seem to have been prejudged, a lot.
  • gengaligo7
    May 23, 2009
    it sucks!
  • welice93
    January 30, 2009
    Space-time vortexes suck.

    Will Ferrell stars as has-been scientist Dr. Rick Marshall, sucked into one and spat back through time. Way back. Now, Marshall has no weapons, few skills and questionable smarts to survive in an alternate universe full of marauding dinosaurs and fantastic creatures from beyond our world—a place of spectacular sights and super-scaled comedy known as the Land of the Lost.

    Sucked alongside him for the adventure are crack-smart research assistant Holly (Anna Friel) and a redneck survivalist (Danny McBride) named Will. Chased by T. rex and stalked by painfully slow reptiles known as Sleestaks, Marshall, Will and Holly must rely on their only ally—a primate called Chaka (Jorma Taccone)—to navigate out of the hybrid dimension. Escape from this routine expedition gone awry and they're heroes. Get stuck, and they'll be permanent refugees in the "Land of the Lost".

  • Grimjack1
    August 4, 2008
    I thought it sounded cool before it had Will Ferrel's stink all over it. Now I hope it bombs.
  • markclarno1
    May 1, 2008
    Please do not rate movies you have not seen. If you want to see it or not interested use that feature. Please rate movies that you have actually seen. If you walk out after the first ten minutes please do not rate either. You are not interested.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Land of the Lost Trivia


  • In the movie "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back" the character Federal Wildlife Marshal Willenholly (played by Will Ferrell) is a veiled reference to what 70's TV show?  Answer »
  • In the film Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Federal Wildlife Marshal Willenholly's name is a direct reference to which 70's children's show?  Answer »
  • "Batman" (1966)- The props used in this show, (such as the computers and guns) also were used in "Lost in Space" (1965), "Time Tunnel" (1966), "Land of the Giants" (1968), and "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea" (1964).   Answer »
  • Will Ferrell movie quotes: Name the movie. "Matt Lauer can suck it!"   Answer »

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