Posted on by Steve

Film Review – THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT (1974)

Image result for the land that time forgot 1975THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT (UK/USA, 1975) ***
      Distributor: British Lion Film Corporation (UK), American International Pictures (AIP) (USA); Production Company: Amicus Productions / Edgar Rice Burroughs Inc. / Land Associates / Lion International; Release Date: 29 November 1974 (UK), 13 August 1975 (USA); Filming Dates: February 1974 – 18 April 1974; Running Time: 91m; Colour: Technicolor; Sound Mix: Mono; Film Format: 35mm; Film Process: Spherical; Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1; BBFC Cert: U.
      Director: Kevin Connor; Writer: James Cawthorn, Michael Moorcock (based on the novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs); Executive Producer: Robert H. Greenberg; Producer: John Dark, Max Rosenberg, Milton Subotsky; Associate Producer: John Peverall; Director of Photography: Alan Hume; Music Composer: Douglas Gamley; Film Editor: John Ireland; Casting Director: ; Production Designer: Maurice Carter; Art Director: Bert Davey; Costumes: Julie Harris; Make-up: Tom Smith; Sound: Don Sharpe, George Stephenson; Special Effects: Derek Meddings; Visual Effects: Charles Staffell.
      Cast: Doug McClure (Bowen Tyler), John McEnery (Captain Von Schoenvorts), Susan Penhaligon (Lisa Clayton), Keith Barron (Bradley), Anthony Ainley (Dietz), Godfrey James (Borg), Bobby Parr (Ahm), Declan Mulholland (Olson), Colin Farrell (Whiteley), Ben Howard (Benson), Roy Holder (Plesser), Andrew McCulloch (Sinclair), Ron Pember (Jones), Grahame Mallard (Deusett), Andrew Lodge (Reuther), Brian Hall (Schwartz), Stanley McGeagh (Hiller), Peter Sproule (Hindle), Steve James (First Sto-Lu).
      Synopsis: During World War I, a German U-boat sinks a British ship and takes the survivors on board. After it takes a wrong turn, the submarine takes them to the unknown land of Caprona, where they find dinosaurs and neanderthals.
      Comment: This low-budget fantasy-adventure is great fun and its charm and energy help you forget the variable special effects. McClure enjoys himself as the square-jawed hero and has good support from a game British cast, including Penhaligon as a biologist and McClure’s love interest. Action scenes are well directed and the monster work as good as it could be for the budget. Themes around evolution add a layer of intelligence, but this is still primary juvenile entertainment.
      Notes: McEnery was dubbed by Anton Diffring. Followed by THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT (1977) and remade in 2009.