Movie: Lost in Space (1998) Free with commercials

[HiFlyer 9,359]

For those whut' may have never seen it.....

 

[Fielder 3,673]

Thanks! I like to hear Dr. Smith say "Will, Penny, help" when something goes bad instead of trying to protect them. And then blame his lack of effort on the robot. LOL.

[HiFlyer 9,359]

On 8/13/2022 at 8:30 PM, Fielder said:

Thanks! I like to hear Dr. Smith say "Will, Penny, help" when something goes bad instead of trying to protect them. And then blame his lack of effort on the robot. LOL.

I liked the first half of the film, and thought it had promise. The 2nd half, with the ridiculously bad CGI Bloop, the preposterous Dr Smith Monster, and the side-plot with the robot overcoming his malevolent reprogramming through the power of love, collapsed the film like a balloon pricked with a knitting needle, and pretty much killed it, both as anything that could be taken seriously and at the box office.

They should never have tried to mix their new concepts with ultra-cheesy fan service.

[n4gix 4,947]

I enjoyed most of the original TV series, but could not stand that sniveling, effeminate "Dr. Smith." INMHO, He ruined the story line.

[HiFlyer 9,359]

5 minutes ago, n4gix said:

I enjoyed most of the original TV series, but could not stand that sniveling, effeminate "Dr. Smith." INMHO, He ruined the story line.

And interestingly enough, if you ever see the original pilot, not only was there no Doctor Smith; the Jupiter 2 (Originally named the Gemini 12, I think) had just a single deck!

Smith was shoehorned in there at the behest of the network, and quickly ended up taking over the show and knocking it off course from the original adventure series it was intended to be.

You can see in the first few episodes that for a while, even with Smith on board, the showrunners were able to keep things on an even keel with a "sinister", even murderous Smith, right up until the final 1st season episodes, with the Robinsons trapped on their first planet.

Things quickly went downhill from there, as the suits demanded Lost in space became as campy as Batman, running on a competing network at the same time, with much success.

 

[HiFlyer 9,359]

Oh, forgot to mention:

If you watch the original pilot episode, its made clear the Gemini is a giant robot vessel, with no chairs or controls such as appeared later near the front windows.

The family Robinson had no input into the guidance of the ship, which was only intended to get them to the planet where the rest of the series was to occur, and was never originally intended to take off again.

[n4gix 4,947]

Thanks, Devon!  😁

[HiFlyer 9,359]

30 minutes ago, n4gix said:

Thanks, Devon!  😁

As a kid, I watched the reruns on channel 5 (New York) nearly everyday, again and again, and it was probably my single favorite show besides the usual cartoons. Now its on my list, along with things like the Starlost, as early tv sci-fi that went awry.

Could you imagine what a Space 1999, or a UFO reboot would look like, now?

[sightseer 895]

I'm sitting here thinking "I never knew" (that the show was so different from its original intended direction).  And really - why they didnt just kill Dr Smith is beyond me.  I loved Lost In Space.  It fit in with my daily Captain Chesapeake routine.  I had such a crush on Penny.  I'm convinced that Penny from Bing Bang Theory was named as such because of Lost in Space.

and Space 1999.  I loved that too.  The Eagle was the coolest ship.  There was this one episode that always sticks out in my mind - about a monster with hairlike tentacles and it would grab people and shove them under and kinda thru itself and they would come out all burned I think.  terrified me as a kid.  its like Kolchak the night stalker - that one episode about the underground alligator/dinosaur that hated light and it would knock out the ceiling bulbs as it approached.  Terrified me at the time.  and then their was the little House Halloween episode with the head rolling down the stairs...yeesh!

but thanks for the movie.  it was OK.  

My favorite episode in the original was when the robot got real big.

[HiFlyer 9,359]

2 hours ago, sightseer said:

I'm sitting here thinking "I never knew" (that the show was so different from its original intended direction).  And really - why they didnt just kill Dr Smith is beyond me.

Especially the cold, evil Dr Smith from the first few episodes of the original show.... I wanted him dead.

Not to even mention the walking advertisement for walking out an airlock without a suit that was the Smith from the movie, and the reboot series (though Parker Posey is a very nice actress....)

(By the way, did anyone notice the original pilot had no Robot? No second floor for him to stand in!)

The actor playing Dr Robinson (Fresh from his previous staring role playing Zorro) was not happy AT ALL with the changes to the show where he originally understood he was going to be the main star of an adventure series. Will and the robot taking over left him simmering with resentment for the remainder of the show.

Edited August 22, 2022 by HiFlyer