MovieChat Forums > The Lost World (1925) Discussion > So underrated

So underrated

posted 10 years ago by Just_Alex
20 replies | jump to latest

The Lost World (1925) may be one of the most underrated movies I have ever seen. First of all, King Kong (1933) rips-off 90% of this movie. Only differences: the monster has a crush on the girl, the monster they take to the city is a giant gorilla intead of a dinosaur, and the big city is New York instead of London. That's it. The rest of the King Kong plot is basically the same.

And yet, no one gives this movie the proper credit. When you read or hear about King Kong, no one says it's a rip-off, and if you ever hear about The Lost World, it's treated like a footnote at best. Ironically, the King Kong remakes are usually received with a "How dare they" attitude.

This movie also paved the way for any future monster movies that followed, and the pace is fast, it's a very entertaining movie, and a very groundbreaking film.

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[–] Agent_Mothman 10 years ago

While The Lost World (and the story it's based on) is great, calling King Kong a rip-off isn't fair. The concept of hidden lands with prehistoric beasts is not copyrighted by the story, nor should it be. Both are wonderful films, and I think King Kong does enough differently story wise and visually to differentiate itself from The Lost World. As for it being underrated, by whom exactly? It's on many lists of classic films of that time, it's loved by many dinosaur fans, and it was even the subtitle for the second Jurassic Park movie. It may be underrated if you mean by the general public, but to be frank, most people these days haven't seen any films dating back to the 1920's and so on.

"The world is indeed comic, but the joke is on mankind" ~H.P. Lovecraft

[–] Just_Alex 10 years ago

That's my point.

If it's not narrowed to a "Best silent films" or "Best dinosaur movies", it's not mentioned at all!

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[–] Agent_Mothman 10 years ago

I disagree, I see it on other kinds of lists as well. Again, you can't blame it for not being talked about so much being to old, it's sad, but true. Metropolis isn't talked about a whole lot when speaking of science fiction. Not because it isn't a good or appreciated film, but because many these days just haven't seen it. No one is rating it lower or saying it's bad, it's just not as well known these days due to age.

"The world is indeed comic, but the joke is on mankind" ~H.P. Lovecraft

[–] Just_Alex 10 years ago

Actually, yes, it's rated very low.

7.1 on the biggest movie site for fans (IMDb) is a very puny rating for this movie. Users in Rotten Tomatoes gave this movie a 6.8.

Many Sci-fi fans cry foul with the Matrix because they say it stole so much from Ghost in the Shell, or Dark City, or World on a Wire, and Matrix actually does a lot of things very different from those movies. But with King Kong almost no one says a thing about the HUGE resemblance to The Lost World. It goes beyond the "both are about prehistorical creatures" thing. It's the same story! Except the latter replaces the dinosaur with the gorilla!

We'll have to agree to disagree, I'm afraid.

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[–] Agent_Mothman 10 years ago

IMDb ratings are not good to go on because many good films have lower ratings because of not too many people know of them. Besides, a 7 isn't that bad, could be a lot worse. As for the same exact story, I think not. The Lost World is about a scientist who is challenged (pun intended) on his discovery of prehistoric beasts in South America, and a journalist, as well as others join him on an expedition to see for themselves.

King Kong is about a filmmaker who wants to make a great film, and learns about a mysterious island near Sumatra that his home to a large beast as well as prehistoric creatures. He travels there with others to make his movie. Aside from both having a "lost land" and bringing back a creature to the civilized world, the plots are quite different. As I have stated before, it's not a rip-off.

"The world is indeed comic, but the joke is on mankind" ~H.P. Lovecraft

[–] Just_Alex 10 years ago

You're kidding, right?

A guy knows of a prehistoric world, he takes a crew to get there and show the world he is right. They get there, then a bunch of beasts fight each other, then the crew has to dodge the attacks of the beasts, then they capture one giant beast, then they take it to a big city, then they prepare a show to make a profit, then the lights and whatnot scares the beast, then the beast runs amock in the streets, the beast creates a chaos for a while, then the beast dies in the middle of the street.

What movie I'm talking about?

BOTH.

Watch these movies back to back. Really. Don't rely just on the memory. Watch one, then the other. Even the fight scenes between the beasts are pretty much the same.

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[–] Agent_Mothman 10 years ago

Ok, now you are just grasping at straws. A guy knowing about a prehistoric world and logically taking others with him is not a concept that was unique only to this film. Beasts fight each other? Call the press! I didn't know dinosaurs fought each other. I thought that only happened in movies! So what if something is brought back and escapes? One, it's only logical to bring something back from a trip that many don't believe actually happened, and it makes sense that such a large beast got loose anyway. What you are saying that was apparently "stolen or rip-offed" is only from the very last portion of the film. There is a difference between out right stealing a concept and simply giving an homage to a highly seen and praised film of the time. King Kong's plot is not rip-offed from The Lost World, and the fact that you keep insisting this based on so little examples that it baffles me!

"The world is indeed comic, but the joke is on mankind" ~H.P. Lovecraft

[–] Just_Alex 10 years ago

So little examples? I just outlined the whole basic plot for both movies and they are the same. Both movies spend a great deal of time with the action scenes, that's why you think I only described "the last portion". I also wrote "a bunch of beasts fight each other" and "the crew dodges the attack of the beasts" those two sentences are a fast and simple way to describe 60 % of each movie. You say I'm grasping at straws, and yet you fail to recognize that the same events happen in the exact same order in both movies.

Listen, I know King Kong is a very precious movie to you, and you think it's a crime to say it's a rip-off, so if you feel more comfortable calling it "homage", well... do it.

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[–] Agent_Mothman 10 years ago

Those are indeed small, and pointless examples. Having people dodge or fight dinosaurs is not something that is a stolen concept by any means. It's called conflict, and I would expect any film to have it, especially when featuring prehistoric beasts. Yes, King Kong is precious to me, but The Lost World is also a wonderful film. Why insist on your belief that King Kong stole anything?

It's common practice for filmmakers to like certain elements from movies that they like. Now I'm trying to claim that nothing is ever stolen within the film industry, but in this case, I think it's logical to say that there was foul play or ripping-off when it comes to these two movies. The fact of the matter is that while both movies contain similar elements, they are both unique in their own ways and are both equally good films. Case Closed.

"The world is indeed comic, but the joke is on mankind" ~H.P. Lovecraft

[–] Just_Alex 10 years ago

Yes, the Lost World and its remake are classic films.

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[–] Agent_Mothman 10 years ago

Well, I don't think the 1960 version is all that great, but it's not all that bad either.

"The world is indeed comic, but the joke is on mankind" ~H.P. Lovecraft

[–] Just_Alex 10 years ago

Ha ha, that's not what I meant and you know it.

At least when people talk about Nosferatu, people acknowledge where the story comes from. Sadly, The Lost World will never get that much.

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[–] Agent_Mothman 10 years ago

I actually didn't realize until now that you were making a jab at King Kong. Real classy.

"The world is indeed comic, but the joke is on mankind" ~H.P. Lovecraft

[–] Just_Alex 10 years ago

C'mon, you think I hate King Kong, but I think it's a very similar case to Nosferatu/Dracula, the first one is a blatant rip-off of the second one, but it's so good that a lot of people give it a pass. I'm OK with this, I think Nosferatu is the best "Dracula" film, and this without the official "Dracula" seal of approval. Most people that know about Nosferatu and Dracula, are aware of this, like both, and give the proper credit.

But the thing with The Lost World and King Kong, is that the only way that the 1925 story will get a mention, is to say, "oh, the same guy that did the King Kong effects did the effects for a movie called The Lost World".

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[–] Agent_Mothman 10 years ago

I think you are being unfair by saying that The Lost World will only be remembered or mentioned because of King Kong. Both films get plenty of respect on their own merits.

"The world is indeed comic, but the joke is on mankind" ~H.P. Lovecraft

[–] Just_Alex 10 years ago

This long discussion makes me realize something... I would like The Lost World to be a more popular and recognized movie, but I won't achieve that in The Lost World board and throwing jabs at King Kong, so instead, I'm going to post about this movie in the King Kong board and see if I can get some King Kong fans that don't know about this movie to see it. Without saying something negative about KK.

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[–] Agent_Mothman 10 years ago

You know, that actually sounds like a good idea. I'm curious about the results myself. I'll be there to check as well.

"The world is indeed comic, but the joke is on mankind" ~H.P. Lovecraft

[–] Just_Alex 10 years ago

Done.

I even provided a Youtube link, I hope no one deletes the content (Youtube), or the link (IMDb) after all it's public domain!

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[–] chuck-526 9 years ago

with King Kong almost no one says a thing about the HUGE resemblance to The Lost World

Given that the stop-motion animation team on the two films is the same people, one could perhaps equally well view 'The Lost World' as their "warmup".

[–] talisencrw 9 years ago

Though the version I saw was incomplete (just an hour) I loved it and wholeheartedly agree. Incredible soundtrack too! =)