Challenger of the Unknown: Film #158 – The Lost World (1925)

The earliest adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle’s seminal “dinosaurs in modern times” story, this one does a nice job of simplifying the story, while adding the kind of romance and interpersonal difficulties that audiences demand. The special effects of the dinosaurs (by Willis O’Brien, later of King Kong fame) are quite impressive for the day, but (unlike those of Kong) don’t retain the same level of power after all these years.

Wallace Beery makes a fiery Professor Challenger, an appropriate portrayal for this force of nature. While the romantic leads (Lloyd Hughes and Bessie Love) are fine, they are more forgettable, as is the rest of the supporting cast. It’s Beery and the dinosaurs that stick in the mind.

Worth a viewing for those who’d like to see where the throughline to Jurassic Park began.

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