The People That Time Forgot

THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT was supposed to have a happy ending. It wasn't happy but then again, it wasn't altogether sad either. It was an agonizing wait for this, the sequel, THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT.

Patrick Wayne is a big name and worthy as the brother of the Doug McClure character; however, they gave him the whole show. It was 40-45 minutes before we see Doug, then 10 minutes later he's gone. He gets to make a last statement and I hope to understand its actual meaning someday, if there is one, but right now I'm just trying to get over the shock. Yeah, we waited for the sequel why? Hoped for a better outcome the first movie and expected what outcome now? Why can't the ending of at least one dinosaur movie be pithy and predictable? The rest of it was fun, but you don't leave the theater with that feeling- it's ruined by the ending. Again.

American International made four low budget films starring Doug McClure based on books by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the author of the Tarzan books. THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT and it's sequel THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT borrowed heavily from Arthur Conan Doyle's THE LOST WORLD but added it's own twists and turns. THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT is a non-stop adventure in the Indiana Jones mode with Major Ben McBride (Patrick Wayne, son of the Duke) out to rescue shipwrecked Bowen Tyler (Doug McClure from the first film). Among those along for the adventure is Lady Charlotte Cunningham played by a beautiful Sarah Douglas (SUPERMAN II). Despite Amelia Earhart attire she is definately hot. She reminded me of Francesca Hunt in THE SECRET ADVENTURES OF JULES VERNE on the Sci-Fi Network. Along the way they meet Ajor (Dana Gillespie) friend of Bowen Tyler, who looks and dresses like Xena, Warrior Princess (so this is where Xena got that look). Dana Gillespie is stunning and like Xena and Sheena makes a great Jungle Girl (strong, smart, gorgeous, sexy...hey what else could one ask for?) Lady Charlotte and Major Ben create a romantic tension but when Ajor enters the scene Major Ben has eyes for Ajor and Lady Charlotte just goes with the flow chumming up with Ajor as well. I found that refreshing and glad to see the women in this film be more than just damsels in distress (there is a little of that toward the end but it all evens out with everyone being able to do something heroic). Jungle Girl films have been around for a long time (check out the serials!) and I truly love them because they show women to have strength, beauty, and brains. This film is a worthy member of that genre. Like the rest of the series the special effects are uneven but always entertaining (the vehicles and sets are always stunning but these guys never did know how to make a monster). The violence is very very low key, the frights are made funny by rubber puppets, and there is no swearing. Appropriate for the entire family for those into Xena and The Lost World.

At the beginning of the film are reunited captain Lawton (Tony Britton) piloting his icebreaker , along with McBride (Patrick Wayne), Lady Cunningham (Sarah Douglas) and Norfork (Thorley Walters) , everybody undertakes an expedition to Antartic in search for Tyler (Doug McClure) who has been missing in that region for various years. The trio (Patrick Wayne , Sara Douglas, Thorley Walters) along with a plane pilot descend over a barren land and meet a primitive women (a gorgeous Dana Gillespie with amazing cleavage showing her boobs). They have to confront numerous risks , dangers, endure torrential landslide , volcano eruption , cavemen warriors, samurais , prehistoric animals and discover a lost tribe .

This enjoyable adaptation results to be a special version of the Edgar Rice Burroughs adventure yarn . There's rip-roaring action, spirit of adventure, derring-do , thrills, and turns out to be quite amusing. It's a brief fun with average special effects , passable set decoration , matte painting , functional art direction and non use of computer generator. This fantasy picture packs thrills, action, weird monsters, lively pace and fancy scenarios. The monsters are the real stars of this production and its chief attribute. The tale is silly and laughable but the effects and action are acceptable . Among the most spectacular of its visuals there are a deeply shrouded cavern full of skulls roaring menacingly towards the camera, a little tableau comprising attack of a giant monster in a cave, and the futuristic backgrounds of the nasty headquarter .Highlights of the adventure includes a roller-coaster trip, appearance of prehistoric reptile such as Pterodactilus, Stegosaurius, Tiranosaurious and some horsemen dressed Samurai-alike riding out from mountain throughout horizon . In addition, the final scenes where appears a grotesque executioner played by David Prowse (Darth Vader), a dwarf and usual villain chief and several others. Some illogical parts in the plot are more than compensated for the excitement provided by Roger Dicken's monsters, though sometimes are a little bit cheesy and primitively made . Filmed in glimmer cinematography by cameraman Alan Hume on location in Santa Cruz De La Palma (Canary Islands) and Pinewood studios , England. Adequate and thrilling musical score by John Scott. This is the fourth collaboration between producers John Dark, Max Rosemberg and director Kevin Connor who also made in similar style : ¨ Land that time forgot¨, ¨All the Earth's core (76)¨, ¨Warlord of Atlantis (1978)¨, mostly starred by Doug McClure and with Roger Dicken as the monster-maker. The film will appeal to kids who swallow it whole and sit convulsed in their armchair.

With a plot like this one, it's hard to go wrong. A post WWI expedition sails to the Antarctic to try tofind a lost man in a prehistoric land tucked between the high icy mountains. Prehistoric dinosaurs keep popping up throughout the film. Then there's always the evil tribe of bad guys causing plenty of trouble. I can't forget to mention the scantily clad cave girl. I doubt if prehistoric women ever looked like this. Throw in a volcano and you have an adventure movie called 'The People That Time Forgot'. The characters and situations are not entirely believable or realistic and the dinosaurs could have used more work on them, but all in all, it was a pretty good, fun movie that's worth watching.

The People That Time Forgot is directed by Kevin Connor and adapted to screenplay by Patrick Tilley from the novel of the same name written by Edgar Rice Burroughs. it stars Patrick Wayne, Sarah Douglas, Dana Gillespie, Thorley Walters, Shane Rimmer and Doug McClure. Music is scored by John Scott and cinematography by Alan Hume.

A sequel to The Land That Time Forgot, plot finds Wayne as Major Ben McBride who arranges a mission to go and search for his missing friend Bowen Tyler (McClure). As the party go beyond the Antartic wastes they find themselves in a world populated by prehistoric creatures and primitive tribes.

There are a group of film fans of a certain age that were exposed wilfully to the joys of Kevin Connor and Doug McClure Creature Features, the four pictures made with low budgets (see also The Land That Time Forgot 1975, At the Earth's Core 1976 & Warlords of Atlantis 1978) were simply put together with a standard structure of humans discovering an unknown land, who then encounter beasties and savage races and then try to escape said world of wonder. Back then in the 70s with youthful eyes these films were magnificent things, we didn't care about clunky animatronics and miniatures, staid dialogue and poorly constructed scenes of men grappling with a man in rubber make up. Nor did us boys pay any attention to the considerable heaving bosom factor, which is here supplied with a different kind of wonder by Dana Gillespie! But they are a group of films that once loved, is a love that lasts forever, yes, it's true love.

As it is, The People That Time Forgot is often thought of as the weakest of the four, yet it's every inch the equal of "Land", primarily because the cast attack the material with great spirit (Douglas is rather splendid and not just a posh girl with a pretty face), the film stock it's shot on is of better quality and John Scott's score is bursting with vitality. There's also a ripper of a finale here, with the pyrotechnics department creating merry hell. Explosives aplenty. While the Santa Cruz de la Palma location used for the world of Caprona is perfectly bereft of civilised leanings. As with the other's in the series, the ideas at the heart aren't fully realised because of the budget restrictions, so we basically get some talk between characters, then a fight with a beast, some more talk, another fight with a beast, a meeting with a uncivilised tribe, a fight with a beast, and on it goes until the derring-do escape. There will be peril and actually this one has a very noteworthy turn of events that might surprise a few of the uninitiated.

1977 of course was the year of Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, which changed things considerably in the creature feature/sci-fi fantasy stakes. Thus the Connor/McClure movies were relegated to being antique relics of monster malarkey cinema. Yet still they retain a quaint uniqueness, they are able to continually imbue many of us with waves of nostalgia, taking us back to a time when the likes of Connor made fantasy films with love and basic tools. The Land That Time Forgot was badly adapted to film in 2009 (C. Thomas Howell directing and starring), which begs the question on why Burroughs' Caspak trilogy has not been taken on by a big studio? As yet the third part of the trilogy, Out of Time's Abyss, has not received a filmic adaptation, can you imagine what someone like Spileberg could do with Burroughs' wonderful source ideas?

Ah well, we can but dream, in the meantime we will happily make do with our cheesy antiquities. 7/10