Yep! The producers of this film just felt that the story of a group of British explorers wandering through the jungles of South America in search of a hidden plateau riddled with prehistoric monsters had not been tackled enough or not tackled with any degree of accuracy. Despite having been made into film and television fare since 1925 numerous times, the folks at A & E wanted to remake Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's novel. They wanted to try and create a definitive version of his classic tale. They did do a pretty good job. Sure, one can see the major differences between the book and the film. There are not many, but there are some major ones(the addition of a female character). Yet,despite these changes, the film remains very faithful in spirit to the novel. The characters are central to the story not the dinosaurs. The acting is quite good with Bob Hoskins doing a fine job as Professor Challenger. Edward Fox gives a first-rate performance as Professor Summerlee, bring wit, humour, and even some pathos to his role. Peter Falk is also fine in his role, a role which brings to light the everlasting fight between religion and science to the forefront of the film. The special effects are pretty good and the story is plotted with action, suspense, and wonderful dialogue. But what I liked more than anything about this film was the fact that the producers refused to pander to the less literate and articulate members of the audience. They did not sacrifice characterization for action and special effects all the time. They did not abandon having viewers use their minds and think about the inherent problems of science and religion when they collide. For this I thank them and hope that others take their lead and remember that not all viewers are between the ages of 10 and 25. A fine adaptation and a ripping good yarn!
