Lost in Space (1998) Retrospective / Review

[@at3479]

Ah, the film that ended Titanic's monthly reign at the box office and became known as the Iceberg for a while. I always liked this one despite the flaws it had.

[@bigbabysld]

DAMN...I was coming here just to type that...oh well yeah, this was the movie that knocked TITANIC out of 1st place. that felt good

[@aslan9334]

Yes i do remember this is the one that finally took Titanic from number 1 i do enjoy both but am glad this one was the one that did it!😄

[@zacharyjochumsen9677]

@@aslan9334 and thi yer mzejs the 25th anniversary of lost in space

[@Orangefan77]

"Dad, Mom says get the hell out of there!" spoken by the Robot will always be my favorite line from this movie.

[@jothegreek]

hey war thunder joy

[@SammEater]

I know right, the Robot voice is so cool any line he says in that movie is iconic to me.

[@SpaceWizardCosplay]

@@SammEater The Robot (1998) was voiced by Dick Tufield, the same voice actor from the original (1965-68) Lost in Space TV show. And you're right - his voice is iconic.

[@Mangko]

William Hurt: "I've never seen a Ship like this...." Sam Neill: "Ah yes, that's the Event Horizon returning from it's Maiden voyage"

[@yieldtochristian]

Truly appreciate this comment

[@andrewblack2596]

NOICE.

[@dariusq8894]

I actually enjoyed Lost in Space. It was a generic FX movie but definitely entertaining.

[@terrylandess6072]

I grew up with the TV series. This movie started strong, and then WTF happened - it was like they wanted to make the movie, but after the first act - couldn't figure out what to do and it just got weirder and more contrived while simultaneously destroying any sequel possibilities.

[@pca1987]

@@terrylandess6072 So... Just like in the original show? What I meam is that the show also started strong, but it did got really weird later on, didn't it? 🤣 Only in the show we have vegetable people (including Celery Smith) and in the movie we got Alien-spider Smith. 😅

[@devonmask5192]

Agreed. Also liked it better than the show, which was crap (but there was nothing else on during its syndicated UHF time so every kid watched it). Even as a young kid I had at least one 'why wouldn't they______?' in every episode. Also, Johnathan Harris's Dr. Smith's alliterate tirades made me want to trade a month's allowance to watch a scene where Don blows him out of the airlock.

[@Geezer-yf8hv]

@@terrylandess6072 I totally agree and share your opinion. I have been rewatching the original series, and waiting for season 3 of the Netflix reboot! While very different than the original, and not liking it at first, I warmed up to it in the 2nd season. Still, I’d like to see yet another remake that is “retro”, and keeps some of the ‘60s look!! The original Jupiter 2 is STILL the best coolest space ship ever, (just needed to be bigger to contain all that shit)! Would LOVE to hear the original J2 engine sounds in a movie theater sound system!!

[@Geezer-yf8hv]

@@pca1987 It took 2-3 years for the show to go so bad. It shouldn’t have happened in 90 MINUTES!!!

[@afrog2666]

Gary Oldman is the GOAT, he can play anything, probably stuff like a mountain or a tree as well, and you`d never know it was Gary Oldman until you watched the credits xD

[@DCMarvelMultiverse]

Oliver Harper: And now a retrospective/review of Lost in Space. Me: Oh, the pain! The pain of it all!

[@wstine79]

"Silence, you cackling clad!"

[@wstine79]

Penny: "That robot is so Fetch." Will: "Penny, stop trying to make Fetch happen. It's never going to happen."

[@pixelheresy]

I was going to say! Between the Wild Thornberries and Mean Girls, there were more touchpoints than "1st season Meg" and "Hallmark Channel movies".

[@tripshaker]

"In space, no one can hear you Fetch."

[@terrylandess6072]

She had a weird cuteness in this movie which had me looking forward to her aging up - then like mentioned, I see her in Mean Girls and wonder what went sideways?

[@MildMisanthropeMaybeMassive]

terry landess why don’t you take a seat over there? DANGER PENNY ROBINSON!

[@Geezer-yf8hv]

It was weird that they seemed to sex and slut her up like jailbait she was!! It was just creepy

[@evertonporter7887]

After this, New Line Cinema's next production would be Lord Of The Rings....and the rest is history.

[@GarrethandPipa]

having grown up at the end of the campy scifi. I still return to this movie every now and again. It is one of my favorites.

[@mzoe12]

Gary Oldman has been in some great films in the 1990s. He was the highlight of this movie by being the villain.

[@KEVMAN7987]

He plays a great villain.

[@jamiebraswell5520]

He was terrible here. It is not his fault, though. The role was written terribly to start with.

[@Transmission_Rory]

"I love you wife" - Professor Robinson, Lost in Space.

[@theblocksays]

"I hate you, agent." William Hurt. LOL

[@Psilocybin77]

That's beautiful man

[@TheDeppertLasseVogt]

One of the worst lines ever spoken in a truly awful way. This film made me hate William Hurt.

[@LordMalice6d9]

@@TheDeppertLasseVogt It's as if William Hurt forgot the name of his wife's character and couldn't be bothered to remember lol!

[@TheDeppertLasseVogt]

@@LordMalice6d9 He clearly couldn’t be bothered to act... at all.

[@saltygrasshopper]

I might be alone here but I think Matt LeBlanc should have had more of a movie career.

[@nelsonc6173]

Really? The guy acts like a piece of wood? He has much intonation as a piece of stone. Hence why he was perfect for Joey.

[@saltygrasshopper]

@@nelsonc6173 I'm not saying he can star opposite of Daniel Day Lewis but I think he can pull off some decent blue collar guy roles.

[@alfredthegreat9543]

That was my takeaway from Lost in Space too. I hadn't seen Friends at that point so wasn't aware who he was, just thought he was a new actor to the scene, but thought he was very good indeed and had a bright future as an action star- i guess a million dollars an episode for Friends put a stop to that.

[@alanpennie8013]

Unfortunately, it seems you're not alone.

[@eltreum1]

All I had ever seen him was friends. He only fits certain archetypes well but I liked him as a military character. He was snarky and a bit of a hot shot but had skills to justify it and was serious when it was time to work and loyal to his comrades. It was funny when he was griping about his fate as he was locking down the ship and dislike for cryo sleep. I loved when he busted out that iron helmet and went shooting gallery on the spiders. With the right direction and project he could have transitioned to sci-fi or action movies if he wanted.

[@ganbaatarganbayar]

Joey in space

[@-MrFozzy-]

How YOU dooooin (in space)

[@-MrFozzy-]

@@OneOfThoseTypes drank the fat though

[@LinkMarioSamus]

General Ross and Commissioner Gordon in space

[@Neville60001]

Not even close to that, Ganbayar Ganbaatar ; Joey was oversexed and (mainly) stupid, while Don was smart, heroic, and resourceful.

[@saftpackerl]

You mean "Jerry - in Space"? :D

[@wstine79]

"DANGER, OLIVER HARPER! DANGER!"

[@Marinealver]

Perfect

[@shainewhite2781]

Saw this movie on VHS with my family on Christmas day a year after it's release and it's pretty impressive! I don't care what Critics say, I love it!

[@Freakazoid12345]

Same! I love the arc at the end.

[@RobsonRoverRepair]

This film had massive potential for sequels, now days it would set up a series easily.

[@xponen]

"Virtual set" used in Mandalorian will enable all sort of Sci-fi series to be produced under budget whilst keeping the movie-esque quality.

[@michaelsimkins7078]

It's "nowadays", not "now days"! What planet are you from? DUNCE-00 Most likely!

[@RobsonRoverRepair]

@@michaelsimkins7078 so a grammar NAZI and a victim of micro penis? How do you keep going. My hero xoxox

[@alanpennie8013]

Thank God it was made in then days.

[@jean-mi1825]

Especially considering that, at the end, they are STILL in the future.

[@leskrapps7021]

Oliver Harper retrospectives have quickly become one of my favorite channels on youtube, excellent content mixed with great commentary, insight, and the fabulous voice with British accent. Well done Ollie.

[@OliverHarper]

Wow, thank you Les!

[@bbtank3000]

I was 9 when this came out, and I loved it. Judged it a lot less critically as a kid. To this day, I still love its charm.

[@ShiroiTengu]

I was the same age and loved it so much. For YEARS afterwards I was in love with Lacey Chabert because of this film

[@BlackEpyon]

@@ShiroiTengu She was very much the "your friend's hot older sister" when I was a kid.

[@737215]

Let me tell you, to a boy at that time 1. The Robot 2. Matt Leblanc's Helmet 3. Matt Leblanc's Gun 4. Lacey Chabert ... We were having a great time at the movies!

[@nattojelly8349]

I was obsessed with this movie. It also made me fell in love with Gary Oldman and I had an enormous crush on Matt Leblanc. Ah, precious childhood memories.

[@davidknight2104]

Lost in space was ahead of its time the graphics were really good for the time, I've seen the film loads and really enjoy it 🙂

[@Crispy_Bee]

Holy crap, that was Jared Harris?!?!?!?!?! The actor form "The Terror". Oh. My. God.

[@s1ddo]

@@trevorml1362 I only just found this out, a crime against cinema and the guy himself. Dickhead(s) who made that decision.

[@Yggdrasil42]

He’s awesome in The Expanse too

[@Dim4323]

Very underated actor

[@EScoglio]

I remember when I saw this in theaters, the audience cheered and applauded when the actors from the show appeared on screen and when the robot started talking.

[@southloopsox]

Damn, didn't know Bill Mumy could've played an older version of himself in the movie. How cool would that have been?

[@jamiebraswell5520]

He dodged a bullet.

[@jean-mi1825]

And I didn't knew he was in this show... for me he was Lenier in Babylon 5

[@Geezer-yf8hv]

He had said he WANTED the part, but they blew him off! It would have been one more reason to actually like this dumpster fire!

[@ManOutofTime913]

It's doubly stupid because he actually does look like an older version of Jack Johnson unlike Jared Harris who feels like a completely different character.

[@brigidmadden5577]

@@ManOutofTime913I guess Harris got cast as he looked like Professor Robinson so there’d be some ambiguity over if he’s a crazy version of Professor Robinson or someone else

[@Constantine_IA]

10:54 "Pennyvision" predicted social media stories

[@jamiebraswell5520]

And the childish "look at me, I need attention" generation that social media created.

[@Freakazoid12345]

I mean, people were doing this with video cameras, which was the inspiration, but sure, why not. I'm really splitting hairs and I'm not fun at parties.

[@BlackEpyon]

@@Freakazoid12345 In 1998? Sure, they could record videos with their camcorders, but digital video editing, much less uploading long-form videos to the internet was insanely expensive for at least another couple of years. I couldn't help but notice there was an advert playing onscreen in the Robinson's apartment for Intel Pentium XX processors, which went out of fashion more than a decade ago even on low-end systems as the Core2 series gave way to the Core-i series. Not to mention that SGI filed for bankruptcy in 2009 when low-cost, high-end consumer graphics cards had all but driven them entirely out of the market. They got bought out by HP.

[@skyseasun_333]

Unlike you, I loved this movie! I'm 59 and saw this with my wife and children. I thought the new Jupiter 2 was perfect and better than the original from the series. The entire cast was perfect. Oldman's portrayal of Smith was brilliant. I never felt like you did on any level... It was an awesome and underrated movie that deserves more. Thanks for you're very opinionated video.

[@BlackEpyon]

I was 11 when this came out, and watched the crap out of the VHS. Freaking loved it! Sure, the special effects date to when Silicon Graphics workstations were high-end expensive investments (and that Pentium XX ad playing on the TV in their apartment was a bit of wishful thinking), but on VHS most of it looked pretty good!

[@Captain-Palsy]

To much faith in digital effects, they didn't learn a thing.

[@craftpaint1644]

Dark City, perfect use of practical and CGI effects 😐

[@Captain-Palsy]

@Trump4Prison2021 whine much

[@SammEater]

Which is a damn shame because the pratical effects with the ship models and the Robot are pretty good, if they went all pratical with a few CGI shots to spice things up it would have been better.

[@craftpaint1644]

@Robert Koch! Science Fiction is like that, just watch the dumb things on screen.

[@michaelsimkins7078]

To and "Too" are NOT synonymous! Too much dependence and faith in digital effects! They didn't learn a damn thing.

[@professorkatze1123]

Heather Graham is so hot in this one

[@MasterJediDude]

She's even hotter in Boogie Nights as Rollergirl.

[@bernhardtsen74]

@@MasterJediDude her hotness is at her peak in... Diggstown!dang her angelic features shines through in that one!

[@bernhardtsen74]

@Threehundredpages Pages con man James Woods puts up fixed boxing matches!Diggstown is a decent movie!

[@bernhardtsen74]

@Threehundredpages Pages hahahaha!yeah!shes probably did 2-3 times more producers than boyfriends back in the day!

[@shainewhite2781]

19:39, the movie soundtrack is impressive and I was disappointed that the trailer music didn't make the cut of the movie. Oh, well.

[@tflyer90]

I saw this in the theaters when it came out, and I’ve owned it on vhs dvd and blu ray. This movie doesn’t get the appreciation it deserves, it’s a fun over the top campfest.

[@NativeTexMexican]

I was just watching this the other day... Great movie. 98 was a good year too.

[@FlyByNick]

The unknown alien ship looks straight out of Lifeforce. Now that would be a movie I'd pay to see...Lifeforce vs. Lost in Space. C'mon...get'r done!

[@adamgray1753]

Yeah really. That would of been an epic way of connecting the two movies. Which would of left the door wide open for multiple sequels too.

[@stewartmoore5158]

That score by Bruce Broughton deserves classic status. Orchestrations by Don Davis too, so it sounds like The Matrix in parts.

[@Chaoitcme]

I had such a huge crush on Lacey Charbert after watching this movie back when I was 14.

[@realar]

Same, I loved her voice.

[@willlauzon3744]

Yeah me too. She was a babe in Big Daddy.

[@willlauzon3744]

I meant daddy daycare

[@redguy2lads479]

@@willlauzon3744 LMAO

[@BlackEpyon]

I was 11 when this came out. She was very much the "your friend's hot older sister" back then.

[@MaximumMadnessStixon]

I was nine-going-on-ten when this came out. I remember seeing it in theaters twice. And honestly... this was a hell of a movie for a nine-year-old. I remember loving it (I guarantee I probably referred to it as "the bomb" for months after it came out), and I remember getting some of the tie-in toys and begging my mom to buy the VHS tape when it came out. Cut to over twenty years later. A movie-buff friend whose cutting down his physical media collection recently sold me about 100 movies on Blu-Ray, and _Lost in Space_ was among them. I ended up watching it last night for the first time in probably over fifteen years. It definitely wasn't good... but I'd be lying if I said it didn't supply enough nostalgic laughs and thrills to keep me entertained. For me, it was a (very) guilty pleasure. I don't think I'll be rewatching it too often... but I could see myself popping it on every couple years to relive some childhood memories.

[@borusa32]

For me the biggest problem with this movie was its reliance on time travel and paradox which is virtually guaranteed to make any plot indecipherable.

[@BlackEpyon]

Meh. I was 11 at the time, I was just inspired by Will being around the same age as me! I freaking loved this movie as a kid!

[@danielwilliamson6180]

Great movie. I loved it as a teenager. I had it on VHS, but I never bought it on DVD. Gary Oldman steals the show and an awesome end credits theme by Apollo Four Forty.

[@Bloodynine606]

Jared Harris is an insanely good actor, did not remember that he was in this.

[@BRIANOCONNOR2003]

I didn't know he was also on Resident evil apocalypse He plays Dr Ashford in the movie

[@vcdonovan5943]

Am I the only one who thinks LaBlanc missed his calling? Dude made for a *MUCH* better action hero than he ever did a tv comedian.

[@stephenharris5532]

When I saw this in the theater I was thoroughly impressed with "joey" as an action hero. He was right up there with Brendan Frasier. Almost.

[@vcdonovan5943]

@@stephenharris5532 Oh good, so it's not just me then :) Granted, me saying this doesn't really do him much credit as I think he's a pretty poor and obnoxious comedian. But from what we see in LIS I would have really like to have seen more of it from him. And yeah, Brendan Frasier is a good example. I absolutely LOVE the character of Rick O'Connell and Frasier pulled it off BRILLIANTLY. The Mummy is one of my all time favorites.

[@alanpennie8013]

@@stephenharris5532 I found him almost unwatchable. He was impressively creepy. I'll give him that.

[@TransAth]

He's playing a character in LIS that Joey is spoofing

[@BazTheStoryteller]

RIP William Hurt "I love you, wife."

[@andersonsimmons2398]

JOEY! NOT "JERRY"! No way was that just because of an accent. Lol, anyway, I kinda liked the movie. Nothing to watch over and over but not terrible. Good review. Thumbs up.

[@tbga1970]

I relistened, and it's Joey, just a bit of an accent makes is loose.

[@saxbend]

He definitely didn't say Jerry. Oliver is from the South of England and is middle class. He therefore does not have an accent. This is just how things sound when pronounced properly.

[@woodrowjang]

Penny was my first movie crush

[@user-xc7uo6md3n]

I love all the effort and information you provide, I learn alot from your videos. I especially love when you discuss deleted/lost scenes. Thanks for all the hard work 😄

[@YTPremiumWatch]

Brilliant, as always. Oliver you’re unparalleled in Retrospectives and you’re only going from strength to strength. Been watching for years, to learn, to relax, and even to get to sleep sometimes - a new Oliver Harper is a genuine day-maker. Brotherhood of the Wolf (2004), Evolution (2003) and The Time Machine (2002) are reccos from me if you’re taking them! Gonna get cosy with some food and a blanket and really settle into my Sunday with this. Thank you so much, and keep up the excellent work!

[@ThatSockmonkey]

He's on my soothing voices to sleep to list as well.

[@CybershamanX]

Actually, (pushes glasses up nose) the original LiS was pretty serious. In fact, Dr.Smith was quite evil. It wasn't until later that it got REALLY campy. I like how Harris secretly started to camp up his character's dialog with the Robot. Harris telling the story of how the head guy found out, and then told him to keep doing what he was doing, is hilarious. EDIT (22:02) Read the part at the top of the second column that begins "You have to remember that the television show changed over time..." ;)

[@George_M_]

I enjoyed it, saw it repeatedly. Just kind of nonsensical at times. Way better than the terribly scripted and plotted netflix show.

[@thefonzkiss]

The new series was garbage.

[@geminijinxies7258]

I enjoyed it as well and prefer it to most Star Wars movies made after the OG trilogy because they just recycle the same things over and over..

[@Michael_ORourke]

@@geminijinxies7258 Will from the Lost in Space movie was so much better than Anakin from Episode I

[@davidknight2104]

100% the TV show was very disappointing I honestly think that the lost in space fans prefer the film

[@whitleybayman123]

Thank Oliver, great retro and I really always had a soft spot for this movie, still have. I didnt know that those original cast actors had a cameo.

[@OliverHarper]

Thanks, Eddy!

[@paul8926]

Wonderful retrospective! 👍 What I remember the most about “Lost in Space” is that it was the first DVD I purchased as to which I’ve never seen before.

[@OliverHarper]

Yeah many of friends picked up Lost in Space as their first DVD when the format was in its early years.

[@lensflare8488]

Yeah, I remember I used one in a fight, when dvds were new and it was just a little sharp object with Lost In Space written on it. A famous first for me

[@shainewhite2781]

12:24, love Dick Tufeld, as he voiced the crazy drill instructor in an episode of The Simpsons where Homer becomes a bodyguard.

[@whoknew2273]

Only realized Jared Harris was dubbed until now what a missed opportunity

[@leonnobles545]

The movie is actually very good, especially hyper space.

[@zerazara]

Matt Lee Blanc is playing Joey in friends, as an actor in a Sci Fi movie called "Lost in Space"

[@stochinblockin]

A friend and I went to see this in theaters. As the credits rolled, I came out underwhelmed and my friend came out of a nap.

[@Ltulrich]

Watched this with my first girlfriend in the last drive-in theatre in the state a few months before it closed forever. It's pretty special to me.

[@ianyboo]

This is easily in my top 25 favorite sci-fi movies of all time. So awesome to see it looked at in depth!

[@commanderpower79]

I swear every single review you do is fantastic!

[@chrisheimva4857]

I'm just realizing both this and Godzilla (1998) were released just around a month apart from each other. Both were hyped-up beyond imagination by the advertisements but failed to live up to expectations and thus were pretty much forgotten about within a few weeks. I never hated LOS but despite some nice visuals and Gary Oldman's performance, the whole thing just comes off so flat and lifeless. It was like three movies stitched together into one and sadly each is worse than the last.

[@backeastvan]

In an alternative timeline this is the acclaimed thriller that lead to a promising action career for that guy from Friends, and a starring role in the Marvel cinematic universe.

[@cornerofthemoon]

Lost in Space was typical of many Akiva Goldsman scripts. It couldn't decide if it wanted to be campy or serious. Usually the shoehorned attempts at humor caused more eye rolling than laughs.

[@RM2011ish]

Don't care what the world says. I always loved this movie. It was entertaining and I always loved its cinematography/visuals. Plus, the movie did Bullet Time BEFORE The Matrix. I loved a lot of the effects/action sequences. I also enjoyed Oldman as Smith.

[@MilesJKlipper]

Great work on this retrospective and review Oliver, I have waiting for this. I watched this in the theatre as well and LOVED as a kid, Recently got it for $5 and agree with all of what you say but I gotta say it is a guilty pleasure of mine.

[@Polymathically]

I saw this in the theater. I remember being underwhelmed at the time, but couldn't understand why. In retrospect, it's pretty obvious. Thanks for covering it!

[@shaha9]

His voice is so soothing. I would be freaking out if I knew I may never see another Playstation update.

[@mutantx2372]

I like this movie despite it’s flaws . Also . I love the remix of the theme song .

[@shootingreal5945]

Agree

[@oobrocks]

I wonder if modern actors have a clause "no dubbing of my voice w out permission?"

[@shainewhite2781]

10:35, she was originally considered for Ellie Satler in Jurassic Park.

[@BRIANOCONNOR2003]

Who Heather Graham?

[@sebswede9005]

I still like it, even with all it's flaws, it has a certain charm about it.

[@aslan9334]

I know even if now i know is different from the tv show i still ❤ it!😄

[@marchofthelorex238]

I watched this as a youngster and loved this movie. Old fans should free their minds instead of being stuck in the past.

[@aslan9334]

What do you mean

[@alanpennie8013]

@@aslan9334 That we should turn off our brains when we watch films probably. I wish I'd been able to turn off my ears so I couldn't hear the dialogue.

[@jeffturnbull9661]

​@alanpennie8013 apparently we should have turned off any sense of story telling, intelligent science fiction or drama as well, not to mention design, the movie failed in all these aspects, mostly, it had moments that worked but mostly it was laughable, edging toward painful, as I sat watching I found myself wishing for the experience to be over, it felt as though it had been written for an audience of 8 year olds, slow 8 year olds at that, just embarrassing and sad considering the potential talent involved

[@powerbomb4833]

I wish Matt LeBlanc's character wore that awesome protective helmet more throughout the movie, which would have made it more appealing to the younger audience. Can't believe they had him wore that just once...

[@JediJunkie247]

This is a guilty pleasure. Is it perfect? No. The effects haven't aged well. But I still love it.

[@GringoXalapeno]

The practical effects have aged well but most of the cgi hasn’t

[@ManOutofTime913]

The CGI-exclusive effects like Spider Smith and the monkey haven't aged well. Everything else looks great. This film is from the best era of special effects and it shows.

[@BlackEpyon]

@@ManOutofTime913 Hey, when you were watching it on VHS, you didn't notice! Compared to what computer game graphics were at the time, the effects in the movie were pretty good!

[@ManOutofTime913]

@@BlackEpyon But nobody's watching it on VHS anymore, so they don't hold up. And compared to other films of the era the effects look a lot worse. Maybe if they'd used practical puppetry and enhanced it with CG, as they did with the model spaceships, they would still look good today, but they didn't do that. Or rather, they did and then replaced it with underbaked CG effects after the fact.

[@BlackEpyon]

@@ManOutofTime913 I usually watch it on DVD these days.

[@johnellizz]

The TV show didn't start out as a silly comedy. It began with great special effects and a serious tone. I don't know about the UK but in America TV shows are a 'bait & switch' product...they begin with a good budget and good writing and then the networks gradually remove the budget and the quality de-evolves. They rely on the audience's familiarity with the characters to keep them tuning in. In the case of "Lost In Space" it de-evolved into a comedy show about Dr. Smith since that was a low-budget approach that still entertained the kids.

[@evertonporter7887]

I very much prefer the black and white episodes now. Why didn't they stick with this more serious tone in later seasons.

[@johnellizz]

@@evertonporter7887 Yeah me, too. The show had a big budget and was doing impressive things...but as always happens they immediately begin reducing the budget after showing the high-end version of the show. The fans get used to tuning in and never realize how much less is being spent on the production since they have developed an enthusiasm for the show and it's characters. They will keep watching and don't notice that the money isn't being spent anymore to make the great show they first started watching. They had a talented comedic actor playing Dr. Smith and they basically gave him the show. Just have Dr. Smith entertain the audience with his comedic schtick while using cardboard backgrounds and cheap monster suits. It literally got so bad that the show looked like some kind of cheap school stage play with horribly fake backgrounds. All the other actors were virtually ignored and just used as straight men for Dr. Smith. I was watching "The Six Million Dollar Man" last fall on DVD and I noticed the same thing...At first the show is expensive and he goes on exotic James Bond-style adventures with clever writing and cutting-edge scientific concepts... But after a few seasons they have no budget and he's going undercover as a construction worker, lumberjack or a school counselor - things that can be filmed with no budget. What a waste of a six million dollar spy!

[@mikevalenzuela3974]

Jared Harris is amazing in THE TERROR

[@jimd385]

He’s good in everything, from The Expanse, Fringe, Mad Men, and Sherlock Holmes to Chernobyl.

[@bl687]

Watch Chernobyl at your earliest convenience. :-)

[@Mick-hp4yg]

I vaguely remember watching this when I was a kid, but I don't remember much. A lot of those shots look reeeeally good for 1998 😮

[@GreekDoctorWho]

I remember my mum telling me she watched the show when she was younger, so when lockdown came we bought the box set and binged the whole thing. I was surprised it wasn’t completely crap! The banter between the robot and Dr Smith was the best part of the show. Reminded me a lot of 60’s Who but campier. The movie on the other hand, was such a drag! Didn’t need to be two and half hours long (can’t remember if it was, but it sure felt like it)

[@Knightfall182]

Mimi Rogers and Heather Graham.... daaaayaam 😎 Russ Meyer casting director

[@RiderRated18]

I’ve still never watched Lost In Space. At the time I don’t remember hearing one positive thing about this movie so I just forgot about it. Seeing you’re retrospective has definitely intrigued me Oliver, I’ve seen that there is a DTS laserdisc for this along with another release that’s quite good... so I might try and seek them out now. Another great and well put together video as always mate, keep up the great work man 👍

[@owie4070]

Always good to see a new review from Oliver. Greetings from Jamaica.

[@kevinwestrom4775]

The director really messed up in not using the original actor Bill Mumy for the Will character as the older version of him in the movie...

[@BRIANOCONNOR2003]

And had Dr Ashford instead

[@Omar-wq9dz]

Excellent. Another one of your Retrospective/Review videos. Hey Oliver, just out of curiosity, would you consider doing Retrospective/Review on much older films, say from Classic Hollywood, for example Christmas is coming up, so maybe a video on It’s A Wonderful Life or something like that?

[@arthurballs7083]

Don't recall if I ever watched this but it did have a catchy theme tune we listened to for years after.

[@Harri927]

To be honest Predator 2 is Stephen Hopkin's best movie in my opinion.

[@jimd385]

Agreed, Judgement Night was good too. I think Hopkins also did the first series of 24.

[@shadowleon659]

@@jimd385 The Ghost and The Darkness was also good.

[@jimd385]

@@shadowleon659 one of my favourite 90’s movies, Awesome cinematography, Kilmer and Douglas are excellent, and Jerry Goldsmiths score, I’ve got that on disc.

[@Geronimo_Jehoshaphat]

Judgement Night and Ghost In The Darkness.

[@artboymoy]

I enjoyed this film back in the day. Had the soundtrack and have the Apollo 440 on my phone. The Netflix series is pretty good too. To disagree with you I don't feel that Star Trek 2009 was a good compromise for old and new fans. I do feel that Star Trek Beyond does a better job of that but sadly that film didn't do well.

[@IainMitchell]

I worked on the film as 1st assistant Avid Editor

[@davidjames579]

Was it a rushed schedule?

[@1300l]

Funny ppl say the 60s series was campy as it's a bad thing... yet the good reboot movies from the 90s were the ones that kept some campy to it. Also, the 60s show was about the characters, this movie just is about nothing. Paper thin plot and no really dev for the characters.

[@nicholas_scott]

This is a guilty pleasure. Its one of the first DVDs I bought for my home theater. The soundtrack is superb. The f/x is also spectacular, and ages well. The actors were all good choices, and I have no complaints about the acting. But the dialogue. cringy. very, very cringy. I know the original show was campy, but thats a lazy excuse. They simply put all the effort into special effects, audio, big name actors.... and just failed with the script.

[@OliverHarper]

I had the film on LaserDisc for years, then got the Bluray recently for this review, I wasn't too impressed with the surround sound mix. The mixing on the audio is weird, lots of ADR and the levels are all over the place, I thought there was something wrong with my AV Receiver then watched another film afterwards and it was fine. I don't recall the old LD Dolby Digital track having balancing issues. Akiva Goldmans in the commentary is pretty honest about its failings and his attempts to put too much into the story.

[@theflickgeek2089]

@@OliverHarper You should've kept that LD. Dolby Digital mixes on LD were always better. None of this near field mixing BS.

[@acidarrow]

it's cool this movie launched Matt LeBlanc on a long and illustrious Hollywood career.

[@mikeyp2277]

Always look forward to these retrospectives. Quality content.

[@Dohsoda]

The best 90's adaptations of 60's shows were The Addams Family 1&2 and Mission: Impossible.

[@CaminoAir]

Jerry Goldsmith was originally due to score this movie. As often in the 1990's, scheduling conflicts meant he couldn't. The same thing happened with 'Tombstone', with Goldsmith recommending Bruce Broughton as a replacement.

[@alexduran1967]

Back then I thought Matt LeBlanc was the coolest part of the film. Like Will Smith could have seen him doing more action roles if this had been better received.

[@runevi]

Akiva's career is exhibit A that you can fail upwards in Hollywood like a champ!

[@Michael_ORourke]

All the movies he worked on made money (no matter how bad some where *cough* Batman & Robin). That's why he kept getting hired.

[@wstine79]

This was a fun little sci-fi film. The Robot attacking the ship, the spider attack, and spaceship miniatures were great. Of the cast, Gary Oldman was the standout. The rest were ok. It was nice to see the original cast in cameo, especially the original robot voice.

[@CybershamanX]

Couldn't agree more. I couldn't stand the Netflix series, but I really liked what they were trying to do with this movie.

[@shootingreal5945]

I am going to be honest, I loved this movie and I loved the original series..I know many ppl don't and that's fine but I like the tighter story with the stakes being humanity being wiped out and a time limit to get the job done..Gary oldmen was a great Smith..great tension between a scientist father and a battle harden soldier..also loved the jazzed up tempo reworked lost in space theme. And finally, this movie has a very Fantastic four family feel to it and no one can tell me there isn't a Reed Richards Dr Doom feel between John and Smith esp in the last act of the movie.

[@David-kg5nn]

I enjoyed this movie as a teen. Cast was good (Gary Oldman as Dr. Smith, Matt Leblanc as futuristic and capable Joey, come on!). The one thing that always stuck with me was the reason for needing to leave Earth, "the recycling technologies came too late." For '98 I thought it was the extremely rare movie to call out our situation for what it really was.

[@RawbeardX]

it's not quite Dune mini series, but you can REALLY tell when William Hurt does not give a single fuck. his "acting auto pilot" is so flat, it is kind of amazing.

[@alanpennie8013]

This is the kind of film where "phoning it in" is the only thing to do. I imagine he was counting the hours until he could leave the set and never see LeBlanc again.

[@anthonymaslow798]

You should do a retrospective on Robots, with Robin Williams. That movie had an incredible aesthetic.

[@SuperWolsey]

Re: Lex Lang- he's most noted for his VA role for Power Rangers In Space as the voice of Ecliptor around the time of LOS '98

[@BRIANOCONNOR2003]

He was a voice actor for crash bandicoot

[@jeffreyfuka2594]

I literally grew up with the original TV series, I was the same age as Billy Mumy. I still love the old camp , as well as new tech films.

[@eon001]

I would call this movie a guilty pleasure, but I don't feel guilty at all. I enjoyed it then and I still enjoyed it recently. Wouldn't even mind a sequel.

[@LarryLeeMoniz]

Fantastic Retrospective! You never disappoint Oliver.