{"id":31942,"date":"2025-09-03T16:34:38","date_gmt":"2025-09-03T23:34:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=31942"},"modified":"2025-09-03T16:34:38","modified_gmt":"2025-09-03T23:34:38","slug":"blasts-from-the-past-4k-ultra-hd-review-lost-in-space-1998","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=31942","title":{"rendered":"Blasts from the Past! 4K Ultra HD Review: LOST IN SPACE (1998)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This \u201cLimited Edition\u201d 4K Ultra HD release from Arrow\nVideo is now available for purchase.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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As we all know, many of the hit studio pictures of the 1980s\nand early 1990s were action and\/or adventure films with massive budgets. By the\nmid-90s, disaster movies and science-fiction tales were also making a comeback\nwith titles like Independence Day<\/em> (1996), The Fifth Element<\/em>\n(1997), Men in Black<\/em> (1997), as well as the big-budget feature Starship\nTroopers<\/em> (1997), which initially underperformed at the box office but\nbecame a massive cult hit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just about every studio wanted in on the action, including\nNew Line Cinema, a smaller studio who had recently been absorbed into Time\nWarner Entertainment. They attempted to make inroads into blockbuster territory\nand gave it their best shot with the science-fiction epic, Lost in Space<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This picture was based on the popular 1960s TV series that\nwas created with a Swiss Family Robinson<\/em>-in-space storyline. With a huge\ncast and significant budget, the movie was poised for success, but didn\u2019t quite\nland during its original release. Reviews were middling and audiences didn\u2019t\nturn up in numbers large enough to warrant a sequel. However, the movie made a\nbig impression on DVD and Blu-ray, building a bigger and bigger following as\nthe years went by.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, Arrow Video is presenting a 4K Ultra HD \u201cLimited\nEdition\u201d of the popular title, which boasts significantly improved picture\nquality and a treasure trove of bonuses both new and old. The original camera\nnegative was scanned at Warner Bros. Motion Picture Imaging in 4K and is\npresented in Dolby Vision, and approved by director Stephen Hopkins. This\nimpressive edition will definitely please anyone who enjoys the movie and it\nmay even win over a few more converts who missed the feature some 27 years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The year is 2058, and pollution and the destruction of the\nozone layer are about to make the Earth completely uninhabitable. After the\ndiscovery of a planet that may be similar to our own, workaholic professor John\nRobinson (William Hurt) agrees to a space mission to visit the site and set up\na \u201cHypergate\u201d so others from home can quickly travel there. His conditions for\ngoing are that his family must accompany him, so his wife, Professor Maureen\nRobinson (Mimi Rogers), daughter Doctor Judy Robinson (Heather Graham), teen\nPenny (Lacey Chabert) and boy Will (Jack Johnson) are roped into the adventure.\nPiloting is Major Don West (Matt LeBlanc), a last-minute replacement after an\noriginal crew member is murdered by a Global Sedition force. This group doesn\u2019t\nwant the mission to succeed and enlist Robinson family physician Dr. Zachary\nSmith (Gary Oldman) to sabotage the ship. His attempts are thwarted, but all\nare sent through the Hypergate into uncharted territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is a lot going on in this film, so much that it is a\nlittle crowded. All of the characters have their own storylines, but a few end\nup being resolved too quickly. An extra 10 or 15 minutes might have helped\nclarify a couple of elements and helped give viewers a breath here and there,\nbut it\u2019s unlikely that this type of movie would have been permitted to be that\nlong in this era. There are a few CGI effects that don\u2019t hold up particularly\nwell, but other fantastic moments still look quite impressive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Overall, the movie is visually striking. The production\ndesign and sets are enormous and, at times, jawdropping. Will\u2019s companion,\nRobot (voiced by Dick Tufeld, who also did the original\u2019s show\u2019s character), is\na practical creation that looks and sounds incredible. There is plenty of\nimpressive action as the characters find an abandoned spaceship and\ninvestigate, as well as a unique time-travel element that is introduced late in\nthe feature. For this reviewer, the spider attack from the middle section is the\nmost exciting sequence in the film and makes a lasting mark on the viewer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the best things the film has going for it is its\ncast. The family are all distinctive, with Hurt providing more dramatic\ngravitas than this type of film would normally possess. The kids are well\ndeveloped, much stronger in this title than others of its ilk. LeBlanc gets in\nsome amusing moments as the overly confident pilot who is consistently rebuffed\nby Graham\u2019s Judy Robinson. And, of course, Gary Oldman steals the show as the\ngleefully sinister Zachary Smith, constantly attempting to manipulate events to\nhis own advantage and maximizing every moment he\u2019s onscreen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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It should also be noted that the score is enjoyably\nbombastic. It appropriately captures the big sweep of the story with memorable\nmelodies that were much stronger than I had remembered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Admittedly, it’s not a perfect film, but it is a fun one. In\nfact, it\u2019s a little surprising that the end results didn\u2019t resonate with the\npublic as strongly as one might  expect. Perhaps it was due to the\nproperty itself. While the original TV-series was beloved by those who saw it\nback in the 1960s, the brand recognition probably wasn\u2019t as strong as many\nbelieved it to be. Whatever the case, no sequels were produced. However, the\nDVD and Blu-ray of the film were huge sellers and over the years many did catch\nup with the title and come to appreciate it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This 4K Ultra HD release looks much sharper than those\nprevious editions, with a very clean and sharp picture. It certainly highlights\nhow amazing the sets, costumes and the Robot look, even if it also points out a\nflaw or two in other visuals (the CGI Blarp creature being a primary example).\nYou\u2019ll certainly get a bigger sense of scope and the film\u2019s epic storytelling\nwith the upgraded picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And the bonuses are absolutely fantastic. Seemingly, all of\nthe archival extras have been included, like a commentary with director Stephen\nHopkins and screenwriter Akiva Goldsman, as well as a secondary track with crew\nmembers (including the visual effects supervisors, director of photography,\neditor, and producer. Both are really informative, going into great detail\nabout the problems they face making the picture and how they overcame various\nobstacles that one might not have initially thought of. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Apparently, the Robot was a major challenge. It was real and\nweighed more than a ton. Naturally, the crew had to figure out how to make it\nmove around. The creation was very dangerous to be in close proximity to,\nespecially if it fell over. With robotic elements, digital effects, and\ncostumes featuring lights, every time one aspect went sideways, everyone would\nhave to sit and wait for things to be corrected. And this caused mounting\ndelays and expenses. These are fascinating tracks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Director Hopkins also notes his frustration at losing a\nsubplot in the final act involving Judy, Penny and Maureen due to time and\nbudget constraints that were eventually imposed on the production. But the\narchival extras also include deleted scenes that reveal some of the lost\nplotline. While Will, John and Zachary Smith end up in one future, the female\nfamily members enter a second time zone. It would have been nice to see all\nthis in the final film, and Hopkins shares that disappointment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The great archival features also include bloopers, a special\neffects featurette, a look at this film\u2019s vision of the future, a Q&A with\nthe cast of the original TV series (several of whom have cameos in the movie)\nand more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If that wasn\u2019t enough, this disc contains new interviews\nwith crew members. Stephen Hopkins recalls shooting the movie, sharing some of\nhis minor quibbles with the end result (he also believes it\u2019s overstuffed), but\nalso noting how much fan mail he continues to receive for it. He has realized\nthat kids really love the picture, and notes that it feels good that they\nconnected to the story, and that children related strongly to the younger\ncharacters in the movie. In particular, he mentions young Will\u2019s issues with\nhis father. Hopkins was also in the middle of raising his own daughter at the\ntime, who would be annoyed that he worked so much away from home.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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There is an insightful talk with writer Akiva Goldsman (A\nBeautiful Mind, Cinderella Man<\/em>), who remembers this picture being\npersonally important to him. He had once mentioned to a producer how much he\nadored the original series as a kid. When the rights unexpectedly fell to the\nsame individual, Goldsman was offered the screenwriting job. The scribe\nmentions that the film was broken into three segments\u2026 an introduction to the\ncharacters, followed by an episode featuring the family finding a spaceship,\nand then another with them landing on an alien planet (these were the two kinds\nof tales that the TV show usually featured). He goes on to agree that maybe\nthere was too much going on. He also notes problems with the CGI Blarp\ncharacter and why that minor element didn\u2019t work as well as hoped for. But\noverall, he was pleased with the end result. He also describes the story for\nthe planned sequel that didn\u2019t materialize.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Director of photography Peter Levy talks about his\nfriendship with Hopkins, in addition to shooting the movie and what a challenge\nit was, although he does mention that he still had a great time working on it.\nHe talks about unusual lighting challenges, like at one point making the nearby\nsun blast through the enormous ship\u2019s bridge. Levy also speaks about other\npictures he worked on, including many of Hopkins\u2019 titles, as well as others\nincluding Cutthroat Island<\/em> and Broken Arrow<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Art director Keith Pain is another great interview subject,\nas he discusses the difficulties in making visually original and distinctive\nsets for a movie set in space. One of the funny discoveries he made was in\ncreating a walking platform for the mystery ship that the characters move\nacross. He found that the bottom of plastic storage pallets at the studio had\nan interesting look. So, he took them, flipped them over and spray-painted them\ngray to get the walkway\u2019s stylish look. Pain discusses the sets in great detail\nand offers wonderful tales about overcoming various obstacles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is also a good, recently recorded interview with the\nsound mixer and the re-recording mixer, who tell the tricks they used to try\nand create mood and atmosphere in the sound design.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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And there is also a visual essay with a critic and\nenthusiast of the movie. The individual offers his personal opinions on why the\nfilm is effective, and makes some good arguments. He does spend a lot of time\ndefending the visual effects, saying that this element shouldn\u2019t be criticized.\nWhile there is some truth to the charge that films are a product of their era,\nit is amusing when the filmmakers and screenwriter themselves take issue with\nthe CGI Blarp and note that it disappointed them at the time of the film\u2019s\noriginal release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, the release comes with a reversible sleeve\ncontaining new and original art for the film, as well as a booklet with new\nwriting on the movie, articles from American Cinematographer on the imagery,\nand production notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lost in Space<\/em> is a fun picture with plenty of popcorn\nthrills and a few effective dramatic moments as it deals with the family\ndynamic between the characters. It also includes a memorable villain who is\nendlessly entertaining to watch and it fits in nicely with sci-fi titles from\nthe era like Men in Black<\/em>. Arrow Video\u2019s 4K Ultra HD \u201cCollector\u2019s\nEdition\u201d of the movie offered vastly improved picture quality, a ton of\ninformative archival extras, and wonderful new discussions with production team\nmembers. They all relay informed and fascinating analysis of the movie and its\nplace in cinema history. This highly enjoyable release is highly recommended.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This \u201cLimited Edition\u201d 4K Ultra HD release from Arrow Video is now available for purchase. As we all know, many of the hit studio pictures of the 1980s and early 1990s were action and\/or adventure films with massive budgets. By the mid-90s, disaster movies and science-fiction tales were also making a comeback with titles like […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":31954,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[134,697,1836,2933,2960,7283,8122,8997,12009,12639,12640,12641,12642,12643,12644,12645,13427,13993,14718,17776,18767,18784,19048,24315],"class_list":["post-31942","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dvdblu-ray-reviews","tag-134","tag-action","tag-arrow-video","tag-blasts-from-the-past-2","tag-blasts-from-the-past-review","tag-family","tag-gary-oldman","tag-heather-graham","tag-lacey-chabert","tag-lost-in-space","tag-lost-in-space-4k-review","tag-lost-in-space-4k-ultra-hd","tag-lost-in-space-4k-ultra-hd-disc-review","tag-lost-in-space-4k-ultra-hd-movie-review","tag-lost-in-space-4k-ultra-hd-review","tag-lost-in-space-review","tag-matt-leblanc","tag-mimi-rogers","tag-new-line-cinema","tag-science-fiction-2","tag-space","tag-spaceship","tag-stephen-hopkins","tag-william-hurt"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31942","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=31942"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31942\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=31942"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=31942"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=31942"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}