Stylish but barely mediocre overall

Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

Wow! What a bizarre film! Unfortunately the few funny moments there were were quite overshadowed by it's completely weird and random vibe throughout.

I saw this movie before reading any reviews, and I thought it was very funny. I was very surprised to see the overwhelmingly negative reviews this film received from critics.

Magnified stock footage of lizards fighting, a tall man in a rubber suit (where you can almost see the zipper), and a cute marmoset which ends up as an h'orderve for a mammal eating plant give this entertaining but overall silly variation of "Land of the Lost" a memorable camp quotient. Unfortunately filmed in black and white (much of it overly foggy and difficult to make out what's going on in the background), this adventure is perhaps not as well known as other similar time travel movies or films set in lost continents because it isn't as technically superb as the many others in that genre. As a film historian and fan of this genre, I was surprised that I had never even heard of this, but found it fun overall in spite of obvious flaws. If there is a world out there on our huge planet, I hope it is never discovered or revealed to the public if it has been. What we don't need is a real life Jurassic Park, as the last films of that modern series have proven.The story surrounds an expedition to the south pole where commander Jock Mahoney takes a helicopter filled with scientists and reporter Shirley Patterson and finds more than he bargained for. As we witness the cracks and crevices of the sharp snowy mountain ranges, it becomes obvious that the world beyond our reach is one not meant for human visitors, and neither is the way below sea level lost world they find themselves stranded in where the dense fog keeps out the Antarctic snow and has that world stuck in one long gone from the rest of our planet. Unable to see what's going on around her, Patterson is unaware of the vegetation branches nearly pulling her in to a fate worse than death itself, but is spared (for now) that agonizing ending. Only when they find the cute little monkey to be do they get to see the power of ancient nature, and it's very disturbing to watch this cuddly little creature pulled into the abyss of a painful ending.When the lizards first appear, I began to wonder if this was stock footage used in other similar films, and when the T-Rex comes on, I had to chuckle by its lack of realism. A swimming dinosaur with huge teeth is scared off by the sound of a mysterious horn, and when Patterson is suddenly abducted, it is apparent that they are not alone. She ends up in the cave dwelling of the stranded Henry Brandon whose haircut does not resemble anyone who has been out of society for 10 years. Obviously, he wants a mate, and the only way he will help the others out is if she stays behind. Among the other crew is William Reynolds who calls for help but isn't about to stick around to try to rescue Patterson from Brandon if he can get out alive. This leads to fights between members of the expedition over rescuing Patterson, as well as trying to get Patterson away from Brandon or later on, going out of their way to try to get him to come back to civilization with them.Suspenseful but not scary, this is a popcorn movie that might satisfy for one viewing but in comparison with others falls short of becoming a classic. It's obvious that this was rushed out for the teenage boy matinee crowd and possibly for drive-in showings, but doesn't really hold up 60 years later due to weak special effects, phony looking sets and the rubber dinosaur suits that expose their seams and don't even direct the person inside the suit to walk with commanding fear like a T-Rex would. I would say in spite of his modern hairstyle, Brandon comes off the best in the acting department, and in the conclusion, the theme of surviving without leaving carnage behind does have an impact on how the crew members and their leader deal with the cave-man like Brandon. It's also interesting to see how the dinosaur deals with the sharp pains it gets as it is sliced open by the revolving blades of the helicopter.

Virgil Vogel directed this science fiction yarn about a Naval expedition in the Antarctic(led by Jock Mahoney, William Reynolds, and Phil Harvey) along with a female reporter(played by Shirley Patterson) who land in a crater well below sea level that contains a prehistoric world containing dinosaurs(both on land and in the sea) as well as carnivorous plants and a deranged sole survivor(Dr. Hunter) of a previous expedition. Can they repair their helicopter in time to rendezvous with their ship, before they are stranded in this lethal land? Marginal film has good story but clichéd treatment and characters. Some model F/X are poor(the T-Rex) while others aren't bad at all(the sea dinosaur). Watchable as a rainy-day diversion, but little more, though is an understandable cult item.

I guess this is one of the classics because scenes from this movie often appears at other places especially the really cheezy looking T Rex.The plot is somewhat based on the alleged story admiral Byrd told of after his Operation High Jump, that he saw vegetation growing, and seen a wooly mammoth beyond the pole. Few men and a woman decides to travel the same route, and finds a land that time's forgotten.I'm sorry to say, but that's about all that's going for this movie. Far from the quality of Willis O'Brien's King Kong, this movie has no quality to it at all. The actors are crappy, chic is ugly, and story is dismal.Don't waste your time on this fail of the century. You can find better things to do.

Land Unknown is a 'Lost World' type movie, this one from the 1950s. It being a movie from the '50s, there are little scenes of scientific briefings at the beginning of the film, and even a little science film within the film. Trust the 1950s sci-fi movies to educate the viewer! As in any 'Lost World' movie, the big question is how will the explorers react when thrown into a primeval situation? Here we get a look at a very competent, post Korean War military style exploration. Several navy ships are dispatched on a routine expedition to the south pole. Three men and one woman fly around a mysterious warm zone when their cool-looking helicopter is forced to attempt a landing in bad weather. They land in deep fog. Not to worry. This group is well-trained, on-the-ball, and everyone does their duty. The woman, Maggie, is spunky, adventurous and likes hunky, competent and smart science type men. Every male in the movie looks at her wolfishly. She revels in it. The commander, as alpha male of the group, gets the woman. Period.The next morning, the fog lifts, and what an amazing setting! This is one great looking lost world. Very primeval. The setting rivals King Kong (1933). Awesome. The dinosaurs are not great, but they are not too bad, and they are all used to great effect. The pteronodon makes a good appearance, damaging the cool-looking helicopter and is later shown dead near the lake. The obligatory giant monitor lizard fight scene is horrific in its violence. The rope-plant nearly eats the woman, and does eat her cute little mammal pet. The T-rex is clumsy and silly looking, but it is used to good effect as a threat to the cool-looking helicopter. The elasmosaurus looks somewhat like a water park kiddie ride, but that's okay because the creature is used to great effect as it patrols the lake.The crew awaits rescue, but time is limited as the ships must depart before the ice pack freezes solid. Of course, one guy starts to crack. Not to worry. The alpha male commander sets him straight, and bucks up the woman when she starts to lose it. Clothes are soon in tattlers as the days tick off. Things get really interesting when the crew meets up with a lone survivor of an expedition 10 years ago. This guy, Hunter, is nearly insane, but has somehow learned to survive the dinosaurs and the long nights. He is able to disperse the dinosaurs by blowing a conch-shell trumpet (don't ask why, it makes no sense). Having nearly lost all humanity, he takes whatever he wants, raiding the food supplies and kidnapping Maggie! He has a spare part that will fix the cool-looking helicopter, which he will trade for the woman. It is one life for three.What will the commander do? Forbid any such exchange of course. What will Maggie do? Of course she will do her duty and sneak off and get with Hunter to save the others. The crew attempts to rescue her, and in the scuffle, Hunter is knocked unconscious. One of the crew, (the guy who is cracking) is out of his mind and prepares to torture and kill the helpless Hunter for information about the spare part. The commander then whips out his standard-issue military .45 pistol and makes the defining statement of how this expedition will handle contact with the primeval, 'We are not going to dig our way out of here through human flesh. Not Maggie's, Hunter's, not even yours.' Great stuff! With the spare part in place, the cool-looking helicopter is ready for takeoff. Look out! Here comes T-rex (whoops, he's too slow). Now it's the scene we've all been waiting for - elasmosaurus versus cool-looking helicopter. A flare gun round to the mouth takes care of the elasmosaurus, everyone is rescued, including the survivor guy. Reunited and back in civilization, what will the commander and the woman do? Exactly what they must do, in a 1950s sci-fi movie.Land Unknown tells a good story, does not lag, has excellent lost-world moments, and features good acting all around (the survivor guy really fits the part). This is a must see for fans of the genre. Excellent movie.