An absolute waste of money

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

A previous reviewer compared The Fantastic Journey to shows like Stargate SG-1 and Sliders. He listed 8 similarities between the shows. He should have listed a 9th. Which show, you ask? What about Lost? You have a doctor, (Fred in TFJ, Jack in Lost), a psychic, (Liana in TFJ, Desmond in Lost,) a man of faith, (Varian in TFJ, and Locke, in Lost,) see the similarities? If you don't, I do. In TFJ, you have a scientific expedition lost in the Bermuda Triangle. In Lost, you have 48 survivors from a plane crash on an island somewhere in the South Pacific. In TFJ, our little group of travelers is trying to get back to their times. In Lost, that's not so clear. Jack wants to go home in the first three seasons. Locke doesn't. When you consider the similarities between the two shows, you can't help but recognize the fact that this '70s show was an influence on Lost. J.J. Abrams and Co., say that the game Myst, was one of the influences. Did I leave someone out? I did? Well, my bad. You also have another man of science, in Jonathan Willaway. Did I leave anyone else out? I don't think so. If I did, too late to change it now.

'The Fantastic Journey' was one of several '70's American sci-fi shows that, although not particularly successful in its home country, proved enormously popular abroad, particularly in Britain. Others included 'Planet Of The Apes', 'Logan's Run', 'The Invisible Man' and 'Gemini Man'. They were slickly produced, boasting better special effects ( and lots of flashing lights! ) than our shows. Created by Bruce Lansbury, 'Journey' was based on a most captivating premise. A scientific expedition in the Atlantic Ocean headed by Dr.Paul Jordan ( Scott Thomas ) becomes lost in the legendary Bermuda Triangle, and washes up on an uncharted island. Here past, present and future co-exist, separated by invisible barriers. Most of the group mysteriously disappeared after the pilot episode, leaving trainee doctor Fred Walters ( Carl Franklin ) and Paul's genius son Scott ( Ike Eisenmann ) to team up with Varian ( Jared Martin ), a man from the 23rd century. He carried at all times a tuning fork-like device with a variety of functions. The first episode - 'Atlantium' - brought in the lovely Katie Saylor as Liana, half-human, half-alien, who had a telepathic bond with her cat Sil-L. 'Beyond The Mountain' saw the group completed with the arrival of 'Professor Jonathan Willaway' ( Roddy McDowall ) an eccentric scientist from the '60's, who put one in mind of Jonathan Harris's 'Dr.Zachary Smith' from 'Lost In Space'. Each week, the travellers entered a new zone, and sorted out a local difficulty before moving on, all the time searching for the doorway back to their own times, known as 'Evoland'. Script consultant D.C. Fontana was best known for her work on 'Star Trek'. Joan Collins, Ian McShane, Leif Erickson, Cheryl Ladd, John Saxon, Richard Jaeckel, and Nicholas Hammond all guested. The distinctive theme tune was by Robert Prince. Including the pilot, only ten instalments were made ( the 'Funhouse' episode was not screened by B.B.C. Wales as it was deemed too scary for a Sunday afternoon slot ). We never found out if the travellers made it home or not. Producer Leonard Katzman took the production team onto his next project - the television version of 'Logan's Run'. There were two screenings on the B.B.C. - one in 1977, the other a year later - and one on the 'Bravo' satellite channel in 1994.Hardly Hugo-award winning stuff perhaps, but 'Journey' was lively and entertaining and deserving of a much longer run. It is fondly remembered as a product of a television age when characters were more important than special effects.

This show has some striking similarities to other television shows, which did become successful series, Stargate SG-1 & Sliders. Moreover, the formats are quite similar as well: 1. The viewer "travels" with the hosts to different worlds.2. All involve scientific experiments which produce danger.3. Both Sliders and Fantastic Journey are about travel to parallel universes.4. All three involve different planets accessible only to a select team.5. Both Sliders and Fantastic Journey are about people trying to find their way home.6. Both Fantastic Journey & Stargate SG-1 have an alien in the cast.7. Both Fantastic Journey and Stargate SG-1 are scripted by Katharyn Powers.8. All three shows have a movie actor in the cast who played a supporting role in a big picture but was never an outright "star".So for those who would like to see Fantastic Journey on TV again, don't fret! Technically, it did come back, just in a different skin!

Fantastic Journey was an exceptional fantasy about a group of disparate characters who were trying to return to their own dimension after being lost in the Bermuda Triangle. They encountered a new dimension in nearly every episode. In one of the earliest episodes they picked up an ill-tempered scientist, wonderfully played by Roddy McDowell, who walked a line between villain and hero. School teachers and television critics hailed the show, and Roddy McDowell appeared on talk shows trying to get people interested, but the show was cancelled for poor ratings.