The Land That Time Forgot

The survivors of a doomed World War 1 ship manage to board and take over the German submarine which sunk them. After a lot of disputing, the sub becomes lost and before long the enigmatic island of Caprona is sighted. Due to desperately low supplies the two crews, who call an uneasy truce, are forced to land the sub and find themselves in a world where prehistoric animals still live.

This is a well-made and highly entertaining film. Doug McClure makes a good hero and the other characters are also interesting and believable, the story is well-paced and the music is suitably atmospheric. The special effects are not always as good as they might be (the giant pterodactyl and the plesiosaur that gets shot at look decidedly fake). But the film is a classic and I certainly found it a lot more memorable and enjoyable than any of the recent dinosaur films.

I saw this movie as a kid in the late 70s at the cinema and loved those dinosaurs. I have now watched the restored version (91 min. instead of 78 min.) on DVD and still love those dinosaurs. There are few movies that I still enjoy as much as I did a quarter of a century ago, so this obviously must have something `classic' about it, though it's hard to put the finger on it. Maybe it's just the naïve charm that was lost when computer FX spoiled fun to a certain degree in Jurassic Park and later on. No actor is a candidate for the Academy Award here, the monsters look about as deadly as your daughter's puppets, but nonetheless – more sense of wonder in the forgotten land of Caprona than anywhere else.

When I was a young boy of eight years old I saw this at my my local cinema . In those days it cost 15 pence ( A fair amount of money for an eight year old child ) to get in . I actually saw it two or three times which eat up my pocket money bit I certainly thought it was money well spent since in those days I enjoyed war films and monster films . Yesterday morning Channel 4 broadcast it at 6 am which seems a ridiculous time to broadcast anything never mind a fondly remembered fantasy adventure movie but I looked forward to seeing it again if only to see how well it stands up as entertainment today . Would my cherished memories be hurt ? Do I have nice memories about THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT simply down to nostalgia ?

To be honest I think the answer is a resounding no . Right from the opening title sequence where Douglas Gamley's score sums up the downbeat feature of the story we the audience are treated to a fantasy adventure that is a little bit different . You could point out the first half of the movie is somewhat repetitive as the Germans and Brits get one over on one another but in amongst all this is some serious debate on wartime morality , allied civilian ships carrying weapons of war for example which shows no one has a monopoly on self righteousness when the battle lines are drawn and the theories of Nietzsche are also touched upon . What'd you mean this is a childish film ?

No doubt the people who watched this at the cinema on its release where more interested in prehistoric monsters than 19th century philosophy and it's not till half way through that the U-boat reaches the ancient island of Caprona which is inhabited by rubber dinosaurs and troglodytes . Yeah okay the monsters especially the pterodactyls are not very convincing but I've seen worse . It's also interesting to that this part of the movie replaces Nietzsche with Darwinisnm and I don't know if it's deliberate but this concept fits in perfectly well with the sequel THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT . How many times have you seen a sequel that almost contradicts the original movie ? This makes THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT something of a stand out movie alongside the very pessimistic final act

I fail to see how anyone can actively dislike this movie . I agree that the special effects are far from brilliant but look beyond the FX and you'll see a very intelligent piece of fantasy adventure . The very fact that it has a sense of wonder and a truly haunting ending sets it apart from many other movies of its ilk like WARLORDS OF ATLANTIS and AT THE EARTHS CORE and nostalgia or not I certainly enjoyed seeing it again

I first saw this film when I was a child, it had always stuck out in my mind and I was lucky enough to see it again recently.

Although the effects are not spectacular, they aren't terrible. In fact they are pretty good considering the era.

The characters are well written and likable, the dialogue is not over-complicated with technical terms but remains clever and enjoyable to follow.

A real empathy is established for the characters who find themselves in a seemingly fantastic but dangerous situation.

All in all I find the film enjoyable for anyone to watch and recommend it highly.

This has everything for a budding boy to enjoy. There's monsters, the struggle against evil, a submarine and the stunningly beautiful Susan Penhaligon. I was lucky enough to see this when it came out and it enthralled me. I still watch it on television when I can, with fond memories. It is not aging well. CFXs have left it looking quite poor in places. However, for a B-Movie it is very well done. The acting, storyline, direction and editing are all well controlled. I agree that a remake may be justified, as long as the inherent innocence of it all is not lost.

It is good family fun which will keep boys glued for an afternoon. And Susan is as beautiful as ever :-)