Lost Horizon (1973)** (out of 4)A plane full of people head off for Hong Kong but the plane is hijacked. They end up crash landing on a snowy mountain but soon a group of people come to their rescue. After a long walk through the mountains the people land in Shangri-La.This remake of Frank Capra's 1937 classic was released into theaters with an already negative buzz surrounding it. The film had an extremely large budget for the time and it was clear from early screenings that no one was going to like it. The movie was a disaster at the box office and it gained not only the reputation of one of the worst movies ever made but many people blame it for killing off the musical genre. How's that for a reputation? I should add that in a funny twist, it was one of the only major Hollywood movies that never even found a VHS release. While this isn't nearly the disaster it was made out to be, you still have to wonder what on Earth they were thinking.This movie was released during the disaster film era so you've gotta think that they could have cut out all the musical numbers and been left with something that could have at least been thrilling or entertaining. The movie could have been a straight remake with current special effects and an all-star cast and ended up much better. I actually thought the first portion of the movie was pretty good. We got a decent action sequence to get things going and for the most part I thought the cast were entertaining. The conversations and scenes on board the plane were at least entertaining. Once they get to Shangri-La things still weren't that bad. The locations and scenery were actually very good and the film at least looked terrific. The cinematography was also extremely good, which was another plus.With that said, nothing that happens in Shangri-La can be taken serious because of the awful and downright embarrassing songs from Burt Bacharach and Hal David. Roger Ebert even started off his review asking how much Ross Hunter had to pay them and added whatever it was it was too much. I'd certainly have to agree because these songs appear to be aimed at 5-year-old kids and even they would probably be bored by the length and subject of the movie. Clocking in just under 140-minutes, it's doubtful any kid would make it through this thing and for the adults watching you can't help but look at the screen wondering what they were thinking.LOST HORIZON will always been known for everything wrong with it but perhaps time has been a little friendly to it. It's certainly no where near the original but fans of "bad" movies or poorly received movies will want to check it out.

Do you ever get the feeling that some of the creators in Hollywood, when looking for a story to turn into a musical, are looking for a challenge? Or maybe their minds instantly turn to the most successful dramatic films? "Grand Hotel", for example. "Battle of the Bulge, the Musical" cannot be far behind."Lost Horizon" was ripe for the picking, I guess. And maybe someone saw a parallel with "The King and I" with its scenes of Asian courtly life? The result is an uneven musical. It has been noted that Bacharach and David were on the verge of breaking up their partnership when they wrote the score for "Lost Horizon". But we have to wonder if their pop sensibility was appropriate for this project.The cast is another issue, but the script does not make great demands on the actors, so perhaps the casting is not so important. Most surprising is Olivia Hussey ("Romeo and Juliet"), who can sing and dance. From today's perspective, it is rather fun to see who appears in this film. Sally Kellerman ("M.A.S.H."), George Kennedy ("Cool Hand Luke"), Peter Finch ("Two For the Road"), Michael York ("Logan's Run"), and Liv Ullman (?).The story is Jules Verne-ish--travelers discover a strange, isolated world that has mystical properties. Then a love story ensues: As the new arrivals to this world are walking up a flight of steps outside a huge lamasery, our protagonist looks up and sees a woman standing on a balcony about, oh, a quarter mile away. He is enthralled by her beauty, or at least what he can discern of it. She looks down at the large group ascending the stairs and sees one of the men stumble. He is embarrassed, but she chuckles and they instantly fall in love. We have all been there.Mix in some lengthy walks in treacherous Himalayan blizzards and some light-hearted tunes sung (and danced to) by Bobby Van, and you have "Lost Horizon", the film that wants to be everything to everybody but ends up being lost in its own murky vision.

...and somehow persuaded Bacharach and David to write songs for it, this is what would result. Of course, Ed Wood would never have the kind of budget to make this, nor his pick of prestige stars. Funny thing, when I saw this as a little kid I was actually impressed. I think the gorgeous footage shot in the Cascade range of the Pacific Northwest was a part of why, and the obvious care put into the building of sets. The production values are through the roof here. However, looking back on it, this deserves all of the brickbats it's gotten. John Gielgud in yellow-face. Sally Kellerman and Liv Ullman and Peter Finch trying to sing. Everyone trying to dance except for Bobby Van, who obviously is a hoofer. And Bobby Van lays on the corniness, almost making his dancing as cringe-inducing as the non-dancers trying to dance.This is most definitely a creature of its time as well. The cheesy New Age philosophy of the lyrics is cringe-worthy. And of course, the misunderstanding of Tibetan Buddhism that goes all the way back to James Hilton's original novel. Yes, it's directed like a '40s or '50s golden age musical, and movie musicals from the period like Godspell, Jesus Christ Superstar and The Wiz had more of a gritty texture from shooting on location instead of on a back lot with something other than big, lumbering 65mm cameras. And the costumes...dear goddess the costumes look like they came from Sears' Exotic Groovy India and China collection of 1971. Yes, it IS that bad. Producer Ross Hunter wound up never doing theatrical pictures again after Lost Horizon. He spent the rest of his career doing TV movies, exiled from the big screen. Making a flop-o-roony like this, which cost $12 Million in early '70s dollars to make and only took in $3 Million in early '70s dollars at the box office, was definitely enough to make no studio want to take a chance on future projects of his. It ranks with the legendary failures of Hollywood studio pictures...Heaven's Gate would come later, and would actually wind up being vindicated after the fact. I see a few people actually sticking up for this steaming pile. Each to their own taste, I suppose. But really...

Lost Horizon is not nearly as bad as the box office numbers would suggest. Its chief failing is the audience comes to see Shangri-La and sees, well, Burbank. Actually, it looks more like the Huntington Gardens. It would have been better to improve upon the book's shortcomings rather than try to recreate it. Perhaps a "Wizard of Oz"-like plot, where all of the people meet along parallel paths to Shangri-La, only to discover their real sanctuary was where they came from. I remember getting a preview copy of the album quite some time before the film was released. I loved the music, but would have to agree the vocal performances are a disaster. But, I was looking forward to seeing it in the theater. At nearly 2.5 hours in its roadshow release, I was checking my watch about 45 minutes into the piece. Even when I watch it on DVD today, there are large sections I fast forward through. As others have noted, why didn't Ross Hunter hire people who could sing in the key roles? Probably studio pressure for "bankable" stars who were "hot" at the time. No doubt someone also observed Bacharach & David are pop song writers, and you don't need to be a very good vocalist to sing pop--right? Well, the more recent musical disaster, the aptly named "Mamma Mia!" ABBA tribute also suffered from dreadful vocal performances. So much for the "anyone can sing pop" theory. Make no mistake, Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan are fine actors, but they should never the be the leads in a musical! Why not cast Glenn Close?But back to "Lost Horizon," I think the other problem is by the time this was released in 1972, the music and presentation were considered dated or "old school." Similar complaints were leveled at Hunters 1970 film "Airport"--calling it "old fashioned filmmaking."So, you've got three things working against the film: a dull plot, dated music, and principal vocalists who can't sing. Now some have commented that the Hollywood musical was dead by 1972. There were some other big features that only had mediocre results at this time, but just 6 years later, "Grease," with a budget of just $6 million, earned almost $400 million at the box office. No doubt it was helped by a couple of hit singles, but there was certainly some audience interest still out there. Disney seems to have found a formula that appeals to a new generation with its "High School Musical" series and its forthcoming "Teen Beach Musical." Several of the studio's animated musical features have been remade into successful Broadway musicals. Time will tell if there is a revival of interest in big budget, big screen musicals with principals who can actually sing.