Movies about lost worlds, dinosaurs and other prehistoric beasts have been going on since the silent era, with The Lost World from 1926 being one of the major milestones. King Kong from 1933 remains the granddaddy of them all because of the groundbreaking stop-motion effects, lavish sets and some of the best acting performances in such a film led to the movie being a huge commercial success. Other films such as One Million BC in order to save money and the time consumer stop-motion effects used actual lizards with fins glued to their backs! This was the era of practical effects, long before the days of CGI dinosaurs. During the 1950s, the monster movie /science fiction genre was booming with tons of creature features being released in that decade which continues to this very day, although not nearly as prominent. Universal Studios, as was the case with in the 1930’s with their classic monsters, Frankenstein, Dracula, The Wolf Man and the Mummy, was at the forefront of this trend, offering a plethora of monster movies including The Creature from the Black Lagoon, This Island Earth, The Deadly Mantis and the classic dinosaur thriller, The Land Unknown.
The Land Unknown is the story about a small crew led by Commander Harold Roberts (Jack Mahoney) along with reporter Maggie Hathaway (Shirley Patterson) that are on their way to Antarctica, when suddenly due to severe weather conditions that they can’t fly around and a pterosaur flies from out of nowhere and damages their plane, are forced to land. They land on an uncharted jungle that is populated by dinosaurs and other large creatures including giant monitor lizards, and man-eating plants. The main antagonist dinosaurs are a Tyrannosaurus Rex and the aquatic Elasmosaurus. They also find another human, Hunter i.e. Dr. Carl Hunter (Henry Brandon) who had been stranded in the jungle for over 10 years, finding ways to survive and keeping the dinosaurs at bay. Surviving the jungle with the aggressive dinosaurs is crucial as the crew looks to repair their plane and escape.
The Land Unknown to me is an underrated gem with above average special effects which had applied the ‘man in the rubber suit’ technique along with some effective shots using real lizards. The Tyrannosaurus Rex suit is a unique and unusual design with a roar that would be recycled in the 1976 remake of King Kong. The Elasmosaurus is also a fantastic design. The sets for the film are also quite lavish and add a great deal of atmosphere and even some eeriness to the picture. The cinematography by Ellis W. Carter made this film stand out amongst the dozens of other creature features that were being made at this time. The cast hands in satisfactory performances in the 1950s style of acting in a monster movie, where they played second fiddle to the dinosaurs. Virgil Vogel, who had also directed The Mole People, does another fine job directing The Land Unknown and made an above average picture.
Kino Lorber debuts The Land Unknown on Blu-ray in North America Region A and it is an impressive package. Presented in its original aspect ratio of 2:35:1, the black and white 1080p letterboxed image is stunning. The picture quality is well above average, with strong contrast, deep textures, and no doubt is much crisper and brighter than the previous DVD releases from Universal. There is a great deal of depth to the scenery with a balanced grey scale. Close-ups of the characters’ faces also show great detail.
English DTS-HD master audio 2.0 is used here and the dialog, dinosaur roars and other action noises sound perfectly fine without drop-offs or hissing. Optional English subtitles are available for this release.
Extras for this release include an audio commentary by film historians Tom Weaver and David Schecter, who with the usual energy and enthusiasm discuss in great detail The Land Unknown. Weaver talks about the cast and what other films the actors were in, the budget of the film along with a few stories. Outside of that, an animated image gallery and a trailers for The Land Unknown, One Million Years B.C., War-Gods of the Deep, The Land That Time Forgot, At the Earth’s Core, The People That Time Forgot, The Island of Dr. Moreau and The Neptune Factor round out the extras. Trailer aficionados will certainly enjoy the vast amount of them provided for this release.
Fans of 50s monster movies shouldn’t pass this one up. The Land Unknown has finally made it to Blu-ray domestically, and between the superb audio and video quality, and a commentary track, this is a recommended release!
The Land Unknown
Director– Virgil W. Vogel
Cast- Jock Mahoney, Shirley Patterson, Henry Brandon
Country of Origin – USA
Distributor - Kino Lorber
Number of discs – 1
Reviewed by - David Steigman
Date- 05/01/2019
