Lost Horizon (DVD)
APPROX. 134 MINS. - PROD. YEAR: 1937 - MPA RATING: NR
" ...Capra's direction is lively, the acting is uniformly convincing, and the photography is gorgeous by the standards of any day.
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Video:
By the late sixties, all of the original negatives for "Lost Horizon" had deteriorated. The present copy is a meticulous restoration by Sony Pictures Entertainment and the UCLA Film and Television Archive, under the director of Robert Gitt. It was restored from the best prints and copies available, but because of the lack of original negatives from which to work, the reconstruction lacks much of the luster the film once possessed. There is some minor grain, but there are no identifiable age marks, whatsoever, thanks to Sony's digital remastering.
Audio:
Interestingly, the film's complete original soundtrack was preserved, although there is a total of about seven minutes of missing footage that should have gone along with it. The absent scenes have been replaced by still shots, a minor distraction at worst. The monaural sound is no great shakes but very quiet and easily listenable.
Extras:
Special features abound on the disc, appropriate to the film's place of honor in film history. Production notes are provided; alternative endings (the first ending didn't last more than a week or so before being yanked); restoration comparisons; deleted scenes (taken from original negatives and showing just how good the original image quality really was); a photo documentary narrated by film historian Kendall Miller; and restoration commentary by film critic Charles Champlin and restorer Robert Gitt. Subtitles are in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Korean, and Thai (sorry, no Tibetan). Twenty-eight scene selections and a trailer round out the offerings.
Parting Thoughts:
I suppose today "Lost Horizon" could be seen by first-time viewers as hopelessly old fashioned, but given a chance it holds up remarkably well. Capra's direction is lively, the acting is uniformly convincing, and the photography is gorgeous by the standards of any day. Besides, if you could find just for a moment the peace of Utopia, wouldn't you go for it, in our own age more than ever?
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