Lost in Space, starring William Hurt, Gary Oldman and Mimi Rogers 1 1/2 stars out of 4
Lost in Space is an apt title for a movie that is dramatically lost for lack of consistency and focus.
This big-screen adaptation of the silly Irwin Allen sci-fi TV series of the 1960s hedges its bets by trying to be all things to all viewers, and in doing so founders in its own uncertainty. Is it straight s-f adventure? A send-up? A family drama? Yes, no and a little bit of each.
Lost in Space, the TV show, lost many viewers when it disintegrated from a space drama to a campy kiddy show in which the show's purported main villain, the evil Dr. Zachery Smith, was transformed by producer Allen into a bumbling and verbose, comically and cowardly baddie.
And it is the shadow of Jonathan Harris' performance as Dr. Smith that creates havoc in this cinematic reincarnation.
Gary Oldman, an actor not known for subtley (for reference, see The Professional, The Fifth Element or Air Force One) is given the difficult task of following in Harris' space boots.
Unfortunately, he is not at all helped by the screenplay of Akiva Goldsman, whose most recent offering was the feeble Batman and Robin. Goldsman script is too ambitious, trying to capture the flavor the TV show and blending it with a '90s quotient of familial angst.
Thus, we get a movie in which dad (William Hurt as Professor John Robinson) is a workaholic, while mom (Mimi Rogers as Maureen Robinson) tries to balance home and career, while the kids (Heather Graham as Judy, Lacey Chabert as Penny and Jack Johnson as Will) all reflect, in some manner, the havoc caused by this dysfunctional family of the future.
Eldest child Judy is a cold, brainy scientist who spends all her time working with dad on the Jupiter project. Penny is the rebellious middle child who would rather spend her days and nights at the mall instead of trapsing through space. And Will is the young genius working on scientific gizmos in order to capture his father's attention and love.
So far, so good. A nice diversion from the Ozzie and Harriet-type family portrayed by Guy Williams and June Lockhart and their cute-as-button-children in the TV show.
However, in rewriting the villainous Smith, Goldsman seems to have lost faith in his original vision. For Oldman's Smith is merely an updated version of Harris. He wheedles, lies, cringes and acts the coward, while tossing out sarcastic one-liners under his breath. It's charming, but not threatening.
And what's a movie without some sort of serious antagonist. Therefore, Goldsman tosses in a subplot involving time displacement and some alien spiders in order to create a credible menacing villain.
But by the time that all comes to pass, Lost in Space has nearly twisted itself back into the self-parodying world of Irwin Allen.
Also not helping matters is the performance of Hurt. Here he seems detached, merely acting by the numbers. He spends a lot of time furrowing his brow and shooting sidelong glances at the rest of the cast.
Matt LeBlanc as Major Don West seems like he's acting the part as a comic bit from his Friends sitcom. His macho posturing is almost campy.
Young Johnson as Will Robinson has some good moments with his robot pal, while Chabert mouths some of the best zingers in the film. Rogers and Graham really have little to do.
Oldman, unfortunately, can't seem to get a handle on how to handle his Dr. Smith. At times he's a comic villain, other times he's devilishly evil. Either way, he's neither fish nor fowl, and that is this movie's sore point.
Of course, the open-ended finale leaves ample opportunities for sequels, but perhaps this Lost in Space should merely remain lost for all time.
It's darker and more sophisticated than the TV series, but that's like saying The National Enquirer publishes a better product than your local high school newspaper.
Bob Bloom is the film critic at the Journal and Courier in Lafayette, Ind. He can be reached by e-mail at bloom@journal-courier.com
cb
Carol Bloom of Bloom Ink Publishing Professionals 3312 Indian Rock Lane West Lafayette, IN 47906-1203 765-497-9320 fax 765-497-3112 cbloom@iquest.net
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