LOST HORIZON 1973 - The Complete Version (1 Viewer)

[Cineramic]

I don't think THE BLUE BIRD complicated matters. It had a nice score and it has some nice performances. Like Alice in Wonderland nobody as of yet has figured out how to film that story. Neither version of LOST HORIZON is fully realized either. Both the Capra film and the remake have wonderful moments, but neither one provide the necessary punch at the end that the story needs for full impact on a viewer.

 

[Everett S.]

Posiden Adventure was filmed in 70mm & shown that way in N.Y.! It was the grand opening feature @ a new General Cinema theatre on Broadway I can't recall it's name.But it had a rotating marquee! Which was only used that once.

 

[ahollis]

Originally Posted by Michael1 /t/315277/lost-horizon-1973-the-complete-version/90#post_3861392
"The lyrics for most of the songs are very good, particularly SHARE THE JOY, I COME TO YOU and IF I COULD GO BACK. I will agree that the lyrics for QUESTION ME AN ANSWER are really silly and the song is not one of my favorites, but outside of that one, I think the rest are fine. The only real bit of silly choreography is the giggling on the rock Sally Kellerman move."

The songs just don't fit the film. The songs should have been more lush and romantic, but they ended up being more of a 70's pop tune. I realize that is just what they were going for to try to attract the younger audience that had sworn of musicals and were filling the cinema for MASH and Blazing Saddles, yet they did not succeed.

I saw it in college and the theatre was about 1/3 full (400 seat house) and most of the audience along with my date and myself thought it was a good movie. I did not see it again, until I bought the excellent laserdisc. This time viewing it as close as to the Roadshow version as possible. With the laserdisc, I sneaked into United Artists Theatres Screening Room on a Sunday afternoon and used the overhead projector on a 15X6 ft screen along with Dolby Prologic Surround and it was exceptional, but the songs still were out of place. Thank you Joe for that laserdisc and 1776.

DVD out for delivery today. Really looking forward to it.

 

[GMpasqua]

Most of the songs present the same theme "Shangri-la is better than the world outside because..." but they do not progress the action forward very much, and in a musical drama that is important. Plus after 8 songs all saying the same thing they get tiring.

"Share the Joy" works best because it's first, but the others just repeat the same thing over and over. "The World is a Circle"? what's it trying to say in relation to the story? "Living Together" says the same thing as "Share the Joy" "The Things I will not Miss" says the same thing (though an effective way which also reveals character - and it's the song I like best)

The only songs that tell us about the characters are "Things I will Not Miss" and "I Come to You" but the songs never progress from one place to another, there is no beginning, middle or end - which works in pop music - but in theater if the story isn't coming through the song is just filler. Lyrics should sing the dialog (as lyrics)..not repeat one line over and over

"Where Faith Begins" is not very interesting either lyrically or musically and seems to go on and on about nothing much.

In a musical you musicalize the high points, but in Lost Horizon those are done through the dialog. Where is Margo's "Get me out of here or I'll die" song at the end? Or "I can't go on without you (to Michael York) or Why I want to leave even though I know I'm 80 years old?

Where is Conway's "Is this fantasy at all real?" song. Where is the high lama's song to Richard how he must do important things etc because he is a smart locially peaceful man and someday can over see a place like Shangri-la

Where's Sally Kellerman's "Why I want to kill myself song"? or "Why I no longer want to kill myself?" song. Each character goes through a personal change but none do it through song.

Liv Ullman doesn't say much and her songs reveal nothing of her character - in fact since her songs are dubbed she is heard very little throughout the film. Who is she? How does she keep Conway from leaving? The faith song isn't effective enough

In Capra's film Kellerman's character goes through a psychical change and we see Shangri-la has magic properties to rejuvenate the sick and dying - but the score does not address them.

Bobby Van's song should reveal why he finds teaching the children so rewarding and why he has a new purpose in life: he can contribute someting back, or at least lead him to learn something about himself he didn't know - but the song is just a poor excuse to have him dance with children and then fall in the lake and says nothing


Basically you have one song:
Have you ever dreamed of a place far away from it all
Where people are Living together, growing together in a circle with no front or end and sharing the joy.

Every song in "Oklahoma!" says something different and many are small scenes in themselves. Some even do it with lots of humor, in Lost Horizon everything's "On what a Beautiful Morning"

 

[Eric Vedowski]

Posiden Adventure was filmed in 70mm & shown that way in N.Y.! It was the grand opening feature @ a new General Cinema theatre on Broadway I can't recall it's name.But it had a rotating marquee! Which was only used that once.

The National, Broadway at 44th.

 

[Professor Echo]

Great post, Greg. I still enjoy the movie AND most of the songs, but I can't disagree with your perceptive analysis and keen insight.

 

[GMpasqua]

"The Posideon Adventure" was not filmed in 70MM - but when it opened the studio made 70MM blow-ups from 35mm source material (this was common for a lot of first run theaters in Time Square)

I could have sworn the "Grease" print was a 70MM blow-up (opening day Lowes State 1 NYC) if it was a 35mm print it was miles ahead of the 35mm prints I saw later that summer at the local multiplex - those were dark and grainy and the colors smeared. The 20th anniverasry 70MM blow up at the Mann Chinese Theater in LA was also grainy and dark and not attractive at all.

I remember being so impressed with the film's image on opening day - even the colors were better represented. If any theater would have had a 70MM blow-up on opening day it would have been the Loews State.

When I saw it later that summer I remember thinking how the green shirt in the soda shop scene looked so much different (and not for the best) at the multiplex and how the opening beach scene was so clearer at the Lowes

 

[Paul Rossen]

The National, Broadway at 44th.

I remember seeing The Towering Inferno at the National in I believe 70mm. What struck me about the theatre was that for the surround speakers it used Bose 901's.

 

[plinfesty]

Here's the opening ad for the National in Manhattan and THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE:
http://www.cinematour.com/picview.php?db=us&id=31514
The National Theatre in Westwood also had Bose 901 surrounds for several years before switching to JBL's (before that, they featured Altecs of several different sizes! and the original surrounds were ceiling mounts).

 

[plinfesty]

I could have sworn the "Grease" print was a 70MM blow-up

The State most likely was one of a handful of theatres that were showing wetgate (or, "show" prints) off the OCN. These prints usually went only to the so-called "key deluxers" in New York and Los Angeles. Having seen a number of these 35mm prints in Los Angeles, they could look extroadinary compared to the average theatre print that was being produced for most theatres at that time (high speed prints that looked just as you described in your post).

 

[Cineramic]

LOST HORIZON has a better story than old country bumpkin OKLAHOMA. I don't like comparing the two because clearly the music in OKLAHOMA is way better than the limp story. LOST HORIZON is a Burt Bacharach Shangri-La and let's face it, if you don't like Bacharach, you're not going to like LOST HORIZON. Not all the songs in OKLAHOMA "advance" the story either. Songs like "Everything is up to date in Kansas City" have nothing to do with anything. As beautiful as the song "Out of my Dreams" is, that has nothing to do with the story either. I could go on. I won't.
The song THE WORLD IS A CIRCLE is a curious one, because it's basically saying life is a mystery that nobody can really explain. I COME TO YOU is a declaration of the love between Conway and Catherine.
Liv Ullmann is the mystery of the film. Her presence is the higher consciousness of the story. She's absolutely luminous and beautiful.

 

[GMpasqua]

Thanks guys for the feedback. Glad to hear my original "Grease" experience was something other than a regular 35mm print. Always wonder why that version looked so much better - still after all these years.



Professor Echo, please don't get me wrong, I actually enjoy "Lost Horizon" and always have. As a lyricist/composer I'm more aware of the score's faults than most and see so many missed opportunities to enhance the score. But miss opportunities aside, it's not a bad film and still quite enjoyable. After the disasterous preview the studio should have re-shot some songs/scenes and they may have turned it into a hit film.


Even though many write off a fluff piece like "Oklahoma" that show has an extraordinary score.

"Kansas City" may seem like filler for a dance number but it leads so much to the story...This guy just got back from KC and the city has grown and has become industrialized...something Oklahoma has not yet fully done - but it shows progress will also becoming to OK (which was in the process of becoming a state) and gives a hint of what will happen by the end of the show. "The Farmer and Cowman" comments on the nature of what will be happening to the State and hints that change is coming and it's time to accept it

"Out of My Dreams" leads beautifully into the dream ballet - which of course sums up Laurey's character and comments on how her Dream becomes a nightmare because of that day's interaction with Jud. Deep down Laurey knows something is wrong with Jud, and we see through her eyes how a young farm girl views the world of sex and rape and all that is out of her control, without that piece Laurey is just a tease, it adds tremendously to her characterization. Sure she could say it, but here the writers "show it" without letting it actually happen - it also forshadows what will happen in act two

 

[GMpasqua]

"The World is a Circle" say's nothing

Does it mean to say - the world is a circle so there is no one at the front of the line or the end and we are all created equal or should all be viewed as equals...if so, it never accomplishes that.

Then it contradicts it self saying. Just because you think your small doesn't mean you are small at all - but even if you are small (Contradiction) to someone else you are tall (Circle has now become a line) and the theory the world is a circle flies out the window

Just because you think you're slow, doesn't mean you are slow you know -To someone else who is last...they're sure to think you are fast...
If you're slow...you're slow. Again we are in a line of best to last, no more circle, no equality - no you are top and bottom of the food chain, run with it.

The song basically is teaching children "you may not be the best but there is always some one else who is worse" are we to believe we should use our power to over rule the slower ones? How does that match the film's theme of peace and equality?


Then it shoots itself in the foot saying "everything depends on where you are in the circle" yes some one in front may be bigger and some one behind may be smaller - so what does make you? Average? And if there is no beginning and no end there are certianly stretches of that circle where you do not want to be - but it "depends" so the choice is no longer yours (so kids, get out when you can)

(Plus, "everything depends" is such a broad statement and really the song should be more specific)

So really what was this song trying to say? It doesn't come through very clearly.

 

[GMpasqua]

Originally Posted by Cineramic /t/315277/lost-horizon-1973-the-complete-version/90#post_3861662
I could go on. I won't.
The song THE WORLD IS A CIRCLE is a curious one, because it's basically saying life is a mystery that nobody can really explain.

Please do....I would like to see your specific points where you get " life is a mystery " from the lryics to "The World is Circle"

 

[Michael1]

"The song THE WORLD IS A CIRCLE is a curious one, because it's basically saying life is a mystery that nobody can really explain."
No, Cineramic, that's NOT what is says. That song has by far the best lyric in the score (which isn't saying all that much), and what it does is teach the children a valuable lesson: Everything is relative in life. Though you may be slow, weak, or small compared to certain people, you are fast, strong, and tall compared to others.
Do you really not get that from the song? Do you honestly think it says "life is a mystery that nobody can really explain?" Listen again.

 

[Cineramic]

Michael1 and GM, put your match and gasoline away and try to look beyond your literal minded thinking. The underlining meaning to the lyric "the world is a circle without a beginning and nobody knows where it really ends" is saying life is relative and therefore cannot be fully explained. As does the lyric "everything depends on where you are in the circle that never begins, nobody knows where it really ends". Life is perspective to which there are no real answers.

 

[Matt Hough]

Michael,

I just wanted to welcome you to Home Theater Forum. I've been reading your writing for years, and I must say that your book on Musical Theater Reocrdings is one of my favorite theater and film references, and my copy is so dog-eared that it really needs replacing. Any plans on an update?

 

[GMpasqua]

Originally Posted by Cineramic /t/315277/lost-horizon-1973-the-complete-version/90#post_3861799
Michael1 and GM, put your match and gasoline away and try to look beyond your literal minded thinking. The underlining meaning to the lyric "the world is a circle without a beginning and nobody knows where it really ends" is saying life is relative and therefore cannot be fully explained. As does the lyric "everything depends on where you are in the circle that never begins, nobody knows where it really ends". Life is perspective to which there are no real answers.

That's the same explanation I got from my nephews 3rd grade class of students. How did 3rd graders become so smart?

 

[GMpasqua]

Michael 1, I would have to agree that the song does say everything's relative in life - and that does pretty much sum up the song's message.

In that regard, the song does say something. What that has to do with the theme of the film I'm not as sure? Maybe accepting what lies around you and being satisfied with it, Shangri-La may not be better, but it may not be worse? Everything's relative to your surroundings?

 

[ahollis]

The World Is A Circle because it's round.

Sorry I just could not resist bad humor.