I'm about to write another variation on that familiar statement; "having recently read the book, I decided to give the film a try".Lost Horizon is a very evocative film for me. As is often the case with my back catalogue, I likely first watched it at that impressionable period between the ages of seven and twelve where its themes of immortality, kindness and universalism together with action made a big impact.
They were also gentler and slower pre-VHS times - where a film might be shown on the BBC once in your childhood and you'd have to carry the half memory of watching in your head with no expectation of being to revisit again. For our family too, all TV watching was on a 14 inch b/w portable which had the benefit of rendering black and white and colour films just the same (despite my Dad's half joking experiments with covering the screen with multi-coloured acetate film).
This time I got to watch it on the projector in our living room. Despite the best efforts of Sony's restorers, it's a bit of a patchwork quilt of various sources of footage and of a varying quality which even the blu-ray format can't do much for in terms of improving presentation. A few very short sequences are represented by stills and audio only.
The first hour or so of the film is still gold as the action sequences are suitably thrilling, the unfolding mystery tautly told and the unveiling of Shangri-La is a wonderfully 1930s in its design. Then it does begin to get a bit ponderous. The High Lama scenes, once so profound, feel quite drawn out and obvious in their insights. Everyday life in Shangri-La itself is earnestly twee (although I'd still consider moving to the Shangri-La of the book). Lastly, in a post Indiana Jones world - the fate of one of the characters now feels - like the book - under-dramatised and lacks impact. The central performances, particularly of Colman are superb though and went a long way to keeping my interest.
Verdict: Sometimes a memory of Shangri-La is better than reality.
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