The Lost City

[scotrace]

Lucked out! I was first in line to get this from Netflix and it arrived today. While I haven't watch it, of course, I did have to scan it for hats and clothes - I think there will be several great scans posted here in a day or so.

 

[Mr. Sable]

It's an entertaining serial when it's not being overtly racist. Watch for miraculously self-healing and self-cleaning safari shirts and breeches. There's a nifty and very plausible deathtrap in one cliffhanger as well.

It seems like it might be a jungle adventure in forgotten ruins at first, but it's pure sci-fi all the way through.

 

[scotrace]

I think we must be speaking of different films. I mean the one about Cuba in 1958, prior to and during the revolution.

 

[Mr. Sable]

Oh! Indeed. I thought you meant the 30's serial. :eusa_doh:

 

[scotrace]

Having now seen this film...

It is well, well worth a look for the sets, costumes and absolutely for the soundtrack. Andy Garcia directs and stars, and he worked for years to get the film made, as he himself is native Cuban because he felt he had something important to say about Cuba under Castro. It portrays the promise (for many at the time) of the revolution, followed by the grave disappointment when it became clear that Castro had no intention of forming a democracy. The film makes for a good reminder of what Communist dictatorships were/are like, for the post-Cold War generation who might think it is just another legitimate and perfectly acceptable form of government.

It is rated R for violence. There are scenes of brutal executions by both the revolutionaries and the Batista regime. Otherwise the film is old-school in that physical romance is suggested rather than shown.

As a film I think it is better than most of the more recent films I have seen. As a visual treat for those who follow clothing styles, it is hard to beat.

The sountrack is very well done, with lots of driving latin rhythm.

Co-starring Dustin Hoffman, Bill Murray and the absolutely stunning Ines Sastre.

 

[Nick Charles]

:eusa_clap :eusa_clap I'll agree with you Scott. I watched it Saturday. and it was pretty darn good. I love the Old uncle at the tobacco plantion in his plantation straw. Cigars everywhere, just two questions? What the hell was Bill Murrays job and why don't they show Fidels face?

 

[DanielJones]

Interesting. I'll have to check this one out.

Cheers!

Dan

 

[Havana Joe]

Anybody see The Lost City (Andy Garcia, Bill Murray, Dustin Hoffman, etc.) yet?
I bought it recently and loved it: very accurate to what actually happened there. And they've got some great clothing and hats!!! Gotta get myself some new Guayaberas and hats to go with them, and pants, and shoes, and.... :cool2:

 

[BegintheBeguine]

I borrowed it from the library. It was waaaaaaaaay too long but I enjoyed it. I don't want to say anymore because I tend to get political when talking about the beautiful country of Cuba and that ain't allowed.

 

[Havana Joe]

Just looked at the DVD: 144 minutes. Wow! I actually thought it was about 90 minutes! I really wish there would have been even more. The screenplay is 300+ pages if I am correct "A Novel written in script format" is what they say. The making of in the DVD is really interesting too.

Anyway, I saw it tonight for the second time and liked it even more. I was only 11 months old when my parents flew out of there to escape the murders and torture (though they didn't escape the concentration camps). But the film is very accurate, and shows Batista, Guevara, and Fidel to be the sadistic murderers they were, and are. The scenes and clothing make me think of all the old pictures of my parents and family.

Anyway, some really great clothing in the film, and did I mention great music? Now I gotta put on some good Cuban music, light up a cigar, and think of the day I can visit the palms again, in liberty!

 

[scotrace]

See these:

Lost City Clothes.

Lost City Hats.

 

[BegintheBeguine]

I probably thought it was long because I was going on a trip to Las Vegas the next morning.
I'll watch it again when I have time to enjoy it with some of the 6 bricks of Naviera coffee I just brought back from Florida!

 

[PADDY]

Why...oh Why hasn't this reached the big screen in the UK yet?

Or have I missed the boat somewhere? I have been waiting in anticipation for 'ages' to see this movie but as far as I know it hasn't reached these shores yet[huh]

 

[scotrace]

It has been out on DVD for several months here, Paddy - not so in UK?

 

[Havana Joe]

Or have I missed the boat somewhere? I have been waiting in anticipation for 'ages' to see this movie but as far as I know it hasn't reached these shores yet[huh]

I have an article somewhere that talks about some film festivals refusing to show it, and some of the big studios too. Don't want to show their pet dictators (Fidel and Che) in their true light, or better said true darkness, I guess.

So many things in the film were just as my family said. I had an uncle scheduled to be shot after being arrested because he was in the Catholic Youth. They’d wake a prisoner up at random at about 3 or 4 AM, and take him to the yard to face a firing squad. Sometimes they had blanks, sometimes they didn't, so you never knew. It broke some people down. My uncle got out because of some people who knew people (my grandfather was treasurer of a small municipality).

The scene when Fico leaves Cuba and they take his money and other possessions is precisely how my parents told of their experiences.

My parents were put in concentration camps chopping sugarcane.

My grandfather kicked some Fidelistas out of his house after they tried to “recruit” him into the party line. He told him that the next time they came he’d shoot them without a word being said. Soon after he found a bomb under his car that had failed to detonate. They tell me he’d go out late and stay out ‘till sunup sometimes, having taken either his 1911 or S&W .38 snub. They knew he was greasing commies, but he would not elaborate. He was a brawler, often getting into big fights. I wish could have talked to him and heard those tales!

Anyway, here’s an interesting link:

http://www.babalublog.com/archives/002391.html

Another good film, though not as nice with the clothing, is For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story, also with Andy Garcia.

 

[Feraud]

This sounds like a good movie. I have added it to my Netflix queue.

 

[PADDY]

The Lost City (where can I get a DvD of it?)

It has been out on DVD for several months here, Paddy - not so in UK?

This is driving me crazy, from what you folk have said, it is worth 'seeing!' But just hasn't reached these shores (the UK) and isn't likely to now [huh]

Sounds like this is my kinda film, so WHERE OH WHERE would you kind people suggest I go hunting for a reasonable priece DvD of it so that I can catch up on what you've all been raving about?[huh]

Thanks!!!

 

[Baron Kurtz]

remarkable though it is, this seems not to have been released in the UK on DVD. how odd.

bk

 

[PADDY]

Lost City...anyone?

Sounds like the only way forward on this is to get a DvD from the USA.[huh]

 

[BellyTank]

Great Blurb!

"One of the most amazing serials of all time. Ludicrous acting, incredible lab scenes, inane dialogue, all weaved together in the purest camp style possible. An electrical madman in a lost jungle citadel causes world wide havoc and destruction."


...with a blurb like that, I gotta see it!
The inane dialogue is what I find particularly grabbing.

Is this the right Lost City...? Damn.

B
T