“The Land Unknown” (1957) / Z-View

The Land Unknown (1957)

Director: Virgil W. Vogel

Screenplay by:  László Görög based on a story by Charles Palmer, William N. Robson

Starring: Jock Mahoney, Shirley Patterson, William Reynolds, Phil Harvey and Henry Brandon 

Tagline:  Lost and Terrorized in Prehistoric Time.

The Overview:  Beware of spoilers…

Commander Alan Roberts (Mahoney), Lt. Jack Carmen (Reynolds), mechanic Steve Miller (Harvey) and reporter Margaret Hathaway (Patterson) take a helicopter to explore an area of warm water in  Antarctica!  When they run into an unexpected storm, low fuel causes them to sit down.  The helicopter is damaged in the landing.  When the fog clears they realize that they are out of radio contact and in a world unchanged since prehistoric times!  Man-eating plants, dinosaurs and something that they never expected to find put their lives in danger.  Will they get the helicopter fixed in time to save them?

The Land Unknown was originally conceived as a big-budget extravaganza.  Prior to filming the budget was drastically cut.  Although filmed in Cinemascope, color was too expensive and all scenes were shot on a back lot.  Children and those old enough to fondly remember low-budget horror films will find enough fun in The Land Unknown.  Viewers not in those categories will see Barney and puppets attacking a toy helicopter.  So be advised your mileage may vary.  For me…

The Land Unknown earns 2 of 5 stars.