jkling7440 First of all, I love musicals. When this originally was released back in the 70s, my family was excited. We had the album with all of the wonderful Bacharach/David music and knew all of the songs before seeing the film. Then we saw it. Peter Finch's song, "If I Could Go Back" was cut, I guess for time. And so were two others. This was a pivotal point in the film. Otherwise, it seems like his character decides to leave Shangri-La and go back to civilization in about 2 seconds. Almost a "Umm, bye. See you." feel. Is still like the film and love the score.

kite-95434 This film was rarely off the TV in Britain in the 70s and 80s (critically trashed films seem to get much more airtime, maybe because they're cheap? I don't know). I admit I haven't seen it as an adult, but to a naive mind, what could be more thrilling than discovering a secret kingdom, whether it's inside your TV, at the back of a wardrobe, or over the mountains. It was certainly one of the more memorable films from my childhood, very colourful, and some of the songs were great (of course I had no idea at the time they were from the legendary Bacharach and David, who are far too harsh on them). The World is a Circle I've never forgotten and I've added it to my Spotify.And any holes in the script (Larry Kramer!) could be compensated for by gazing on the eternal loveliness of Olivia Hussey.Maybe it'll be shown on TV again someday so I can see if it's as painful for grown-ups as they say.

John austin Michael Medved wrote extensively about this movie in his Golden Turkey Awards book back in the 1970s. I didn't get a chance to see it until some years later. It's wisely kept out of the public eye.Lost Horizon was supposed to be a high-gloss "prestige" picture for Columbia with great music, exotic sets and memorable acting performances. I think they were hoping for something on the level of The Sound of Music. What they got was a movie that's just wrong on every level. The concept didn't work. The acting was wooden, and the plot was dreary. What I remember most were the strange, almost sickly sweet songs that made it onto the soundtrack. I don't know what Burt Bacharach was thinking. I watched some clips of this movie recently, and the whole thing looks manufactured- like nobody really believes what they're doing.It's almost as if whoever was in charge had never done this type of picture before. The studio initially prepared a large marketing campaign around it, expecting a hit. It would be fascinating to know just when the movie studio bigwigs at Columbia figured out they had a disaster on their hands. A possible explanation- it was probably doomed from the start. By 1973 styles had changed drastically, and the necessary people who previously could have given you something as good as South Pacific or West Side Story were all off doing other things. Jesus Christ Superstar was what a musical looked like in the early 1970s, not this.It immediately tanked at the box office, and we can only speculate about how many Hollywood careers ended as a result of this turkey. I don't know if it's ever been released on DVD. You've got to see this movie it to believe it.

rmcatalina Lost Horizon is not nearly as bad as the box office numbers would suggest. Its chief failing is the audience comes to see Shangri-La and sees, well, Burbank. Actually, it looks more like the Huntington Gardens. It would have been better to improve upon the book's shortcomings rather than try to recreate it. Perhaps a "Wizard of Oz"-like plot, where all of the people meet along parallel paths to Shangri-La, only to discover their real sanctuary was where they came from. I remember getting a preview copy of the album quite some time before the film was released. I loved the music, but would have to agree the vocal performances are a disaster. But, I was looking forward to seeing it in the theater. At nearly 2.5 hours in its roadshow release, I was checking my watch about 45 minutes into the piece. Even when I watch it on DVD today, there are large sections I fast forward through. As others have noted, why didn't Ross Hunter hire people who could sing in the key roles? Probably studio pressure for "bankable" stars who were "hot" at the time. No doubt someone also observed Bacharach & David are pop song writers, and you don't need to be a very good vocalist to sing pop--right? Well, the more recent musical disaster, the aptly named "Mamma Mia!" ABBA tribute also suffered from dreadful vocal performances. So much for the "anyone can sing pop" theory. Make no mistake, Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan are fine actors, but they should never the be the leads in a musical! Why not cast Glenn Close?But back to "Lost Horizon," I think the other problem is by the time this was released in 1972, the music and presentation were considered dated or "old school." Similar complaints were leveled at Hunters 1970 film "Airport"--calling it "old fashioned filmmaking."So, you've got three things working against the film: a dull plot, dated music, and principal vocalists who can't sing. Now some have commented that the Hollywood musical was dead by 1972. There were some other big features that only had mediocre results at this time, but just 6 years later, "Grease," with a budget of just $6 million, earned almost $400 million at the box office. No doubt it was helped by a couple of hit singles, but there was certainly some audience interest still out there. Disney seems to have found a formula that appeals to a new generation with its "High School Musical" series and its forthcoming "Teen Beach Musical." Several of the studio's animated musical features have been remade into successful Broadway musicals. Time will tell if there is a revival of interest in big budget, big screen musicals with principals who can actually sing.