Lost in Space (2018) – a review

The Robinson family has a chance to leave the devastated earth for a new colony in space. However, something goes amiss and they find themselves landed on a strange unknown planet where they have to bond together to survive the many adventures that lay before them.

I wasn’t around when the original Lost in Space was released. I did catch an episode or two during the retro-revival of the early ’00 together with a small documentary about how the show came to be (Star Trek – obviously). But I wasn’t there at the time when it was originally broadcast.

I do, however, remember the 1998 movie adaptation and I am more than willing to claim my position as one of the select few on this planet that actually likes this movie. True there are quite a few things wrong with this movie. But to counter it it also has a cool soundtrack remix, time-travel (yeah baby!), a CGI monkey that didn’t look terrible (debatable, I know), an action sequences through a crumbling planet, and my childhood crush Lacey Chabert looking all cool punk (not debatable).

Keep in mind that I saw this movie shortly after Mortal Kombat Annihilation;
so my standards on CGI were probably at an all time low.

But as time passes I must admit that this version of Lost in Space followes the ranks of other nostalgic movies. Meaning you only watch them every once in a while to remind yourself what you liked back then. And, yes, as you grow older the faults in this version become more and more obvious.

So with a movie version critically panned and a TV-show that was limited in scope of what it could show (being the '60s and all -cardboard decors) it is intriguing to find out how a 2018-version would go. Once thing's for sure: the purple-yellow spacesuits are out. Or are they?

Lost in Space: again.

Purple and yellow stayed apparently (well blue but who’s counting).

It's clear from the get go that this version of the beloved TV show wants to reference the old show once or twice but after that it goes its own 2018 path. Like the original show was as '60s as can get, the new version is as 2018 as can get.

The parents are on the verge of divorce. The technology used on the Jupiter 2 is often available today (3D printers, USB-drives, and so on). And there is a lot more violence and blood. It is clear that the creators of the show wanted 2018's Lost in Space to become the same kind of cultural time capsule as the previous rendition was. They certainly succeeded.

Having said that the balance is a bit off between happy-go lucky adventuring and rather grim events. At one moment the father character finds himself tackled by snake in a rather slapstick manner. The next moment a guy gets crushed by a truck –not so slapstick.

Sometimes this balance works (it worked in the 1998 movie), sometimes it doesn’t. I guess the show needs some time to perfect the formula. To do that it needs a better story.

But how's the story?

To be honest the story is rather weak to begin with: the whole mystery of the Robinsons getting lost in space basically hinges on two main questions all concerning Will Robinson: 1 – How did he pass the tests? 2 – What’s up with his robot? After the dear doctor comes along a third question might be added about her back-story. But, not everything needs to be explained.

However, for most of the time the Robinsons are all stuck on an Earth-like planet together with another ramshackle group of survivors. The show uses this momentum to focus on character bonding between the family members whilst dragging out the storyline in, extremely predictable fashion I might add, which would get their crashed ship back into space (and only then truly ‘lost’ – in the classical sense).

This, I believe, is a big problem for the show. For most of the time the characters try to bond when there isn’t truly a lot of bonding required. The kids all love their father. True mommy and daddy have some marriage issues but that doesn’t mean they don’t care deeply for each other. But that’s all the viewer is given because the adventures on the planet itself are rather boring (apart from a funny escape from a –rather precisely pinpointed crash into a- tar pit).

So in short the balance is a bit off: the focus on characters isn’t very interesting because none of them have big emotional hurdles to overcome. And the focus on getting off the planet is (due to the continuous form of follow up episodes) quite longspun.

In contrast the 1998 movie had far too many stories to tell (a civil war, time travel, infections and whatnot) whilst the 2018 series has too little.

The season would have benefitted from a shorter running-time in the current form of an ongoing tale. But, at the same time, I think that in an episode of the week format (Firefly would be a good example of such a kind of space-opera done right) it would blossom.

Intermezzo: Science Fiction versus Science Fact.

The last ten years or so Science Fiction has made way for Science Fact. Sure we still enjoy an alien or two. But by now we don’t want to see any unneeded tentacles. Each part of the aliens has to be there for a fully developed evolutionary reason. Thanks to the internet we humans became more knowledgeable and we want our entertainment to challenge us.

In the same vein we don’t accept silly science-fiction-airy things anymore (I blame Mythbusters). Like exploding fire hydrants, shocking a person to get his heart going again or, in the case of Lost in Space’s very first episode’s: rather strange temperature endurance;

Here the family Robinson are on an alien planet where they -immediately take their helmets off and- somehow manages to survive in temperatures that can freeze a lake in seconds whilst the air they breathe doesn’t become visible.

Blame it on the ‘alien planet-card’ but this bugged me (the same with the toxic smoke and the fire a few minutes later). However, as every cloud has a silver lining, this did prepare me for the rest of the season. Because Lost in Space is about family and adventure. Science and logic, I’m sorry to say aren’t the main ingredients.

If there’s a chariot on every Jupiter vessel why walk in the second episode?

Directing

Neil Marshall is perfectly in form as he directs the first two episodes of this show to the best of his capabilities (which means: not a perfect budget to get every heart’s desire but enough to go 'round).

You have to; the robots and the occasional CGI alien all require a big deal of the budget.

So for a viewer who has seen his fair amount of Marvel/Bruckheimer/Spielberg extravaganzas it is noticeable.

 But I reason: in a good way. This since it does allow focusing on the characters who,

as stated above, unfortunately don’t have many issues to overcome.

He's always at his best as he is challenged to bring something spectacular with little money. He delivers this masterfully by repeating shots and setting some clear landmarks on the alien planet just to highlight the scope of it all. Then there are the various usages for close-medium and long shots.

This is filming 101 he's teaching us and, as always in Marshall's work, he's not self-absorbed by overindulgence in long takes, trick shots, strange angles and whatnot. He's there to tell the story of the Robinsons.

 As the main producer Marshall stays on for the entire ride. Still, the premise of saving a buck stays the same. This, for instance, you notice during the fifth episode in which a very simple colour correct is used to make a grassy field with dandelions appear alien.

 I must admit that I didn’t truly enjoy the new rendition of the soundtrack as much as I should have.
 Maybe the original remix of Apollo 440 has embedded itself too deep into my personal playlist.

  
Characters and actors

The best characters, as always, are Penny and the Doctor. They were my favourites in the movie adaptation and they haven’t changed. Penny’s self-destructive smart mouth who constantly gets herself in trouble (more even than poor ‘Danger’ Will Robinson) is charming her way across the screen. Just seeing her trying to drive the chariot and muttering to herself is hilarious.

Then there’s the vile doctor Smith who constantly abuses a situation for her (this time around) own benefit. She truly is a figurative spider contrasting Oldman’s 1998 actual one. She’s constantly appears to be floating from place to place with no effort at all but all the while she’s planning and plotting.

In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever before seen the act of murder being done so absentmindedly simple.

She’s the scriptural Gemini; It is so much fun to see the storm coming for her on the horizon only to see her bullsh*t her way out of it.

That first confrontation with Don West was a wonderful back and forth that somehow ended in a: ‘Thank you for betraying me I guess’. This is something writers love to do: to write a character into a corner and then make him/her talk their way out of it.

But characters are nothing without the actors. Now some of the ‘one-line’ actors that sometimes pop up are beyond terrible. I don’t often cringe when I see (and hear) bad acting – but in this show I did. However, since the show is primarily focussed on the Robinson’s –and their acting is fine- this is just a minor annoyance.

Plus it features Shang Tsung himself (Cary-Hitoyuki Tagawas) as a nice guy for a change.

Each and every member of the main cast gets to use the emotional palette from left to right: crying at one moment only to be brave and arrogant the next.

Finally there will be some actual Christmas dinner conversations at the
Dame Maggie Smith-residence (Toby Stephens is her son).

Smith: “Well son, I’ve charmed all kinds of suits of armour to defend a magical school
– Angela Lansbury eat your heart out.”

Stephens: “Well I fought James Bond!”

Smith: “And died I might add…twice”

Stephens: “Only a little bit.”

Smith: “Plus you were Korean somehow…”

Stephens: “Which is a lot more difficult that changing into a cat!”

Smith: “I’ve been to Never never land!”

Stephens: “So what, I’ve been to space!”

Especially the juxtaposition between the scientist Maureen (Molly Parker) and the soldier John (Toby Stephens) works best as they both display brave –almost foolish- behaviour but with different underlying motivations. The actors show this in their own way without trapping themselves in clichés or overacting.

This juxtaposition between thought and action happens a lot within the family: the two sisters, the doctor and Will, Don and pretty much everybody.

As always in screenwriting it is the putting together of two vastly different characters that make the actors shine and the screen sparkle. This is exactly one of the strengths of Lost in Space. However, to repeat myself, it would have benefitted from a richer story.

Conclusion

Lost in space is a mixed bag for me. The acting and directing are fine but the overarching story is too little to merit a ten episode run. I argue that standalone episodes would be beneficial to the show.

Having this said it still is a charming show that does its own thing with very little looking back at the original. While, at the same time it is very much old fashioned Science Fiction. Lost in Space is a show for the entire family. For grandparents to reminisce over, the parents to complain at and the kids to ‘wow’ at.