Lost in Space is a remake of the 1960s sci-fi series about a family struggling for survival in outer space.
I don’t know what it is, but everything I’ve been watching lately seems to be space or sci-fi related. I’ve been slowly making my way through Altered Carbon, and then watched Oblivion and Moon the last two days. I suppose at the end of the day I’m the one choosing what I watch, but it does make the timing of the Lost in Space trailer seem like more than a coincidence (cue dramatic music). Anyways, after watching the trailer, I like what I see.
Lost in Space was an old television series that was remade into a movie. Although I haven’t seen the movie, it looks like hot garbage (we’re talking 5.1 on IMDb, anything below 7.0 is dicey). As far as I know, the general premise of both, and most likely our new show, is about a family that crash lands on an isolated planet and gets stranded. From there it’s a game of survival in which they work to escape the planet either back to Earth or just back into space. Simple enough.
There are a few things in particular that I’m really vibing on in this trailer. One, is that it looks to be high quality. It’s not uncommon that there is a noticeable difference in the quality of visual effects on tv shows vs movies, obviously due to the budget allotment. From what I can see in this trailer, it doesn’t look like Netflix skimped. Maybe the robot character looks a little too CGI-y, but all of the scenery of the planet they’re on looks pretty awesome. So we’re off to a good start. The next thing I like is that, as I mentioned earlier, this is a Netflix show. When Netflix does big releases like this, good things happen. Stranger Things is probably a top 3 show for me, so I’m pretty pumped to see that Netflix is the one reviving this sci-fi cult classic (I’m kind of assuming it’s a cult classic, but that’s a shot in the dark).
The third thing I love about the trailer is that Toby Stephens is in the show. Now, you might be asking yourself, “Who is Toby Stephens?” You might also be asking yourself “Why do you care that he’s in this show?” Well for one, he was a former Bond villain, and me having a soft spot for all things Bond, I’m always excited when I see an old cast member pop up (Alec Trevelyan in Game of Thrones, Valentin Zukovsky in Harry Potter, and so on). More than that, though, I thought he did a damn good job in Die Another Day. Before we get ahead of ourselves, I don’t think Die Another Day is a good movie, but the charisma and energy he brought to his sociopathic character was solid. (Apologies on the Bond tangent, it’s unavoidable). Point being, I think he’s a quality actor that will bring a very necessary amount of enthusiasm and seriousness to his character.
So there you have it, between high production quality, a strong foundation with Netflix, and a Bond alum, I think we’re in for a treat. There also looks to be a good amount of action mixed in, so I’m all for that. Having said all that, my main concern for a show like this that can absolutely tank it is poor writing. After a quick glance at IMDb to see what else the writers have done, I see The Last Witch Hunter, Gods of Egypt and Power Rangers on their credit page, so we might be in for some VERY cheesy dialogue. You’ve been warned.