In the Lost Lands

Neither Bautista nor Jovovich can elevate this ugly-looking misfire. Fans of entertaining fantasy action need not apply. 

This Europudding production plods unrewardingly through the murky and humourless terrain of science-fantasy; it is a movie of flabby characterisation, dull storytelling and midprice VFX work.

In The Lost Lands, however, feels superficial even by Anderson’s standards, leaning a little too heavily into his predilection for pastiche.

Ultimately, the threadbare quality of Constantin Werner’s screenplay cannot be smoothed over with gobs of CGI effects (impressive as some of these sequences look) and the star power of Milla Jovovich and Dave Bautista.

Is this a real movie? I’m not entirely certain, and I certainly can’t recommend watching it. But I am amused by the bizarre Anderson-Jovovich oeuvre and hope they keep cranking them out.

While the ending of this boisterous action adventure is a muddle, the magic is compelling, and the movie drops the self-seriousness that sometimes plagues adaptations of Martin’s sprawling work.

If all you’re after is monsters, chases, CGI explosions, fighting and two popular action stars (who do get an opportunity to fight each other, never fear), then this may well work for you.

An action thriller in the vein of Fury Road by way of Zack Snyder with a dash of Resident Evil for good measure. But only if the worst elements of those inspirations were cobbled together for a dreary, empty and exhausting slow-motion bore fest.

Anderson is one of heirs to the old-fashioned B-movie: his work gets in, runs around indulging in stereotype and crowd-pleasing mayhem, and runs the credits before anybody watching can get bored.

...Paul W.S. Anderson continues to uphold the excellence of pulp literature and cinema. [Full review in Spanish]