This 1998 big screen version of the old tv series no doubt disappointed a lot of folks who expected the lighthearted tone of the original. It turned out to be yet another flop for Matt Leblanc, who has yet to have a major hit on his resume.

How old is the eldest Robinson daughter supposed to be? I kept thinking "Hmmm, she's kinda young for him" every time they tried to play up the romance angle between her and Leblanc's Don West character.

This seems to be yet another film set too close to when it was made. 2053 is probably too soon for all the tech advances shown.

Whats the point of the ship having West's hyperdrive installed if it can't be used without throwing the ship into some uncharted region?

Heather Graham was 27 when the film was shot, old enough to have a doctorate. I don't know how old Judy was supposed to be in the film. Marta Kristen was 21 when the TV series began in 1965, btw.

Just to correct my original post that should be Robinson's hyperdrive, not West's.

2053 is probably too soon for all the tech advances shown.

Probobly true, but you have to remember that the folks in charge of the most impresive advances were working with the knowledge of Earth's impending doom. That no doubt encouraged them to be more productive than they would have otherwise.

I liked this movie! It was what the TV show was originally supposed to be you know, before it became the Will, Dr. Smith, & Robot Comedy Show. Anyone who has seen the unaired pilot, or even the first few episodes of the series can tell you that.

I also liked the movie. I thought it struck a good balance between humor and action.

What really irritated me was all the empty space inside the Jupiter II. According to Prof. Robinson, when they reach Centauri Prime, they are supposed to help build this enormous hypergate. Where's all the materials or the portable foundry and manufacturing equipment stored in the Jupiter II?

It would make more sense if the Jupiter II somehow had a structure around it that was a _small_ hypergate. When they reach Centauri Prime, the Jupiter II disengages from it, and the gate is then linked with Earth's. Additional supplies are shuffled through the two gates so that a large one can be built in orbit around Centauri Prime.

And is Centauri Prime supposed to be 4.4 light years away... or much further?


Nice touch to have what-his-name (Mark Goddard, the original Don West) assign Don West to the Jupiter Mission...

... to have Mrs. Cartwright (Will's teacher, playhed by June Lockhart, the original Mrs. Robinson) have a conversation with Mrs. Robinson!

However, Angela Cartwright and Marta Kristen have no tie in with Penny and Judy... although it would have been cute if, after Prof. Robinson says "They couldn't be more excited", they cut quickly to reporter Angela Cartwright with raised eyebrows of skepticism, and then go to Lacey what's-her-name as Penny, perhaps also with raised eyebrows as Mom tells her she's not leaving the house that night!

Too bad Jonathan Harris couldn't have played Dr. Smith's boss in that holographic communication scene, where he demands more money to try a second sabotage of the Jupiter Mission. And too bad Bill Mumy couldn't have played the grown-up Will in the time warp field... interacting with the younger Will!

It also would have been neat if the old Robot (the B-9) was in Will's bedroom, one of his earlier science projects!

Of course, there's no way for William Hurt to interact with Guy Williams.

About the only other ironic tie in would be to snare onto one of those frequent guests, like Albert Salmi (Captain Tucker) as one of the Global Sedition pilots, or Fritz Feld (Zumdish of the Celestial Department Store) in some role. Actually, those are the only actors I can recall appearing two or three times (Zumdish last under the control of some space crooks looking for a hide-out).

The movie ending hinted at a potential sequel. They did seem to have acquired the necessary navigational aids from that derelect (that West destroyed), but who knows, maybe they emerged from that hyper jump and were still lost!

knowing there would be no sequel the comentary on the dvd gave the basic plot of what would have been lis2. namely they get to centauri prime BUT they are still in the future and the bad guys got there first!

Too bad Jonathan Harris couldn't have played Dr. Smith's boss in that holographic communication scene, where he demands more money to try a second sabotage of the Jupiter Mission. And too bad Bill Mumy couldn't have played the grown-up Will in the time warp field... interacting with the younger Will!

Harris refused to do the movie beucase he didn't want to play anyone but Smith, and Bill Mumy's Babylon 5 shooting schedule didn't allow him time to do the moive, thouhg I heard that he wanted to.

Neither person missed anything by not doing the movie.

Hmm... a sequel where the bad guys got there first. By what margin? Close enough that the good guys got some people and fighter craft, or far enough that Global Sedition got dug in pretty good first?

Of course, once the Jupiter Mission reaches Centauri Prime, Dr. Smith (Gary Oldman) discovers his side won, and he can demand his payment for services rendered! What would Prof. Robinson do - strike out for some world that might be habitable, or discover a resistance force that's trying to overthrow the Sedition, and go to help them?

Anyhow, although it might require some recasting, a new TV series on the premise would be nice.

Of course, there's no way for William Hurt to interact with Guy Williams.

Actually there are two ways, CGI, or kill William Hurt.

In the original series, Judy was supposed to be 19. Old enough to know what she's getting into, and therefore not 'jail bait', but young enough that her parents John and Maureen wouldn't have to be too old. Also, if Don West spent a year at NORAD, or as an attache/aide, he could actually be a 'young' Major.
Brian - The film would have been better if, like in the original series, the Robinsons and Maj. West never really knew that Dr. Smith had tried to kill them and wreck the mission. In fact, I would have used the scripts from the first 4 episodes of the original series, MINUS the stuff about 'the heat from the comet', and substituting the Space Pod for parajets.

A friend of mine loaned me this movie on DVD....after returning it, I feel the movie itself should remain "LOST".

In other words...it was AWFUL.

The Nostalgia Critic agrees with you, John. You can view his review here. One part of his review made me crack up; I'll leave it up to you to decide which part.
I watched this movie on the Encore channel at my sister's house, years ago while baby-sitting her daughter. Who was one then; she's almost 14 now. Jeez, time flies, doesn't it?

A re-orchestrated version of the TV series theme plays over the end credits. But, it's the theme for the third season. Why didn't they use the theme for seasons one and two? The less said about the song that plays after that, the better.
The "Penny-Vision" videos were kind of lame. But, the idea has apparently caught on; a similar concept was used in a recent episode of Law & Order - SVU titled "Holden's Manifesto".

Didn't care much for the plot.

Spiders? NEAHHHHHH!!!

This movie will be released on a special collectors edition Blu-Ray on April 9, 2024. Spiders and all. More here.

What happened wit Dr. Smith and that spider bite? They know he's eventually gonna mutate into that...thing.

Did they find a cure for him? Did they shove him out the nearest airlock?

The movie never says.