The Lost World (1925)

A small group of adventurers headed by Professor Challenger (Wallace Beery) head into the depths of the Amazon jungles where they discover a plateau seeming untouched by time where dinosaurs roam. Based on the novel by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (who makes a brief on camera cameo introducing the film) and directed by Harry O. Hoyt. This is a wonderful film. While its somewhat crude stop motion work may suffer in comparison to the CGI creations of JURASSIC PARK, there's a certain historical charm and wonder to Willis O'Brien's (KING KONG) pioneering special effects. The brontosaurus loose in London sequence is superbly done and O'Brien gives his dinosaurs a bit of character (they have marvelous sneers). With Bessie Love, Lewis Stone and Lloyd Hughes. Alas, much of the film's original footage is lost and the 93 minute version (possibly longer depending on how many frames per second are projected) is about as complete a version we're likely to see unless the lost footage is uncovered.