The Land Unknown (1957)

The Land Unknown Trailer

Director: Virgil W. Vogel
Cast: Jock Mahoney and Shirley Patterson
Shawn Smith
William Reynolds
Henry Brandon
Douglas Kennedy
Phil Harvey

An expedition to the Antarctic discovers a land of warm jungle filled with dinosaurs. They crash thanks to a pterodon, and are trapped inside the old volcanic crater, food for the T. rex that lives there. Their chances improve when they find Hunter, a flyer from the previous 1947 expedition. Unfortunately, Hunter wants to keep Maggie Hathaway, the only girl on the expedition, demanding her sacrifice if he helps them to fix their helicopter. Commander Roberts refuses. In the end, Hunter helps and leaves with the others as the T. rex destroys their camp. The chopper doesn’t make it to the ship but crashes in the sea but all are rescued. In the end the commander and Maggie declare their love and all ends happy. I had never heard of this film before last week.

As a fan of Pellucidar and Jules Verne, etc. this surprises me. The star, Jock Mahoney, would play Tarzan in 1962, the oldest to play that role. I think they made his character an ”emotionless scientist” because of his acting ability. The biggest thing that struck me about this film –thinking of all the films I did see that post-date this one, is how little special effects improved in 15+ years. The Last Dinosaur, At the Earth’s Core, The Land That Time Forgot, even the 1990s The Land of the Lost TV show really aren’t much better in the dino department, just in color. Reportedly, this film was to be in color but they spent so much on the dinosaurs they didn’t have the budget.

CGI and Jurassic Park really did bring the dino flick back, raising its look to a new level. The kinds of stories haven’t changed at all. The Land Unknown ends with the crew riding a helicopter to safety, leaving the dino terror behind…

The Land Unknown received a comic book adaptation in Dell Four Color #845 (August 1957). This was two months before the film’s release. The adaptation was written by Robert Ryder with artwork is by the amazing Alex Toth.