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A series of natural desasters occuring at a too frequent rate to be just
coincidence make the scientific world wonder about the actual cause, & only
inventor Bruce Gordon (Kane Richmond) has a device that can actually pinpoint
the source of it all, whoch is a magnetic mountain in darkest Africa. & as
Bruce is our ever dashing hero, he soon mounts an expedition, consisting of
him, his friend Jerry (Eddie Featherstone), plus scientists Colton & Reynolds
(William Millman, Ralph Lewis).
This motley crew not only finds the magnetic mountain but also a lost city
(hence the title), ruled by evil Zolok (William 'Stage' Boyd), whose intention
is to destroy the world with his apparatus, built for him by the mild-mannered
doctor Manyus (Josef Swickward), whom he has in his power because of holding
his daughter Natcha (Claudia Dall) hostage.
But not only has Manyus built this apparatus, he has also found a way to
transform the natives into mndless giants obeyeing Zolok to the letter. &
while Colton & Reynolds soon decide they want Manyus' knowledge for
themselves & start doublecrossing everyone in sight (& soon have to pay
with their life for that), Bruce & Jerry actually succeed in escaping from
the Lost City with Manyus & Natcha ... but that's only where the adventure
begins, since the sinister trader Butterfield (George
Hayes) & his aide Andrews (Milburn Morante) want to get their hands on the
doctor's knowledge to make them an army to rule Africa, Nomad chief Ben Ali
(Gino Corrado) sees the great opportunities of Manyus' invention to make his
slaves more obedient, & Queen Rama (Margo D'Use) wants to get her hands not
only on the professor but on Bruce, whom she wants to marry, too. In ever
changing alliances, the three groups fight over professor Manyus, & if that
wasn't enough, Zolok, who controls everything via his tv-set, has sent he-man
Appolyn (Jerry Frank), hunchback Gorzo (William Bletcher) & the giant Hugo
(Sam Baker) to the jungle as well to return the professor to him.
It is not until Manyus, ever the kind man, saves Butterfield's life &
that man in turn promises to become a good guy as well, that fortunes change
for our heroes, Natcha & the professor, & soon they, with the help of
Gorzo, who inexplicably has turned noble as well, can overcome Ben Ali &
Queen Rama, return to the Lost City, imprison Zolok & destroy his deadly
apparatus.
After they have left the city, Zolok, now mad as a hatter, destroys the Lost
City, & himself with it, while Bruce proposes to Natcha ...
She said yes, in case you were wondering.
One of these great over-the.top serials, which is just so full of campy
ideas (& actors, sets & costumes that would carry the camp even
furhter) it didn't really matter that the budget was rather limited (& it
often shows). Also, both acting & direction rather hark back to silent-film
days, which definitely was a thing of the past even in 1935, but this does only
further contribute to the weird qualities of Lost City. Actually, the
costumes of Margo D'Use as well as her performance are worth the price of
admission alone.
By the way, legend has it that when director Revier found out that Mascot
pictures were preparing production of a similar themed serial - Phantom
Empire - at the Mack Sennett studios, where Lost City was
also shot - & which was being turned into Mascot's
own production facility at the time -, Revier hired 2 extra units to speed
filming up from 35 to 21 days just to beat Phantom
Empire to the theatres, if only by a few weeks - this is not to say
that any of these 2 serials copied from the other since lost city/lost
civilisation-plots were staple of serials back in the 30's, in terms of
popularity though Phantom Empire
proved to be the more successful of the 2, spawning the career of popular
singing B-cowboy Gene Autry, that lasted well into the 50's, surviving even the
transition to television.
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