Customer Reviews

Lost Horizon: Original Soundtrack (1973 Film)

5 star:		(64)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

It's truly rare that a soundtrack as excellently mastered and produced with excellent sound quality is better than or at least as good as the movie it represents.

The movie, a remake of the late 30's version but with a musical take really isn't all that bad if you can get over the fact that the "modern"-sounding nature of the music is an anachronism given the timeframe for the setting of the movie.

People have been quite forgiving of "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" for the same "sin" and so I can't understand why they had to pan this movie so badly that you can't even find a DVD version after all these years.

Rather than being overly critical of the film, I took it as light musical entertainment and thought that it was pretty good or that I had seen a lot worse. I thought the music by Bacharach was sublime although the lyrics by David were a little strange to say the least but just for the brilliance of Bacharach alone, I'd say get this cd and by the way, the sound is also very well engineered.

Now if only I can find a decent, LEGAL DVD version of the movie....

... loved this record all my life. I'm in my mid-30's now but fondly remember this from the early Seventies, when my Mum used to play it at my Grandparents house. It evokes some very warm memories... vaguely remember watching the film on TV too but it must have been a very long time ago.

Bacharach's trademark orchestration runs throughout the album, the sudden burst of trumpet on the opening track followed by a crescendo as the strings come in made me fill up with tears... I hadn't heard this album since I was about ten and it seemed as fresh as yesterday!

The instrumental break in 'Share the Joy' as the strings rise to a real high point never fail to make the hairs stand up on my arms, what a lovely lovely piece of music.

The vocal performances too... flawed as they are, are perfect for the songs... they seem more natural and 'human' than some perfect operatic performance. Sally Kellerman's vocal is a great example of this.

I'd always assumed that Peter Finch, Liv Ullmann, Olivia Hussey et al had actually performed the songs but now thanks to the superb sleeve notes I now know better... it shattered my illusions a little but hey... it still SOUNDS as if it's a stage actor trying his best to sing on 'It Might Frighten Her Away' and I LOVE IT!!!

I was slightly worried that listening to this soundtrack again after SO long might be a let down...

I needn't have worried... a superb bit of 'Bacharach & David' for old romantics everywhere.

Here's to us all finding our own Shangri-La out there somewhere.

This film came out in 1973 and I saw it in its original full length version (about 3hours and 15 min.) Executives from Columbia Pictures were there, it was the premeire, and they were groaning and at the intermission fights broke out(verbal) and ushers passed among them and myself and everyone else with soundtrack albums. The executives left the theatre and scaled the albums across Columbus Circle in Boston and I and a few friends retrieved them and had quite a few for free. We returned to the film and I have always loved this crazy redition of Lost Horizon, the miscasting, the terrible sets, the odd ball music for the story, the dubbed Liv Ullmann, the dance routines of Olivia Hussey..all of it. You cannot find a musical like it, or a soundtrack like it. Columbia execs were unimaginative; they should have believed in this film. The next day after this premeire in Boston, New York etc. (simultaneous I suppose) the film was cut, the posters were taken down..there was a ton of material to buy..T Shirts, dolls, posters of all sizes, bath towels with the poster on them, records of the sd tk of course, and small pop up sets of the entire film. It was to be a massive hit..In two days time all of the paraphanalia was removed, and the posters said, Last Two Weeks, and in two weeks the whole thing disappeared.
But many people came to see it..lines of people, and, when they heard it had been cut, they gave up, and in two weeks everyone said farewell to this film.
I have many treasures from that opening nite, and now I have the CD of the sound track. Anyone who loves movie magic or madness has to see and hear this film; it is unique.

Enjoy this soundtrack and get your hands on a DVD ..they are out there!

Wow!! To find sooo many reviews here brought tears to my eyes! I thought my family were the only ones to remember this inspirational movie. I was only 8 yrs.old when I fell in love with this movie musical. I wore out my vinyl album and thought I would never find it again!! I literally cried when I finally was holding the cd in my hands!! Now, if only I could find the movie on video.... Truely uplifting beautiful music!!! Makes me feel like there is hope for this world, especially when I see so many other people that have been "moved" by this musical!! WHERE CAN I GET THE VIDEO!!!?

This is the true diamond of the film world! I have loved this film since the first time I saw it all those years ago. It has stayed with me throughout my life, I am 37. I still remember most of the songs and when I am having a not so great day I think of any of the songs from this magnificently uplifting film and life is wonderful again! It is such a feel good film and like one of the other reviewers said, it is just what we need in these frightening times of terrorism. If you haven't seen this film then I am truly sorry because you have missed out on something that would change your life forever! I cannot praise it enough, it is gold...PURE GOLD!!!! Bravo, Bravo!!!

For all the folks trying to find a DVD of the 1973 musical Lost Horizon there are copies available on ebay. They are copied from lazerdisk but are of good quality. They will play on most computer drives and most newer DVD players. Seek & you shall find!

When this movie was shown in 1973 I was still in high school and about 16 years old. I loved the movie, the theme, the way it was done and presented. The cast played well. It is one movie that is really wholesome and for any age. That is why at the age of 46 I could only wish to see it again and for my children to see it. That remake cannot be replaced by any other remake. I could just wish because for years now we have been looking for a copy of the movie in vain. I cannot understand why a 1937 movie is available and a 1973 cannot in this highly technological world. The theme may not be inviting to more people now, especially in this business world? Or could it be that they do not know that in our lifetime there was once a lifestyle such as this Lost Horizon?

Thank you - all who have reviewed this. I can't add anything new to what has already been stated. I've been checking for a video tape of Lost Horizon for several years now - and will have to be satisfied with the CD until that wonderful day comes. Burt Bacharach has been my favorite since singing "The Windows of the World" in the early 70's while attending NYState Music Camp in Oneonta, NY while singing in the "Select Choir." What a talented composer and of course Hal David's inspiring words. Same for all the songs in this collection.

In the early 1970s, an era when the movie musical genre had a brief resurgance in popularity, Columbia Pictures decided to revive their 1937 fantasy gem LOST HORIZON, and turn it into a musical. With Burt Bacharach and Hal David committed to write the score, and the cast headed by Peter Finch and Liv Ullmann, LOST HORIZON crashed and burned horribly at the box-office; nevertheless, the film has a rabid following and the soundtrack album conjures back those magical sounds of Shangri-La.

The main reason why the film never worked was the contemporary `70s music, which seemed out-of-place within the period setting of the story. On the soundtrack, you can just sit back and appreciate the soaring melodies, which Bacharach obviously had a ball composing. The liner notes of the CD reveal the number of stars who had their singing dubbed (obviously Peter Finch and Olivia Hussey). Liv Ullmann's voice was dubbed by Diana Lee (who also dubbed Samantha Eggar in "Doctor Dolittle", and Charlie's mother in "Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory"). Interestingly, despite being dubbed here, Liv Ullmann later starred in a Broadway musical version of "I Remember Mama", so her own warbling must have been of some merit...

Sally Kellerman, a non-singer, nevertheless decided to record her own vocals, and as a result "The Things I Will Not Miss" is one of the best songs; other standouts include "The World is a Circle" and "I Come to You". The sound quality of the CD is acceptable; taken from the best-surviving analogue master tapes. There is often some harsh analogue distortion throughout, but nothing too obtrusive.

A must for admirers of Bacharach, or fans of the musicals.

[Razor & Tie RE 21-52-2]

I first bought this soundtrack in the 70's after the movie was released. I wore the tape out from playing the soundtrack so much. Thank goodness I just happen to see it's now available on CD. I love this soundtrack. Why, I just don't know. It's just feel good kind of music. Nothing fancy but pure fun. It's too bad the movie was not a box office hit. I wish it were available on DVD.