Journey to the beginning of Time in '60s Horror and Sci-Fi Forum

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Journey to the beginning of Time

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pringly	Journey to the beginning of Time	Lead	[-]
Jul 15 12 12:42 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I searched for a thread in the 50’s, Foreign Horror and 60’s folders, but couldn’t find one, so if there is one and I missed it, I’m sorry. I saw this last night with my son for the 1^st time in about 35 years when I was about 8. I had only a slight remembrance of it, so it was actually like watching it for the first time. Not much of a story but still a great film! The first thing that struck me was how ambitious the film was especially for a kids flick; the sheer volume of special effects shots in the film seems to me to surpasses most of what was put out by Hollywood in 50’s. I don’t know what kind of budget the film had or how much time they had to put it together, but there is a lot to see. Although not on par with Harryhausen or O’brien, the animation was really good and some of the mechanical puppets, especially the duck billed dinosaur, were fantastic. It was also beautifully shot. I wish there was a remastered DVD where you could really get the full effect. As it was, I watched it on a used VHS tape I got from a flea market and it still looked good. I really want to see the original Czech film. I don’t know if the story, which is boorishly educational, differs significantly, but I suspect that it does. Why they had to Americanize it and add the prologue which really doesn’t fit in well is beyond me. If fact, the prologue pretty much makes the rest of the story fairly silly. Still I liked it and would really like to see more of Karel Zeman’s work. Anyway does any one else have any thought on this film????
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Rick		#1	[-]
Jul 15 12 1:56 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	You might be right, pringly, about there being no other thread specifically for this film. It, and a lot of other Zeman stuff, pops up in other places, though. Here's an old thread on Zeman: http://monsterkidclassichorrorforum.yuku.com/topic/8809/Karel-Zeman-anyone?page=1 And there's a brief discussion of the movie on this recent page... http://monsterkidclassichorrorforum.yuku.com/reply/846331/Films-You-Haven-t-Seen-Since-Childhood#reply-846331 And there's a fair amount of Zeman stuff on YouTube, including a couple of complete films... Zeman on YouTube He really was a wonderful and unique artist and should be better known. Last Edited By: Rick Jul 21 12 11:38 AM. Edited 2 times.
pringly		#2	[-]
Jul 15 12 2:58 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Thanks Rick. I read the thread on Zeman in the Man behind the monsters folder this morning. I'll check the other ones out. I also watched a few of the Sinbad shorts on You tube this morning as well. They looked pretty cool but I have no sound on my computer. I would really like to see On the Comet which I heard about somewhere as well as the Jules Vern and Baron Munchausen flicks. I haven't really checked into them that thoroughly, but it seems like there are grey market copies on ebay.
kcor.tylerandjacksmo...		#3	[-]
Jul 16 12 7:19 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Although the details of my thinking are getting away from me, I think the unaltered original is superior to the one I saw as a child, upon re-viewng the latter and then seeing the former earlier this year. In the childhood movies thread Rick links to, I said "Original version Cesta do Praveku was available on Youtube within last year. Majorly different in opening, ending. I have both on my hard drive and, oddly, was just this morning deciding whether to delete them." Released in 1955, in Czechoslovakia, altered dubbed version released in US in 1965. What is perfect folder for it? Last Edited By: kcor Jul 16 12 7:23 AM. Edited 1 times.
Jobla.scarletstreet		#4	[-]
Jul 17 12 10:45 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	There was a box set of Karel Zeman films released in Japan, but there wasn't any English subtitles or audio. I really wish that Criterion's Eclipse series would release a Zeman collection.
timothymayer		#5	[-]
Jul 19 12 3:36 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	This was serialized on an afternoon kids' show in Ohio back in the 60's. I found a copy on VHS years ago and was able to show it to my kids. "It's alive!" Z7 Headquarters
M F Berry		#6	[-]
Jul 20 12 10:31 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I love this film in both versions, actually. In the Americanized version, whatever your feelings on it, you must tip your hat to their method of explanation regarding the hats the original Czech actors are wearing: "On our way, we passed a little man selling crazy carnival hats, and we were just feeling crazy enough to buy some!" I love the little detail there -- not just a man, but a "little man." And a big "yessir!" to the previous post praising the duckbill dinosaur -- one of the best real-time dinosaur puppets ever filmed.
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kcor.tylerandjacksmo...		#7	[-]
Jul 21 12 10:05 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I grant that the added "explanatory" segments of the added footage have an internal logic and a charm of their own, that charm being somewhat in keeping with the charm of the root material, but the cosmic force segments do not, to my mind, and I wonder about the motivation behind them. The original film flows from frame one to frame the last. Seeing the original is as important as seeing an altered version one perhaps saw when a child, and I think the original superior as a piece and thus more important to see when one doesn't want to recreate an earlier personal experience or understand how the US release compares. EDITED IN: Request of Rick. I think the longer of your provided links is stretching the thread wide, beyond the width of most monitors' viewing. Please consider editing it into a shorter form (like, giving it a short title in the little Yuku insert-link pop-up), in case this thread gets legs. Thanks. NEW EDIT IN: Looks great now, Rick. God knows why but it ran out 'way wide on my machine. You fixed it. Last Edited By: kcor Jul 21 12 5:44 PM. Edited 3 times.
Rick		#8	[-]
Jul 21 12 11:40 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	kcor, I've done the hyperlink thing (first time I've ever done it, hope it's working). I didn't realize there was even a problem, because on my laptop screen that long link address was automatically broken into two lines. Sorry and hope it's fixed.
DonM435		#9	[-]
Jul 21 12 3:00 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I remember seeing this in episodes on a kids' show in Chicago long ago: I think it was the Garfield Goose show on WGN with Frazier Thomas. Last Edited By: DonM435 Jul 21 12 3:04 PM. Edited 1 times.
pringly		#10	[-]
Jul 21 12 9:34 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I read on the internet that it was first released to TV in syndication (around 1960) to be shown in serialized form (10 minute chapters). Did you see it in 1960? I was wondering how long it played on TV because I also read that it was released in movie theaters around 1966. >>>I grant that the added "explanatory" segments of the added footage have an internal logic and a charm of their own, that charm being somewhat in keeping with the charm of the root material, but the cosmic force segments do not, to my mind, and I wonder about the motivation behind them.<<< I also agree that the prologue and explanatory sequences within do have a certain charm to them, but the explanatory sequences really don't do a great job of tying in the prologue with the bulk of the movie. I mean its not often that you can rent a row boat in a park equipped with a lantern. There was also really no explanation for all the camping gear and provisions they had. Usually you don't take that kind of stuff along on a day trip to the museum. The other thing that got me was their complete lack of concern about taking the journey in the first place. If I didn't get home before dark when I was a kid, I wouldn't be able to sit for a couple of days. These are all minor quibbles and didn't make the movie any less fun. For some reason though, it bothers me. I don't know why they had to add the prologue and ending in the first place. The cosmic force segments were also a little weird for a picture that tried very hard to be grounded in science.
DonM435		#11	[-]
Jul 21 12 9:47 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	It must have been about 1960, when I was a little kid.
timothymayer		#12	[-]
Jul 26 12 10:20 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I'm thinking I saw it in the ten minute segments in 1964. On Dayton, Ohio's THE UNCLE ORRIE SHOW. "It's alive!" Z7 Headquarters
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Journey to the beginning of Time

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