Mjeteconer Just perfect...

Winifred The movie is made so realistic it has a lot of that WoW feeling at the right moments and never tooo over the top. the suspense is done so well and the emotion is felt. Very well put together with the music and all.

Celia A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Allissa .Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

bkoganbing Even today with Siegfried and Roy and their glitzy Vegas style wild animal taming act, the guy whose name is forever associated as the best in that profession is still Clyde Beatty. As an actor however Clyde was a great lion tamer. Still this feature version of the Mascot serial The Lost Jungle does give Beatty's legion of fans an opportunity to see him work the big cats.Like Sonja Henie, Beatty made his money and reputation in his field and just saw movies as a way of gaining publicity for his circus and he owned and was the feature attraction of his own circus, in the same way that Henie just used her 20th Century Fox films to publicize her ice show. Of course there's light years difference between working for 20th Century Fox and Mascot Pictures.The condensed feature film has a whole lot of things that any serial would have, lost island, lost treasure on same, a dirigible with Beatty and sidekick Syd Saylor on board, a shipwreck with Beatty's girl friend Cecilia Parker on it. Plus lots of encounters with lions and tigers who are on this mysterious lost island of Kumar in the Indian ocean which has animals native to both Africa and Asia. It even has a young Mickey Rooney at the beginning of the film as a kid going to Beatty's circus.It's not much of a film, but it is a chance to see Clyde Beatty who was the very best at what he did.

wes-connors "Clyde Beatty portrays himself, an animal trainer and circus star in this action film. Beatty leads a search for his missing girlfriend and her father, who were on an expedition looking for a lost tropical island. Using a dirigible as his mode of transportation, Beatty and his band head off in search of the missing explorers, only to crash their airship on the same island their friends are located (on, presumably). Battling wild animals and a gang of greedy men searching for gold, Beatty and his party must rescue his girlfriend and father, all the while trying to escape their jungle island," according to the DVD sleeve's synopsis.It's good to see young Mickey Rooney, from "The Big Cage" (1933), has a featured appearance, early during the running time. And, the film begins well, with Rooney helping Mr. Beatty fend off a lion attack staged by shifty Warner Richmond (as Sharkey). It gets tedious with Beatty romancing Cecilia Parker (later, she plays Rooney's "Andy Hardy" big sister), and repetitive with the animal antics. Still, "The Lost Jungle" isn't too bad for a "feature" versions of a "serial" film - most of the "serial-to-feature" re-productions are poorly edited, despite the seeming abundance of film footage available to tinker around with.**** The Lost Jungle (6/13/34) Armand Schaefer, David Howard ~ Clyde Beatty, Syd Saylor, Cecilia Parker, Mickey Rooney

classicsoncall I'm surprised I missed this one as a kid growing up, since anything with wild animals, especially jungle cats I found to be thrilling; that's why Tarzan has always been a favorite. "The Lost Jungle" more than anything appears to be a showcase for the talents of circus animal trainer Clyde Beatty, who portrays himself in the film. Beatty is not particularly impressive in physical stature, which makes it all the more remarkable in the way he handles himself surrounded by all manner of wild beasts both in captivity and in the wild.The search for a legendary island city of Kamor in the South Pacific forms the backdrop for the film's adventure. However it's not Beatty who initiates the voyage, but a Professor Livingston (Crauford Kent) who theorizes that a place exists where animals native to both Africa and India live together. That leg of the journey takes place aboard a schooner directed by Captain Robinson (Edward LeSaint), who for good measure drags his daughter Ruth (Cecilia Parker) along. Ruth is technically Beatty's fiancée, but since he can't tear himself away from his lions and tigers, he quite literally misses the boat.Beatty forms his own expedition to Kamor to rescue the Robinson's when news of their disappearance arrives. Their trip aboard a dirigible also meets with disaster, but at least they make it to their destination. What I found amazing was that two different parties set out for a largely mythical land, somewhere in a vast ocean (maybe), and they both wind up in exactly the same place.As a romantic, Beatty's a good lion tamer. When he first encounters Ruth, she's about to become lunch for a savage island lion named Sammy. After saving her from a main course, Beatty once again mangles every opportunity to let Ruth know how much he missed her. Instead he's fixated on the incredible wildlife that the island has to offer - sheesh! Skulking around to make life tough for Beatty is the villain of the piece, a low life named Sharkey (Warner Richmond). Motivated by jealousy and greed, Sharkey does his best to do bodily harm to the boss. Beatty never suspects what a heel he is, but the viewer can only cheer when a savage lion evens the score with the bad guy.If you pay close attention, you might recognize a whiskerless George (Pre-Gabby) Hayes aboard the dirigible as one of Beatty's crew. However another future star also makes an early appearance in the movie. The young boy with the dog who's fascinated by Beatty's heroics is none other than Mickey Rooney! Perhaps the real stars of the movie though are the four footed entertainers themselves, second billed to Beatty as The Hagenbeck Wallace Animals. Truthfully, it's hard to imagine how those jungle scenes were created, especially the very realistic battle between a lion and tiger. I imagine some stock footage was used, but it's difficult at times to draw a line between the staged and real scenes.A couple of times in the movie, Clyde Beatty makes a reference to "bring them back alive" regarding the jungle cats of Kamor. I would be curious to know if there were any conflicts with Beatty contemporary Frank Buck over the phrase, as Buck was an adventurer who captured wild animals for zoos and circus use during the same era. In fact, Buck's film "Bring 'Em Back Alive" preceded this one by two years, and the line was one of his trademarks.In any event, "The Lost Jungle" is worth a viewing to see the real Clyde Beatty in person, using his skill and resources to tame wild beasts. If nothing else, you won't want to miss that famous stare down.

feardeathbywater Before I watched this film, I had never heard of Clyde Beatty. Upon watching it though, it quickly became obvious that Beatty was a professional lion (and other wild animal) tamer, and probably quite a famous one at that.The reason for this is that this film really exists as an excuse for Beatty to do his stuff - a large part of the film is devoted to Beatty either taming animals such as lions, panthers, bears and tigers, or performing with them under the big top. The plot is secondary to this action, and is pretty standard for a 'jungle' type movie. Having said that, I found 'The Lost Jungle' to be quite interesting, especially as a historical artifact: acts like Beatty's are seldom seen these days. All in all, I enjoyed watching it: a light movie which gives a glimpse into the past.