Attractive young survivors of a Pacific island aircrash come to terms with a new, primitive, isolated life together.
In the early 00s, reality tv was all the rage, at the expense of drama. In the US, an island-based `ten little Indians' scenario called Survivor was the most popular reality tv game. This featured attractive, scantily clad people in their 20s and 30s playing survival games.
This drama, Lost, from 2004 has many of the features of Survivor. It's more real, because deaths are portrayed and the scenario is less structured, but less real, because these are actors with a script. A plane crashes on a Pacific Island, leaving 40 or so survivors. No one knows where they are, and they can't contact the outside world. Early on, some survivors act as heroes, or are enthusiastic about helping the new community. Others haven't come to terms with the new reality, and are selfish, vain, and unhelpful.
A good half of many episodes is taken up with flashbacks, telling the back-stories of the 8, or so, key individuals leading the group. This gives us a clue to understand the way people are acting on the island, and relieves the viewer from the constants of the island: the beach, the caves, and the jungle.
As the series unfolds, we learn that this is a private surreal world of the writers' imagination, rather than a logical drama, proceeding from the drives and emotions of the characters, respecting the laws of physics and chance. The group do not take normal defensive measures against the threats the island poses, frequently take stupid chances for little reward, and forget about significant past events. Instead, there is an emphasis on hippie pseudosciences, such as mystic numerology and karma. Events proceeed by a mixture of Dungeons & Dragons dice rolling, or are inspired by the classic cliff-hanger matinee cinema of the 1930s. The cast remain immaculately groomed, and Evangeline Lily's Irish complection remains perfect after years of tropical outdoor living.
The cast generally tend towards good looks, rather than great acting. However, Naveen Andrews stands out as the 30-ish Iraqi ex-soldier, Sayid, and Terry O'Quinn is good as the older, somewhat sinister hunter, Locke.
Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned