Lost in Space

This glossy makeover of the '60s TV series pays homage to its roots while jazzing things up Hollywood style with sleeker duds and a Jupiter 2 that literally sheds its unhip, boxy skin. The Robinsons are still out on an intergalactic mission to find a suitable new habitat for humans. And all your favorites are here: Professor John (William Hurt), wife Maureen (a fiery Mimi Rogers), and their strong-minded children, Penny (an annoying Lacey Chabert from Party of Five), now full of '90s teen angst; Will (Jack Johnson), the ship's computer hack; and Judy (Heather Graham, playing the sexual opposite from her Roller Girl in Boogie Nights), who keeps the drama interesting by maintaining an on-again off-again flirtation with the ship's pilot, Don West (Friends' Matt LeBlanc fitting well into a macho role).

Then there's stowaway Dr. Smith (Gary Oldman, forced to play the conniving coward as a maniacal meanie), whose malevolent meddlings maroon the Jupiter 2 in outer space and fuel the film's thin hodgepodge of "out of the frying pan and into the fire" conundrums. None of it adds up to much, especially after the perplexing and convoluted "time bubble" sequence. About the only thing that's presented with any purposeful consequence is the pandering set-up for a sequel. At the Cheri, the Fresh Pond, and the Circle and in the suburbs.

-- Tom Meek