Lost Colony: The Legend Of Roanoke DVD Review

In 1587, 121 colonists, led by John White, were sent to the island of Roanoke, Virginia to establish a new settlement in the name of England. On their way to establishing a new settlement further north on Chesapeake Bay, the colonists were tasked with picking up the 15 men left behind the year before on Roanoke island. When they arrived, the colonists discovered the skeletal remains of one of the men and the noticeable absence of the other 14.

The colonists stayed at Roanoke while White tried to reestablish relations with the local Native American tribes. During their time on Roanoke, White’s daughter gave birth to the first English child born in America, Virginia Dare. Also during this brief time, one of the colonists, a man named George Howe, was killed by some of the local natives, while searching for crabs in a local islet. This act of violence caused a great deal of alarm among the colonists and they convinced Governor White to return to England in an attempt to explain the settlement’s predicament in an attempt to get help. However, due to the England’s war with Spain, White was unable to return to America until the summer of 1590. Upon his return, White and his men found that the hundred plus settlers had disappeared, the only trace, the word Croatan, carved onto a nearby tree.

The Sci-Fi Channel’s, made for television film, Lost Colony: The Legend of Roanoke, also known as Wraiths of Roanoke is a ghostly rendition of this historical event. The film stars Highlander The Series’ own, Adrian Paul as Ananias Dare, son-in-law to John White, and father of Virginia Dare. Lost Colony: The Legend of Roanoke presents a new hypothesis into the ill-fated settlers and their disappearance some 400 years ago.

Faithful to the tradition of the Sci-Fi Channel’s modus operandi, Lost Colony: The Legend of Roanoke tells the story with a supernatural twist as the settlers battle bloodthirsty ghosts. The settlers, lead by Ananias try in vain to fortify their settlement in attempt to stave off the attacks of the evil apparitions.

It is tragic when a beloved star and actor like Adrian Paul who was so excellent as Duncan McCleod on the hit television series Highlander, is reduced to such horrible roles and projects as this one. Lost Colony: The Legend of Roanoke is about par for the course with regard to made for Sci-Fi Channel films. The acting is sub par at best but the horrible performances pale in comparison when set side by side to the terrible special effects. The apparitions look like a combination of make-up and live action and a system of film scratching to create outlines around the ghosts to give them a blue glow, a technique not used since Poltergeist in 1982. This, combined with lack luster performances and a terrible plot renders Lost Colony: The Legend of Roanoke almost unbearable to watch.

The DVD release of the film is presented in full frame and features a stereo sound track. There are no special features to speak of.