At the Mountains of Madness

I love radio series like this.... some people say books are the best, because you fill in the details with your own imagination, I agree. These old school (Style) radio programs are a wonderful bridge between a book and a movie, you still fill in the visuals with your imagination.I chose At the Mountains of Madness, first, to see how well this group does it. They rock! The production is wonderful, and on par with anything the BBC has to offer. I say that because I love the Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy radio production.I will be buying all their other productions, as I love H.P. Lovecraft.

The stories of HP Lovecraft still haunt us years after his death and despite the fact he is still relagated to general obscurity. Ask your average person who he is, and you'll likely get no response. When I was younger, in my teens, it was popular to read his works. They were a taste of the wierd and horrible and it was chic to know names such as Cthuhlu and make references to Miskatonic University or the writings of certain mad arabs.Years later I went back to his work and found it all the more thrilling and horrific. My younger mind couldn't pick up the subtle terror of the unknown that I believe Lovecraft mastered.When I discovered one of his greatest works and one of his view 'novels' had been turned into a Radio Drama, I leapt at the chance. This is not just a 'reading' of the Mountains of Madness, it is an honest to goodness radio drama done in the style of the 1930's when radio was king and cigarettes were just darn good for ya! The voice acting, music and sound effects work to take the Mountains of Madness to where modern film could not go. The radio drama leaves much for the listener to imagine, the same as the written work. While film often destroys imagination by 'showing' you horror, the radio drama simply guides you into your own nightmareish visions.Is the radio drama perfect? No. The beginning is a bit repetative with a series of 'World Wide News' stories which set the backdrop of the tale. A listener might get a bit frustrated hearing the morse code and musical jingle of the radio station over and over. However, once Professor Dyer begins his tale in earnest, listeners are left with the frozen wastes of Antarctica, the wonder of a forotten city, and the horror of what truly happened to Professor Lake.What lies beyond the Mountains of Madness await and I strongly reccomend you let Dark Adventure Radio take you there!

The world needs more people like the guys at the HP Lovecraft Historical Society.First, they produced a movie adaptation of Lovecraft's classic CALL OF CTHULHU. And did they do the obvious, and update the tale to the 21st century, film it in living color, with photorealistic CGI effects and self-consciously edgy modern characters? Nope. They did it right, as a picture-perfect impersonation of a silent film contemporaneous with the publication of the original story.Now, they've followed that up with an adaptation of Lovecraft's AT THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS. Not a silent movie this time, but a radio play in the classic style of LIGHTS OUT or SUSPENSE (complete with commercials!). See, these guys know what I know: That cineplex- and ratings-driven fashion have not made artistry and style obsolete. If you know it, too; if you love good, old-fashioned urbane horror; if you love the timeless ambiance of a radio dramatization (played in the dark); if you want a Lovecraft adaptation that's appropriate to the life and times of the man himself, then do yourself a favor and buy this CD. You'll get well over an hour of Lovecraftian goodness and you won't be disappointed.I just wish more people had this much respect for the style and artistry of the past.

I Thought This Was An Excellent Rendition,Of One Of LoveCraft's Classic Stories. I Really Like Most Of The Voice Actors. I Think They Do An Excellent Job,In Portraying The Story;Specifically,The Steadily Building Horror,In The Lofty Mountain-Scapes Of The Antarctic,As The Expedition,Begins To Uncover The Terrifying Evidences Of The Old Ones,And;Worse,Their Rebelling,Utterly Monstrous Slaves,The Dreaded Shoggoths. As I was Listening To It,I Really Felt I Was Experiencing The Story,As It Unfolded,Almost Directly Out Of Its Written Pages. A Fantastic Job!! All LoveCraft Enthusiasts,Will Enjoy This CD Presentation.

I've heard this twice on Radio4X and was enthralled, Lovecraft is a powerful scary cult writer and Richard Coyle is literally out of this world reading this story. The accompanying sound track by Jon Nicholls is as scary as the story, if not more so. Lovecraft, not appreciated in his lifetime apart from a niche of similar writers, would have been well pleased. Also hear Richard Coyle reading 'The shadow over Innsmouth' with Niicholls again giving a superb musical accompaniment. I wish all of Lovecraft could have been available by these two. Buy.

The beauty of Lovecraft's writing is aptly complimented by the rich accented voice of Richard Coyle. I heard this first some years ago on the radio and it has haunted me until now. This is really a very lovely production of this story. The music by Jon Nicholls is delicate and sinister and matches the whole eerie telling of Geologist William Dyer's terrifying journey into the Mountains of Madness

A stunning adaption of a great HPL tale. This BBC production is wonderful. Richard Coyle reads the tale as if you were there, and the incidental music & foley sounds only accentuate the feeling of being lost in the snowy wastes of the unknown. I loved every second of this product and can only sing its highest praises. Fantom Films have merchandised it in fine form, and it is a delight to finally have a five star Lovecaft tale on five star audio.

Richard Coyle is fantastic again, if you have heard the Shadow over Innsmouth radio drama then this one is equally fantastic. Excellently narrated and very suspenseful. Highly recommended!Recommended for any fan of H.P Lovecraft.

This 1930's take on a radio documentary/play lasts approx. an hour but seems much longer so you could say it's value for money, however the first half of the programme is so overloaded with special effects to simulate poor radio reception from the expedition that it really strains your concentration. As a first introduction to H P Lovecraft it's only served to steer me away from this writer. Other episodes in the Dark Adventure Radio Theatre may be better, however at the relatively high price for an hour's worth of (completely absent) drama I think I'll save my cash for something more exciting - like Gardener's World!.