And so begins my 3 part Ridley Scott movie review. The first RS movie I will be reviewing is Legend. Now, I know what you're thinking,"Isn't Legend the best fantasy movie ever made?" The answer is damn skippy.
Legend is part of my 80's fantasy holy trifecta; the other 2 movies being The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth.
Legend is about The Lord of Darkness (Tim Curry) trying to create total darkness on earth (aka Goblin Paradise) so he can be all-powerful. In order to do this he must kill the 2 existing unicorns on the planet. Well, he doesn't necessarily have to kill the unicorns, rather remove their alicorns. It is up to the nature boy Jack (Tom Cruise), The Gump (a little German dude), 2 elves, and a sassy little fairy to stop him.
That is the main plot of the movie, which I think is solid. It's the perfect fantasy formula. The sub-plot is about the relationship between Jack and Princess Lili (Mia Sara). She is a princess for those of you who refuse to acknowledge the director's cut. But we'll get back to that issue. To further the sub-plot, the Lord of Darkness is also after Lili, probably because she was the hottest princess in any movie ever made.
This is 1 of 2 movies I like Tom Cruise in. His performance is fine. I think the movie makes him seem better than he actually is. Tim Curry was born to play the part of Darkness. I can't think of anyone better. Mia Sara was the second girl I fell in love with all because of this movie. She was great and really showed some range. She had to play sweet and innocent at the beginning of the film, frightened and confused in the middle, and dark and evil at the end. But my favorite performance of the whole film was Robert Picardo as Meg Mucklebones. Classic!
The characters of this movie are rich and vibrant. This is in part due to the acting, but maybe even more so due to the atmosphere and f/x of the movie. The atmosphere is something that Ridley Scott excelled in during the 80's. The sets and cinematography are grand and really bring the viewer into that world.
The special f/x of the 80's are my favorite kind, meaning no CGI. The makeup for Darkness, Blix, and Meg is some of the best ever. If this movie were made today (by people other than Jackson or del Toro) then those characters would have been completely CGI. The slime on Blix's face during the beginning while talking to Darkness, oh how it glistens!
Now let's get down to business: Theatrical release versus Director's cut. This is my favorite part to talk about. If you're like me, you grew up with the American, Tangerine Dream, theatrical release. I fell in love with this movie. Although I've always thought the soundtrack seemed out of place. For the longest time I thought I was going crazy though. I remembered a scene from this movie from when I was young but wasn't in my theatrical release VHS when I was older. I remembered the Meg Mucklebones scene being longer than the one on my VHS. After years of research, the version of the movie I had originally seen was the PBS cut which is basically the theatrical version with a few extended scenes including the MM scene. I also found that there are 5 confirmed cuts in all.
I was introduced to the director's cut in 2005. This version has extended scenes all over the place as well as just flat out new scenes. It also had re-edited versions some of the same scenes. The first time I watched this version I thought it was stupid and thought I never would watch it again. But I had to watch it again mainly because it has the extended Meg scene which is my favorite. After about 12 viewings, I find the Director's cut superior. The only thing I really don't like about it is Lili's singing scenes. While I miss the Tangerine Dream score, the Jerry Goldsmith score is much more appropriate for a fantasy film and adds to the ambiance. The Tangerine Dream score dates it. And we finally find out that Lili is a princess! This has always slightly confused me in the theatrical release. I new she was upper class but wasn't sure about her specific status. Also, on the bonus materials on the Ultimate Edition DVD, there are deleted scenes that I wish were included in the actual movie. Fun fact: There were actually 4 goblins at the beginning who were searching for the unicorns. We see how the 4th one dies as well as how Blunder gets his claw hand.
The only real complaint I have about the movie is this: When the heroes enter the layer of Darkness, the goblins are no where to be found. They are literally never seen again in the movie. It would seem to me that they would be protecting the unicorn or the "tree" from intruders. I never have really understood what happened with them.
Again, this movie is the best fantasy movie of all time; yes, even better than any of the Lord of the Rings movies. Comment if you disagree, I dare you. This is my second favorite Ridley Scott movie. Director's Cut: 9 out of 10. American Theatrical Version: 8 out of 10.
Toward the end of the film, "Where are the goblins?" you say. Consider this:
ReplyDeleteThe goblins are just independent contractors for Tim Curry...I mean, lil' Darkie. They were tasked with retrieving the horn, and they got it. Job done—they go back to doing whatever it is they normally do on Tuesday (which is when the final act takes place, by the way). They're not responsible for guarding lil' Darkie's lair—that's what the big shirtless guys and the room full of crazy feline people are for. Maybe Darkie needs to upgrade his security system because it obviously sucks MM balls.