Rating: 
Summary: One of the best gritty fantasy films ever.
Review: Hey I gotta give this one five stars for being one of the best gritty fantasy films ever. The only one better would be Conan the Barbarian. Saw it when I was 12 and loved it. Saw it again when I was 25 and loved it more.
If you want a fantasy movie without cutesy characters and stupid themes this is the one.
Rating: 
Summary: Great fantasy movie.
Review: Fantasy movies such as this are non-existent these days. Gimme back the days of The Dark Crystal, Jim Henson and the Gremlins. For a family movie this is also very straight-faced too. There is not much humor in it, but that only adds to the overall weird tone.
The story is of a wizard apprentice called Galen (a very young Peter MacNicol) who goes on a quest to slaughter a Dragon terrorizing the people of Urland (Ireland maybe?). There are long moments of quiet and a strange atmosphere brewing around the whole movie. It looks and feels quite unique.
No doubt this is owed a lot to the fabulous widescreen compositions, visual effects that range from not bad to surprisingly good and stunning scenery and locations. Indeed the mood of this film is something I've never come across in a fantasy film. Plus for a film that is rated a simple PG, there was quite a lot of graphic gore, violence and even slight nudity. Surprising, but it adds to the boldness of the production. You would never get a family movie like this these days. I will take Dragonslayer over Harry Potter anytime.
Filmed in Panavision, the 2.35:1 anamorphic picture looks really great in most scenes but in others there is a small problem with the black levels. The soundtrack has been remastered in Dolby 5.1 and it is surely loud and forceful. Unfortunately there are ZERO extras. Which is a shame, because for a film like this, I really want more.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent on several fronts
Review: Dragonslayer is one of my favorite films, for several reasons.
Firstly, the performances are excellent. They're believable, restrained, convincing portrayals that never stoop to cartoonish stereotypes. The costumes and sets are first rate and authentic to a tee. The locations are breathtaking, filmed in Wales and the Isle of Skye - the countryside looks as though it has produced its fair share of dragons and wizards
Secondly, the plot and script go deeper than the surface. There's a lot more going on here than just good versus evil, wizard versus dragon. The way that Ulrich (Ralph Richardson) regales himself in proper sorcerer's attire so as to make the right first impression is great. With little dropped lines the director and screenwriter create a very rich and complete world. Ulrich asks the travelers why they don't go talk to such and such other wizard...or how about those sisters that are witches? "Or what about Old Grimbold? I heard tell he slew a dragon once..." "They're all dead. You're the only one left." With just a few seconds of screen time we get an image of a world in transition, where the old sorcerers are dying out along with the dragons. The times they are changing. The politics at work in the court of the king of Urland are as true to reality as if they had happened last week. All the give and take and the hard decisions a leader must make are there to be seen. A village community under immense stress is shown honestly, and the ways they react are true to life.
Thirdly, and this is what has kept me loving this film for the last 20 years, is that this film more than any other dealing with this subject matter, even more than Lord of the Rings, makes me wonder what it was really like in that age of the world. What was it like to be in Britain at the turn of the tide between paganism and Christianity? The hope of redemption and eternal life through The Church might have felt like thin gruel if a dragon needed slaying, and a sorcerer of the Old School said he could do it. It's a silly idea, really, but I'm sure that similar sorts of things did happen, back when the world was not quite so old. There is a wonderful, tiny touch near the end, one you might not notice. (Spoiler alert.) Ulrich, back from the dead, meets Valerian again and as he is about to do battle with the dragon, he says a few last words to her. As he does this, he pauses and picks up the necklace she's wearing. It's a tiny iron cross, a gift from her father. And as he looks back at her, there is just the faintest tinge (Ralph Richardson is the master of faint tinges) of recognition in the old wizard's eyes that he is being replaced, that his world of magic is being set aside for one of faith.
And that's allright with him. Perhaps he knew it all along. Perhaps he's part of the transition; we'll never know. But he has one last job to do before the new day dawns. A fine, fine film, marred only by a clunky and somewhat uneven soundtrack.
Rating:
Summary: Overlooked fantasy classic gets a second life on DVD
Review: Unjustly overlooked by movie audiences in 1981, this dark, sometimes brooding fantasy adventure filled me with excitement and wonder as a young boy watching it on the big screen.
I am so happy to see it arrive on DVD, and even more happy to own a copy.
The story is a comparitively simple one, and yet complex in its own way. Travelers from a far off land arrive at the door of an elderly wizard and implore him to travel back with them to face a dragon who takes young, offered-up women in exchange for leaving the kingdom alone, as the wizard comments: 'Your King has made a deal with the devil.'
In what appears to be nothing but an act of apparent suicide the wizard has a sceptical warrior plunge a dagger into his heart, much to the horror of his apprentice. The reason for the act of violence is not revealed until much later.
Feeling it is his duty, the young wizard-in-training travels back with the band to take on the monster in a final climactic battle for honor, courage and ultimately for love.
Firstly, the special effects (by Industrial Light and Magic) are simply stunning and would stand up even to the best of todays (even more remarkable when you consider that CGI would not appear on movie screens until WILLOW some 7 years later). The final battle with the winged beast has all the suspense, and wrist clenched tension of any movie I know. The actors are well drawn and the storyline is both compelling and heart-stopping.
Overall DRAGONSLAYER has a charm to it that is rarely seen in movies today. It is a special effects fantasy drama with real heart. For that reason alone movie audiences of today should make a point of seeing it.
Rating:
Summary: Slayer
Review: Yes, of course it is showing its age. It was made in 1981. This does not change the fact that this movie totally owns. This rocked back in the day and it continues to rock if for nothing but the pure nostalgia factor (showing this movie to my older brother will be sure to conjure memories). 1981 seemed to be a big year for movies about Knights, swords and sorcery. This was one of the best and remained the best for a long time to come. Only today, with slick computer graphics do we see the failures of the special effects here and there. However, they tried their best, really they did. It remains an impressive tale about magic, progress, advancement, and heroism. One of the more memorable lines from this movie was something like :"Well, I'm glad that magic is fading from this world, the dragons are fading along with it." Hmmm.
Rating:
Summary: Good when it came out--and still good now!
Review: This has been a favorite of mine over the years, and its stood the test of time--I still like it! I especially like the characters, the way it lets you understand their motives without asking you to accept them. It shows you peoples foibles as well as their strengths. It includes several horrific scenes, but doesn't bog down in explicit detailing of gore (for example, when the princess sacrifices herself to the dragon, you don't see her killed, but only see a glimpse of her body where the baby dragons are feeding). Or, the old servant is murdered, and before he dies he says, "Someone's shot me!" in a voice of surprise, like he can't understand why someone would do that. And the dragon was believable to me. I accepted its sadness at being at the end of an era and without having a place in the new one. Dragonslayer is a good story supported by special effects and not the other way around--a movie with loads of special effects and no story--that would be boring!
|
