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Summary: Dark Crystal
Review: DO watch this movie. Best effects and storyline. A good reflection of today.
Rating:
Summary: Eloquent, Artistic and Heart-wrenching
Review: I repeatedly watched this movie as a child and saw it again recently. And, still, I believe this is the best fantasy movie ever made. As Tolkien is to fantasy books, Oz's Dark Crystal is to fantasy movies.The story is that of Jen and Kira, two young heros who are the only male and female left of their kind. Jen is set with a task to battle against the odds to find a missing shard of the Dark Crystal to be placed into the crystal to make it whole again. All this, in order to restore balance to the world and allow all creatures to live in peace and harmony ever after from the magic-sucking creatures who destroy all. And of course, all of this has to be done before the three suns meet in the sky. In his journey, Jen discovers not only himself, but also meets some interesting and unsavoury characters, as well as the lovely Kira, who joins his quest. Jen needs to decide who to trust and finds himself in some very sticky situations. The director on this film must have had tremendous patience and vision, since all the characters are puppets. Although initially distracting, we soon forget about the puppetry as we become caught up in the fascinating story. Ne'er have I rooted so hard for a hero. The ending is both sweet and sad at once. The puppets allow a tremendous amount of creativity for developing all the different kinds of creatures, both good and evil. To some who don't like puppets, this could be kind of scary, but I find this unusual approach refreshing amidst a time when computer generated graffics are often bad and over used. The artistry of something that is created by humans is both touching and charming and has a genuine/honest feel to it. A predecessor of fantasy film that has yet to be matched by its successors. Truly eloquent. Without doubt, a classic.
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Rating: 
Summary: Not an improvement
Review: As my first "Superbit" title, this is a disappointment. As the description states, the film is scratched (not an issue with the transfer, but still diminishes the film). The high-rate of encoding did not improve the video - in fact I found it dark and murky. The biggest disappointment is with the audio, which has inconsistant volume in standard stereo - bass and score drown out voices in loud scenes, which are also muted compared to quiet scenes. This requires periodic master volume adjustments. In all, not worth the cost. I admit I've not seen the "Special Edition" DVD. If it's worse than this, buy it on VHS.
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Summary: The world lost a great genius in Jim Henson....
Review: I saw this movie when it was current in the theaters, having been a fan of Henson and company since the mid-sixties. Back then, they frequently made guest appearances on the Jack Paar Show, Ed Sullivan and then made the rounds to every OTHER talk and variety show you could name at the time. I knew that ANYTHING he and his organization would produce would be impressive, cerebral and unlike anything else in their field. I was right. This movie is pure magic! Henson and Frank Oz use a combination of finger and hand puppetry; their own creation, the "muppet", a combo of marionette and puppet, and body suits to create the characters of this film, a soupcon of elves; potato-like creatures that are as cute as bugs' ears; vulturous beings called Skeksis, long-nosed sloth-like characters called Mystics and Ogra, a cantankerous sorceress that helps the hero, Jen, return a crystal shard to the titular power source deep in the heart of Skeksis territory. Along his way to do this, he meets Kira, an adorable girl elf of his people, the Gelflings, that helps him survive a lot of the perils on his journey. One of the more horrific parts of this film is a scene where she and a few of the potato-like people, called Podlings, are tortured and drained of their life essence by the Skeksis so that the vulture-like monsters can stay invigorated. It seems the Gelflings were nearly wiped out by the Skeksis when an ancient prophecy revealed that a lone gelfling would seize power from them somehow. Both Jen and Kira were saved and raised, by the Mystics, in Jen's case, and the Podlings in Kira's. It isn't mentioned where Ogra comes from, but they must have been a DAMNED interesting race! Jen is that gelfling, but it is Kira that finally makes it possible, after all her hardship. The scene where Kira introduces Jen to her Podling friends is almost worth the price of the tape/DVD. Why must Jen return the shard? That's explained by the ending and I'm not going to spoil it for you here. Suffice it to say that though Jen is the supposed star of the movie, Kira steals the spotlight from him often, as does Ogra. The whole production will take you right back to the highest quality family special of the fifties, only this is done much better than any of them! The art direction is as good as "Legend", if not better. The puppetry is artistry at its best, setting new standards and bewitching both adult and childish eyes as does the set design, which words cannot describe in some cases. This movie is the perfect holiday family movie....the kind you used to go see or see on TV at Easter or Christmas back when Eisenhower was president. It's a forgotten masterpiece of family entertainment with depth, soul and entertaining staging. Get it and you will NOT be sorry!
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Summary: Warning, fantastic video but not so good for little ones!
Review: I found this in a search for movies for a 3-6 year old. I think if a 3-6 year old views some of the scenes in this film, there will be many sleepless nights for mom and dad!
Rating: 
Summary: It's Missing Something
Review: A shattered dark crystal holds the fate to an almost extinct species called the Gelflings. The Skeksis another race are bent on the Gelflings destruction and will stop at nothing. It is the prophecy that a Gelfling will merge the crystal shard and destroy the Skeksis. The plot of this movie was pretty deep and good. One thing the movie lacked was humans. It's not that I am being prejudice, but I really had a hard time relating to the charcters because they weren't human. So I sat through 94 min. movie not really caring what was going on. The length of the movie may have had something to do with it as well. Henson may have tried to tackle to big of a plot and not enough time to really do much with it. I highly recommend just renting this movie.
Rating: 
Summary: The Dark Crystal
Review: Suspend disbelief as you are ushered into this wonderous world, created by Technomancer Jim Henson, who manifests his puppets into existence. It is this same ingenuity that brings these creatures to life.
Into the fantastical world of The Dark Crystal..... The Skekses rule here, likened to ceremonial Magicians, drawing Power from the glowing Dark Crystal to celebrate & preserve their rule over the land. The Mystics, sloth-like beings ,who inspire pathos, resemble natural Magicians of the earth, who are also the caretakers of a gelfling, who is basically an elf-like creature, who is prophesied to deliver the world form the "tyranny" of the "evil" Skekses, a-la Moses, a-la Nazarene. There are so many wonderful beings herein --- creatures resembling mutated rabbits on stilts {who provide transportation for the Gelflings}, Podlings {a slave race serving The Skekses, also providing with essence to preserve youth for The Skekses --- indeed, nothing is wasted!}, & a little pet called Fizzgig, who is basically a small hairball with teeth. We meet Okra, who provides some essential clues for the Gelfling quest. The Dark Crystal is a magnificent fantasy-adventure, providing with many Magical evocations & fanciful delights!
Rating:
Summary: Not as Good as Everyone Makes it Sound
Review: I viewed this movie with the camp program I work at. The children there are ages 5-11. Well, not only did I not enjoy it, but the children didn't either. Maybe 5 kids, out of the 30 actually watched it. I tried to watch it, and after 5 minutes, I was bored of it. I found it hard to sit still and watch it. There was absolutley no point to the movie, and the complex script, made it hard to understand, not only for children, but for adults as well. I would not recommend this movie to anyone, unless if you like stories that are extremley fantasy, and make no sense.
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Summary: This Land was Green and Good Until The Crystal Cracked
Review: The Dark Crystal heralded a new age of puppeteering into the lives of many a young person and their easily influenced minds in the 1980s, showcasing not only the beauty of characters manipulated by a vast array of contraptions and the magic that could be woven on the loom of storytelling but also the dreariness that some legends hold within their epic grasps. This is one of the things I can clearly envision each and every time I look back in wonder on the tale of the Crystal and the "land that was green and good" that it lorded over, remembering how the thing came to crack and how the Skeksis began their rule over it. We join the Skeksis as they gather in a time of transition, one that sees them ushering in a new era as their emperor dies and another will ascend to a place of power. It is also an era that will usher in a renewal of power for these reptilian/birds as well, assuring their reign for another 1000 years if nothing amiss happens before the stars and planets align. Everything seems to be going well for them, too, except for a little prophecy that states that a Gelfling will bring about the a time of transition. Still, there isn't anything to be worried about because all of the Gelflings were killed long ago when this was first heard, right? Well, that's when the last male Gelfling, Jen, enters the picture and the quest to heal the shard begins; one that will lead in down the paths of loss, love, and the conquest of fear. As far as epic movies go, the Dark Crystal has it all. There are evils to be watched in admiration and their counterparts, the Mystics, to study under a cautious microscope for any sign of weakness, tiny villas full of "people" to see, jungles writhing with lifeforms both fascinating and bizarre, and many a support characters to enjoy. Also, the DVD version has The World of the Dark Crystal documentary on it, an informative piece in its own right, and a deleted scene depicting the Skeksis funeral scene. This all bonds together into one complete puzzle that is good enough for kids but is pH balanced for adults as well.
Rating:
Summary: Magical and timeless
Review: This movie was a favorite of mine growing up in the early 80's, although I must admit that some parts were very, very creepy to me at a young age ( as the other reviewer mentions himself. ) An old creature that hisses and then crumbles after dying isn't exactly Muppet Show mentality. But then that's how the movie is good, in a certain way. Jim Henson and Frank Oz took a chance and tried something new, creating puppets and landscapes in a dark fantasy movie that recalls both Lord of the Rings and Star Wars in its plot and characters. I have to say that after over twenty years, the movie holds up very well, overall. While some of the bluescreen work is a little iffy, the remastered DVD makes things look better. The puppets are, for the most part, very life-like ( conceptualized by Brian Froud, who would later work with Henson and Oz on Labyrinth ), and the sleight of hand tricks and camera moves ( check out the puppet>human actor>puppet seamless edits ) to disguise the fact that someone's hand was up the characters' asses was quite slick. Some of the best I've seen. Also, Trevor Jones' music score is inviting and epic, and as a DVD feature, can be heard as an isolated track. While The Dark Crystal may be a little *too* dark for anyone under the age of 4, anyone older should be amazed and satisfied by one of the 80's most magical and timeless movies.
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