The Dark Crystal

Rating:
Summary: Nightmares....
Review: Call me crazy, but this movie gave me nightmares. The characters (I know, they're fantasy, they're supposed to) look creepy and strange. In one scene when an old skeakse (vulture creature) dies, it's voice is all raspy, and it literally falls apart. That alone was enought to fuel a bad dream :( And since the characters are puppets, the way they would run, I don't know, just looks strange in it's own way. If you're creeped out by wierd looking creatures in a wierd environment, stay away. To those who like the movie, hey, no hard feelings, the plot was good and it was good fantasy, the way it haunts me just overshadows that.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful...
Review: and haunting and exciting and scary and fun and sad and magical and puppets! Go figure...

Rating:
Summary: An underrated masterpiece
Review: Jim Henson actually resented the Muppets' success much of the time, as it kept him from being taken seriously by many members of his industry, as well as the public. He channeled much of this resentment into "The Dark Crystal," which is often too dark for many of the children it was marketed towards. As a child, however, I was never frightened by the film. I was awed, mesmerized by it. Although not wholly succesful in some aesthetic terms (the mouth movements of the Gelflings can be annoyingly badly synced to the actual dialogue), it is a truly beautiful film. Almost 20 years down the line, and the ending still makes me a little teary. OK, so I'm a big sap. But as much as I love the Muppets, and I do, I regret that Jim Henson didn't have more opportunities to stretch his wings into more science fictiony, older audience things like this. The extras on the disk are nice, too. A fairly lengthy featurette on the making of the film sent me back to childhood, happily wide-eyed at the tricks they used to create another world.

Rating:
Summary: Not for little children!
Review: Please, please do not see "puppets" on the jacket of this video and think you're little kids will adore it -- it will scare them. However, adults who fondly remember Jim Henson's work and love a complete fantasy story should enjoy this. We watch it about every 2 or 3 years and still find ourselves jumping at various times in the film. At the end of the video there is a documentary about the making of it that those of you who want to know that sort of stuff will appreciate. For the time it was made, "The Dark Crystal" was amazing.

Rating:
Summary: I loved this film in 1982 and still do today.
Review: Hi people. I have seen this film in the theatres, on video tape, HBO, and now DVD. I bought the video tape way back when it first released in the 80's on beta. Do you remember beta VCR tapes? I was very impressed with this DVD version because of the better picture quality than the tapes and the deleted scenes that I have not seen before. I was hoping for more original scenes and original made up language of the charecters that was run on the pre-release film before the final film was released nationwide. I was not impressed with the way the music soundtrack is to be heard on the DVD, the only way to hear it is to play the whole film at the same time or seperate scene shots. I would have liked the soundtrack to be played seperate from the film like the LP record I once owned. I did like the trailers, art, and the making of The Dark Crystal bonus film. Overall the film is an adventure set in a fantasy world which has a lot of thought and imagination brought into it. I suggest watching the making of the film which will bring alot of insight to the world of The Dark Crystal.

Rating:
Summary: Exquisite!
Review: True, the quest story is as old as mankind, but here it is told in such a cinematically captivating and charming manner that this movie remains in a class of its own. You'll find a spectacular array of creatures and marvelous twists in the plot. One of my favorite scenes is where the two Gelflings fall over a cliff, the girl spreads her wings, the boy says: "But I don't have wings" to which the girl replies: "Of course not - you're a boy." The fact is that all the species come across as very real and believable - from the kindly and wise Mystics to the human Podlings to the awful and hideous Skeksis. The meal scene in the Skeksis castle is particularly vivid and memorable, although it's not for the squeamish! The visit to the lair of the witch Ogra is also quite humorous and spectacular, and I loved the little doggie, if it is a dog. This is in the class of Lord of the Rings exactly 20 years before the latter was made, although it's probably not fair to compare the two. For one thing, Dark Crystal convinces with its world of believable puppets, which adds a unique flavor to the film. I cannot fault this little gem on any aspect: the old myth is infused by new life here because of the marvelous turns in the plot, the scenes are so colorful you cannot forget them, the characterization is of the highest caliber, and the cinematography is breathtaking.

Rating:
Summary: it lets a mark on my soul.
Review: I watched this movie in the cinema in 1985..
I never forgot it anymore..
Actually, even nowadays it brings dreams that any child or young people has inside of themselves.
And under my point of view, J.Henson knew to translate this
dreams to the "real world", at least for an hour and a half..
Regards to everybody that enjoy pure and healthy "Dreams."

Rating:
Summary: Awful
Review: It's a shame you can't give a movie zero stars. This movie is a union of Lord of the Rings, bad acting, and a terrible screenplay. "They don't make them like this anymore"? Yes, for good reason.

Rating:
Summary: An Exciting Adventure on an Alien Planet
Review: Long before CGI, the late Jim Henson, along with Frank Oz, spent five years creating a remarkably detailed alien planet, endearing and bizarre creatures, and an adventurous story for the film "The Dark Crystal" using the power of puppetry.

The film begins with a brief narration providing an introduction to the alien world where the lives of its inhabitants are linked to the power of a massive crystal. Those most influenced by the crystal are the gentle Mystics and the evil Skeksies. Over the past 1000 years, the Skeksies harnessed the power of the crystal to enslave others, mostly the Gelflings (whom they fear) and the Podlings. The Skeksies systematically hunted down and destroyed nearly all of the Gelflings because an ancient prophecy foretells that a Gelfling will destroy them. One Gelfling, Jen, whose family was destroyed by the Skeksies, survives and is found and raised by the Mystics. The Mystics send him forth on an odyssey to find the crystal shard--a piece of the venerated, powerful crystal. Jen must find the shard and put it back into the crystal before the world's three suns eclipse one another in a great conjuction. If the crystal is incomplete at the great conjuction, their world will forever be plunged into darkness; but if the crystal is restored, their world will be reborn. Jen does not initially fully understand the significance of his quest, but he proceeds and discovers many great and terrible things along the way. Will Jen succeed? Let the story of "The Dark Crystal" unfold before you and find out!

Jim Henson's vision of the "The Dark Crystal" is a masterpiece capturing the imaginations of children and adults alike.

Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful Fantasy Classic
Review: I loved this film when I saw it for the first time on the big screen in 1982. I have seen it several times since then, but I have never owned a copy until I bought the DVD. The disc is an excellent transfer but there are a few imperfections towards the end of the movie which are the result of spots on the original negatives. I saw them only once, and only for a moment. The colors are rich but not as brilliant as they were in the theatre, i.e. the scene where the skeksis and mystics are reunited into one being. The white images of the beings and the castle interior are not as well illuminated as before. Also the very last scene where the planet is shown in a restored condition is quite bland compared to the vibrance it displayed in the theatre in 1982. Otherwise the transfer is as close to perfect as one can get, and I am very pleased to own it and would highly recommend this product to anyone. Too bad the disc art is so paper-bag plain. The disc almost looks junky. At least the keep case art is well designed.