@RUTGERS.ARPA:FEBER@USC-ISIB.ARPA (04/21/85)
From: FEBER@USC-ISIB.ARPA
LEGEND - a film by Ridley Scott
*** Probably a Spoiler, but can you Spoil the Spoiled? ***
I had high hopes when I heard this was a film by Ridley Scott. In his
previous work, notably Alien and Blade Runner he has performed wonders in
realizing mileau, while the Duelist is the best film on obsession I have ever
seen. LEGEND performs well on the first count, but is lamentable for its
weakness in plot and character.
LEGEND is a FANTASY/adventure film with the fantasy writ large. I saw it at
the Director's Guild Theater in Hollywood at one of those advance screenings
where they ask you to fill out questionnaires before and after the film
(presumably, so they can patch and polish for the final release - it may even
be released under another name). I'm afraid it won't help, though, because it
is severely flawed in plot and casting. It's really a shame, too, because
parts of it are visually stunning, some of it reminding me of the niftier
moments in Cocteau's Beauty and the Beast. Unlike the latter, Legend never
escapes the sappy adolescent backwash of its basic sentiments (which appear to
be directed towards the overly romantic) to become truly magical.
The plot, if you can call it that, follows around assorted goblins, who at the
devil's bidding are out to kill the last two unicorns in the forest. The good
guys, consisting of a forest sprite, a couple of bumbling leprechauns, a
sexually frustrated tinkerbell, and Jack (Tim (tom?) Cruise - who is really
awful) are out to stop them, as well as to try to save a kidnapped princess.
By the end of the film much of the audience was chuckling at the films extreme
sentimentality. Enough said.
But, to concentrate on its good points: The realization of the various demons
and goblins was very impressive, as was the big D himself. Tim Curry plays
the devil, although it's hard to recoginze him under what must be at least 10
pounds of facial makeup. He is the classic red-skinned hooved monster with
horns. His does a lot of sneering and leering, he is the devil after all, and
manages the best bit of acting in the film. The minor goblins all look like
they just walked out of a Durer print. The good guys are less impressive,
although the leprechauns are faithful copies of the classic depiction. I was
also very impressed by much of the camera work. Some of the scenes in the
forest have an otherworldly quality that I've never seen in any other film.
It's really too bad the story and much of the acting isn't up to the technical
effects of the film. (There were, admittedly, some howlers; a horse trainer
was visible in several scenes, and a ring, which figures prominently in the
story betrays its contemporary origins.) The film could also be paced better,
but it's hard to see how a better cut could improve the story line.
Still, if you can tolerate the sophomoric plot, you might want to see this
film for the bad guys and some of the forest scenes.
mark