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| Dark Crystal,The |
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  (9/10)
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Runtime: 93 m |
| Public Rating: 8.67 (39 votes) |
Director: Jim Henson & Frank Oz |
MPAA Rating:  |
| Genre: Fantasy |
Year: 1981 |
| Writer(s): Jim Henson (story) David Odell (Screenplay) |
| Reviewed by: Greg C. |
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With all the fuss that Lord of the Rings is kicking up about the long-overdue acceptance of fantasy in the mainstream audiance, now is the perfect time to remind people of the classic fantasy film, ones whose influence can still be felt today. One of those is Jim Henson's fantasy classic, The Dark Crystal. Granted, when one thinks of Jim Henson, one doesn't think of The Dark Crystal. Chances are that you think more of little Muppets like Kermit and Miss Piggy. You don't think of a dark, bleak world full of mythical creatures and terrifying monsters; generally you think of a green sock with eyes. Let me first assure you that The Dark Crystal is not a Muppet movie- rather, it's a dark fantasy movie told entirley with beautifully realized animatronics. Next, let me assure you that this is not a movie made just for kids. Yes, kids will get a kick out of the adventure and the strange creatures, but older audiances will enjoy the rich imagination with which the story is told. In another time, in another world, in the age of mystery, there lived a great species that kept order in the land. With the Crystal of Light they perserved peace and life flourished. But then, tragedy struck. The Crytal was cracked, and a single shard went missing. The great species dissepeared from the land, and two new species took its place: the cruel, vulture-like Skeksis, and the gentle, four-armed Mystics. The Skeksis took over the land, shutting themselves away in the Castle of the Crystal and sending out the Garthim, huge, crab like monsters, to do their bidding. The one thing the fear is a prophecy that says that a Gelfling, small, humanoid creatures, will one day destroy them. To peserve themselves, they order the Garthim to eliminate all Gelflings from the land. Flash foreward ten thousand years. Once the Skeksis ruled the land; now, there are only ten. Their last chance at survival is to use the now Dark Crystal to harness the power of the Great Conjungtion- the aligning of their three suns. If they do this, then they will live and rule forever. However, the Mystics are still around- although they once numbered many, now, there are only ten. The Leader of the Mystics has as a pupil Jen, the last of the Gelfling race. While the Leader lies on his deathbed, he charges Jen with a quest: find the missing shard and restore the Crystal to its original form and stop the Skeksis. Jen, reluctant to leave the home he has lived in all his life, takes his master's final wish and goes searching for the missing shard. However, the Skeksis have learned of Jen's existance, and send out the Garthim to destroy the final threat to their survival. The Dark Crystal is a true champion of what kind of emotion you can pull out of animatronic puppets; while today we're obsessed with flashy computer effects, in 1982 Henson took these other-worldly creatures and literally breathed life into them. The Skeksis slink around the rooms, some bob their heads, during a duel between two rivals, one begins to drool with anger. The Mystics move slower, all four of their arms always doing something, with a sad, haunted look in their eyes. Jen, the Gelfling, looks frightened in this world he had no idea existed. This is a movie that shows you the track that animatronics were on- had "Tron" and "The Last Starfighter" not introduced us to the world of computer effects, animatronics probably would have become the premire special effects standard. The Dark Crystal is not just an exciting, dark trip into a visonary world, it is a glimpse into a special effects art that is almost extinct. Without a doubt, The Dark Crystal is a must see. Rated PG for violence.
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