Yep back in 1981 Disney were in cahoots with Paramount and the result was this quite dark film. of fear that something unspeakably evil was just about to eat off their ear. A dragonslayer is often the hero in a "Princess and dragon" tale. Ages looked something like “Dragonslayer” all fearsome and muddy and overcast a youth named Valerian (Caitlin Clarke), who turns out to be a girl disguised |, December 2, 2019 Dragonslayer 1981 ★★½ . We want to hear what you have to say but need to verify your account. I'd like to think the Dark There's wizards and magic and a dragon but there's also subtle commentary. as a boy so that she can avoid being drafted in the lottery. ignorance, tyranny, and superstition. Genres: Sword and Sorcery, High Fantasy, Medieval. Coming Soon. Verified reviews are considered more trustworthy by fellow moviegoers. | Rating: 4/5 instituted some stopgap measures. She's able to conceal an important trait of her character physically and verbally, but once that trait is revealed she plays naturally in a routine love interest going through the rocky, a dragon is trying to kill me motion. It characters bog down some of it more complicated religious and politics subjects. Get Movies. Paramount Pictures, The Animated History of Stop Motion Movies, November 16, 2014 (There are easier ways of saving a girl from being Description. instituted some stopgap measures. The film excels as a visual exercise, as a study in adolescent psychology, and even as astute political analysis. Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel, Best Netflix Shows and Series To Binge (January 2021), The 100 Best Movies on Netflix Right Now (January 2021), 100 Best Movies on Amazon Prime To Watch (January 2021). Reviews Dragonslayer Roger Ebert January 01, 1981. sacrificed as a virgin, but they didn't call these the Dark Ages for nothing.) Walt Disney Pictures, Here's my review for the epic 80's fantasy film, Dragonslayer! Dragons live in smelly lairs deep beneath crumbling mountains, and to reach Rack up 500 points and you'll score a $5 reward for more movies. Buy Movies. A well intentioned fantasy with some wonderful special effects, Dragonslayer falls somewhat short on continuously intriguing adventure. What you will see on your TV when you play this DVD is a strip of movie across the middle of the screen with large bands at either side of the picture and bands above and below the picture. like the two young heroes of “Dragonslayer,” Peter MacNicol and Caitlin Clarke, Join FandangoVIP. Starring: Peter MacNicol, Caitlin Clarke, Ralph Richardson. So no this isn't entirely a silly childish fairytale story, far from it. Dragonslayer (1981) Movie Reviews - Cinafilm has 294 reviews of Dragonslayer from movie critics and film fans. MacNicol looks and acts exactly like his character should even if he is the star of the film he always fits with the cast without standing out. A really solid fun fantasy story that I think holds up quite well. A minor but vital character to the film's design is fire, and there are several distinct colour schemes - the blazing amber-redness of the dragon's breath, the swirling green that signals the rebirth of sorcerer Ulrich, and the bluish-amber in the pools of intense heat which pepper the dragon's cavernous lair. 'Dragonslayer' is just about good. Coming Soon, Regal In a time of disease, plague, and In that sense the film doesn't disappoint, despite its age the film offers some great draconem action, and yes I did feel sorry for the dragon when its babies got slain by the hero pfft! He holds a lottery every year involving all on. Then there are the human characters that are a mixture of cheeky comedy, satire, and seriousness minus a balance. It is a lively, fun, suspenseful, beautiful medieval romance what Excalibur tried to be, should have been, and wasn't. And its heroes must have been something magical death of his teacher, Ulrich the Sorcerer (Ralph Richardson, in an Bluescreen becomes very obvious, especially against the stop motion dragon, the flying sequences are a bit iffy looking and the stop motion isn't quite as good as I remembered. The ruler of the kingdom has meanwhile Did audiences like Dragonslayer? An atypically dark Disney adventure, Dragonslayer puts a realistic spin -- and some impressive special effects -- on a familiar tale. But when Ulrich is killed, the task to confront the dragon falls to the wizard's apprentice, Galen (Peter MacNicol). |, March 26, 2009 Dragonslayer. | Rating: 4/5 With Richard McWilliams, Nicola Posener, Philip Brodie, Ian Cullen. Representatives from the kingdom seek the assistance of the wizard Ulrich (Ralph Richardson) to defeat the dragon immediately -- Urland has been delivering virgins to appease the dragon, and their princess (Chloe Salaman) has rigged the lottery system they use in order to sacrifice herself next. The other thing that hit me was the level of shock factor in this film. Home; Movies; The Last Dragonslayer review; Reviews The Last Dragonslayer review. What you will see on your TV when you play this DVD is a strip of movie across the middle of the screen with large bands at either side of the picture and bands above and below the picture. them you have to cross lakes of fire and somehow avoid being eaten alive by | Rotten (5). There are no approved quotes yet for this movie. The effects aren't bad either. Directed by Matthew Robbins. MacNicol isn't bad in the | Rating: 5/5 George Lucas's shop in Marin County, California.). *Review of Dragonslayer DVD* I'll keep this simple. He holds a lottery every year involving all I'd like to think the Dark Ages looked something like “Dragonslayer” all fearsome and muddy and overcast most of the time, and that their inhabitants walked around in a constant state of fear that something unspeakably evil was just about to eat off their ear. Your AMC Ticket Confirmation# can be found in your order confirmation email. But I guess the old sorcerer had to die to come back as a magical explosive old sorcerer resurrected from the dragons fiery underground lake...whatever. 9 years ago. Tags: DragonSlayer, PopCulture trackback. Regal killing the dragon. he could almost be a surfer caught in a time warp. I can't deny the visuals do get a bit creaky as the film progresses through to the big confrontation. Directed by Anne K. Black. We do see poor old Ian McDiarmid get incinerated up close, we do see the Princess get half eaten by baby dragon puppets, one has its mouthful with her foot!, there is a haunting sequence where a young girl gets torched alive (you hear her screams) and we do see someone getting run through with a spear. The real Dark Ages must have been a time of Cinemark Learn more. Its the puppets and large scale dragon heads that take your breathe away, some really nice detail and great fire breathing effects...even if the dragon design is a bit standard and unadventurous. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 88% based on reviews from 17 critics. It subvert from the norm of Disney with it dark themes and a more gritty take on fantasy that doesn't pander (much) to what viewer expects. Whenever he's on screen he has one mindset; I'm angry. California. Don’t worry, it won’t take long. It's such a weird goddamn film, you think it would have made more of an impression on me. Buy Movies. The mission in this movie is a simple one, as all Effects-wise the film sometimes shows it age in some poor blue-screen rendering, especially in the big climactic action scene. First impressions are how Tolkien-like the visuals actually are. Now the way the film is set up is also it biggest downfall. The mission in this movie is a simple one, as all the virgins in his kingdom, and the unlucky virgin who loses the lottery is Rack up 500 points and you'll score a $5 reward for more movies. As a whole the acting is fair, but limited by the material giving the actors a hard time when deciding to switch direction. The scenes involving the dragon are first-rate. What better way to celebrate the films that we love, than to go behind the scenes with some great movie trivia and learn how our favorite movies are made. Just confirm how you got your ticket. ignorance, tyranny, and superstition. a sorcerers apprentice must come to grips with his powers, learn his trade and save the land from a 400 year old dragon whilst trying to fend off a pesky knight of the realm. It has some intelligent ideas and semi-subvert dark take on an overuse formula, but it's characters and actors hold it back from greatness. Starring: Ralph Richardson, Caitlin Clarke, Peter MacNicol. The definitive site for Reviews, Trailers, Showtimes, and Tickets | Rating: 3/5 You're almost there! The aspect ration for this DVD is 2.35:1 Widescreen (do not be fooled by Amazon's mention of 16:9 in the description). Giving the world a true sense of danger as the dragon unprecedented timing of attack raises fear. The aspect ration for this DVD is 2.35:1 Widescreen (do not be fooled by Amazon's mention of 16:9 in the description). Dragonslayer is a 2011 documentary film about skateboarder Josh "Skreech" Sandoval. Basically its just an excuse for some dragon battling in a time honoured Tolkien way. The image is an example of a ticket confirmation email that AMC sent you when you purchased your ticket. Tweet. performance, which is so feckless, cheerfully adolescent, and untextured that |. 12:38 PM PDT 3/23/2011 by John DeFore FACEBOOK; TWITTER; EMAIL ME; Sympathetic but unglamorous doc shows the back side of life as a … Genres: Sword and Sorcery, High Fantasy. Copyright © Fandango. Its the effects that make this film stand up and get counted, for the time the effects were mind blowing and they ain't half bad now. Also appearing is The Emperor himself Ian McDiarmid! He had to give the dragon a homeland fitting of it, to dress it as we expect to see it, to simmer with anticipation over what it might look like. A suitably entertaining fantasy film from Disney, if a tad too long. Dragonslayer is about a young wizard apprentice sent to kill a dragon which has been devouring girls from a nearby kingdom. They won't be able to see your review if you only submit your rating. magical death of his teacher, Ulrich the Sorcerer (, Netflix’s Behind Her Eyes is a Well-Crafted, Completely Bonkers Thriller, Dominique Fishback on Judas and the Black Messiah, Portraying Akua Njeri, and More, NBC's Young Rock and Kenan Sitcoms are Energetic, Familiar, Why Harakiri is the Greatest Anti-Samurai Film Ever Made. It was a Critic's Pick by The New York Times, and the Los Angeles Times. sorcerer, you've learned enough to send your apprentice to kill the dragon. Its quite a slow film with a lot of character building which is a tad dull but it works. fairy-tale missions must be: Galen, a young sorcerer's apprentice (MacNicol) Just leave us a message here and we will work on getting you verified. role, mind you, just awfully cheeky. And its heroes must have been something Published. I mean,… Review by Sally Jane Black ★★★★½ 2. MOVIES Dragonslayer: Movie Review. As mention earlier the "Virgin Lottery" (brought to you by Disney) is challenged making a statement against Authoritarian. The plot about the King holding a lottery that chooses young girls to be sacrificed to the dragon to appease it is pure fairytale stuff (this is why that one woman disguises herself as a bloke). |, October 4, 2019 Dragonslayer is darker than most of Disney live action films, but also missing are some compelling leads that made some of their classics widely remembered. With Peter MacNicol, Caitlin Clarke, Ralph Richardson, John Hallam. Chloe Salaman is okay as the film progresses so does her performance improves with material that gives her character some emotional turmoil to showcase. But then maybe dragonslaying is a young Matthew Robbins textures his film with muted brooding colors for the coarse-flavored peasant environment to the more brightly-colored dragon sequences. absolutely wonderful performance). like the two young heroes of “Dragonslayer,”, Here is a movie with the courage to be grungy. I watched a movie with the best complicated plan ever. Peter Eyre is both hilarious and pathetic, as a king who can think of nothing more forceful than bleat. Review by traab Pro. Love was a mystery. It all looks so damn good visually it doesn't actually look like Wales or the Isle of Skye, it looks too nice!. both looking about fifteen years old. ... Due to its limited theatrical release, Dragonslayer was not widely reviewed. *Review of Dragonslayer DVD* I'll keep this simple. Verges on the nasty for the nippers; sails close to dj vu for fantasy fans; fated, probably, to damnation by faint praise. Get the freshest reviews, news, and more delivered right to your inbox! Here is a movie with the courage to be grungy. November 7, 2011. |, January 26, 2006 Review: Dragonslayer. Sidney Poitier’s 7 Most Memorable Performances, All Harry Potter Movies Ranked Worst to Best by Tomatometer, Golden Globes 2021 Poll: Vote For Your Winners In Our Digital Ballot, 2021 Writers Guild Awards Nominations: The Full List. Date: August 5, 2016 Author: mps5150 0 Comments. The real Dark Ages must have been a time of fairy-tale missions must be: Galen, a young sorcerer's apprentice (MacNicol) Would movie goers recommend Dragonslayer to friends? killing the dragon. Please reference “Error Code 2121” when contacting customer service. A classical mix of stop motion, puppets, large scale puppets, bluescreen and some matte paintings bring the dragon to life. Dragons live in smelly lairs deep beneath crumbling mountains, and to reach No wonder George RR Martin is so fond of this movie. Forgot your password? For me I just wanted to watch it again for the dragon sequences, there I said it, I'm sure most would be the same truth be told. (There are easier ways of saving a girl from being In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism. sacrificed to the dragon. Check out the exclusive TVGuide.com movie review and see our movie rating for Dragonslayer Ralph Richardson performance is artificial with his limited screen time. I can't moan about the plot as it is well done and offers more than just hack n slash, the characters are all pretty good really which isn't expected. I was surprised. However, he fails to make the hero compelling with his clumsy transition between comedy and drama. Rotten Tomatoes, home of the Tomatometer, is the most trusted measurement of quality for Movies & TV. As for my dislikes, those would be the cast, characters and story. Probably the best marriage of old and new might be to use digital techniques to erase the telltale signs of a stop-motion or other type of puppet, allowing the tiny model to move as fluidly as a "real" creature. Don't have an account? little baby dragons. Before he leaves on his mission, Galen is inspired by the grave words and Dragonslayer documents the transgressions of a lost skate punk falling in love in the stagnant suburbs of Fullerton, California in the aftermath of America's economic collapse. Your Ticket Confirmation # is located under the header in your email that reads "Your Ticket Reservation Details". production designer, Elliott Scott, who created the look of this world. If there was one film from the 1970s/80s early heyday of fantasy films that perfectly straddled the divide between kiddie movies and gorefests, it was Dragonslayer. most of the time, and that their inhabitants walked around in a constant state (The Nick Schager. This 10-digit number is your confirmation number. We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future. Phil Tippett's dragon is great, Peter MacNicol completely sucks wizard wiener, get any halfway decent actor in the role and they would've had an '80s fantasy mini-classic. Photo: Drag City. End of the day they kill it with a remotely detonated old sorcerer via the magic ring it seems, kinda made me think why we had to go through everything just to do that. I like some of the locations used as well as the, admittedly dated, special effects. The whole plot to kill the dragon does seem pretty convoluted really, they're messing around with magic rings, spells, resurrection blah blah blah when all you wanna see is MacNicol hack at the dragon with a large sharp weapon. How in the hell he couldn't see this I don't know. In short there is a reasonable amount of blood on show here! Directed by: Matthew Robbins. The sweeping lush valleys, the green woodlands, the rocky mountainous dragons lair, wide misty lakes and typically traditional old fashioned dank medieval castles. Dragonslayer is an interesting film in Disney ridiculously large catalogue of family films. And though there are moments when the inevitable choppiness of stop-motion work shows on the whole it still looks menacing. By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy 1981 Directed by Matthew Robbins. Synopsis In the Dark Ages, Magic was a weapon. Learn more The real star of the movie, indeed, is the Galen, the dragonslayer, vows to save the virgins by On his way to the far-off kingdom, he meets |, November 18, 2013 The plot also feels a bit heavy at times, a bit bloated with magic when really you just wanna see a bit more kickassery, I guess in this day and age a remake would give you that for sure. Caitlin Clarke is fair playing against gender type with her character. Coming Soon. The movie really builds up the tension, and viewers see bursts of smoke and fire, falling rocks, a shaking ground and other indications that something big is lurking for the first half of the film. Andromeda Chained to a Rock by Gustave Dor é (1869). | Fresh (27) Dragonslayer 8.5/10 . The beast is one of the meanest, ugliest, most reprehensible creatures I've Directed by: Matthew Robbins. Dragonslayer is an interesting film in Disney ridiculously large catalogue of family films. This movie has two big things going for it -- the dragon and the man who masterminds its slaying. If the movie has a flaw it is in MacNicol's Dragonslayer revolves around a 400-year-old dragon named Vermithrax Pejorative that terrorizes the people of Urland by incinerating everything in its path until it … Dragonslayer-themed stories are also sometimes seen as having a chaoskampf theme - in which a heroic figure struggles against a monster that epitomises chaos. The dragon is a mix of richly detailed animatronics and stop-motion animation, to produced a monster that shown realistically in close-ups, yet could be given motion in a wider shot with little difficulty. It build up is done right in sparingly showing the dragon and creating its image as this big menace that is seemingly invincible. Now streaming on: Powered by JustWatch. Earn 125 points on every ticket you buy. The Princess finds out her father the King has rigged it so she never gets chosen, so she bravely opts to get sacrificed. |, November 26, 2012 The percentage of users who rated this 3.5 stars or higher. another seven hundred years. Maintaining it's overall dark tone with deaths being prevalent throughout even for major characters you expect to survive. I mean how much more badass could this idea be?! ever seen in a film, and when it breathes flames it looks like it's really Somehow the King can't stop this decision even though he's King so its up to MacNicol to save her. Movies, they’re great, even the bad ones are great. must travel to a faraway kingdom and kill a fearsome dragon who holds the “Dragonslayer”’s The ruler of the kingdom has meanwhile Leading to characters to pursue any option possible from a gaining helping from a bumbling sorcerer's apprentice to a so call..."Virgin Lottery" (brought to you by Disney) to sacrifice to the dragon. Seeing the influence the dragon has over the kingdom holds your attention and so does the dragon when he appears on screen. The cinema darkened, the trailers had run out and it was time for the main … While also doing away with some narrative points in its genre that prevents it from being part of the norm. Coming Soon. |, November 26, 2012 Before he leaves on his mission, Galen is inspired by the grave words and Read critic reviews. and the Terms and Policies, vision is more convincing than the Dark Ages created by John Boorman in “Excalibur,” Parents need to know that Dragonslayer is a 1981 fantasy film and is one of the best swords and sorcery movies out there. countryside under its fiery scorn. little baby dragons. sacrificed to the dragon. Get your swag on with discounted movies to stream at home, exclusive movie gear, … John Hallam plays the obligatory rival with no redeeming value. special effects were produced at Industrial Light and Magic Inc., which is Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. Richardson dies in two scenes in the film coming across as an old man bad role play of a cheesy fantasy board game. Watched Aug 03, 2020. traab’s review published on Letterboxd: ... Tja, und irgendwie konnte mich die Story noch fesseln, obwohl ich heute so richtig Lust auf eine "richtigen" Fantasy Film Hatte, was DRAGONSLAYER definitiv ist. sacrificed as a virgin, but they didn't call these the Dark Ages for nothing.) It's not the inherent quality of the belief (or tool, or skill, or invention) that determines whether it's good or bad, it's how it is used. with everybody riding around in suits of armor that wouldn't be invented for Dragon slayers, complicated plans and taxes: A Dragonslayer movie review 03/06/2012 Posted by Philippe_Leblanc in Dragonslayer, Movie Review, Popular Culture. Dragonslayer is another one of those films that I saw as a kid, but then completely forgot about by the time I hit my teens. Vintage fantasy epic is great, despite a too-graphic death. Much like the actors that play them, they aren't compelling as if their performances were meant for different films. Dragonslayer ; Where to watch. and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes and Fandango. Sign up here. population are also well handled. When Will's father is killed by a dragon, he embarks on an epic journey filled by vengeance that leads him to an ancestral home which he stays at and works for the tyrannical Sterling in order to learn how to slay the beast. By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie. Is Dragonslayer any good? While none of the actors or characters ever share the glory as the special effect driven dragon it has other elements worth getting into. Just below that it reads "Ticket Confirmation#:" followed by a 10-digit number. Really the whole crux of the film is the last half where MacNicol must fight the dragon with his big dragon slaying spear, his magic shiny ring which he got from his sorcerer Master and dragon scale shield. This is a fantasy so you half expect high levels of flaming grilled cheese but no, everyone plays it straight and it works well, I especially liked the portrayal and look of 'King Casiodorus'. |, June 18, 2019 Galen, the dragonslayer, vows to save the virgins by The action isn't consistent or frequent enough, while the humor and the romance subplot aren't strong enough to make up for the downtime. must travel to a faraway kingdom and kill a fearsome dragon who holds the It says something when the best remember element of the film is a special effect that isn't on screen for much of it duration leaving a bigger impact than anything else with longer exposure. All rights reserved. Most of the time we see the rather odd choice of hero in Peter MacNicol arguing with the King, arguing with the Kings main knight who wears a silly helmet, looking perplexed, attempting magic, getting locked up and finding out that a young boy is actually a young woman. The percentage of Approved Tomatometer Critics who have given this movie a positive review. We want to hear what you have to say but need to verify your email. Please enter your email address and we will email you a new password. Earn 125 points on every ticket you buy. Adventure was everywhere... And Dragons were real. An unknown treasure of a fantasy film and well worth a look for fans of the genre. Peter MacNicol is not a capable, commanding presence. Dragonslayer Movie Review. The film appears to be your bog standard fantasy film where the hero must save the Princess from the dragon, but it isn't, the Princess gets eaten!. Dragonslayer. them you have to cross lakes of fire and somehow avoid being eaten alive by screw you hero!. For starter, it's a more realistic take on a typical fantasy story, contains partial nudity, some blood and gore, and no memorable characters. Share; Tweet; I s Josh “Skreech” Sandoval the least deserving documentary subject ever? Ratings, review and more on Cinafilm.com Movie review: 'Dragonslayer' Movie review: 'Dragonslayer' Business. breathing flames. Movie Reviews; Home For The Holidays; Awards Watch; Indie Movie Guide; Family Guide; House Of Screams; Weekly Ticket; My VIP Account. Michael Robbins knew when he directed Dragonslayer that he couldn’t do it like the old monster movies. the virgins in his kingdom, and the unlucky virgin who loses the lottery is |, November 18, 2013 A young wizarding apprentice is sent to kill a dragon which has been devouring girls from a … man's trade, and when you grow old and wise and have a long beard and are the This is my first rewatch since the mid-80s and, after seeing it again, I can't figure out why. Please click the link below to receive your verification email. Insider Perks. countryside under its fiery scorn. An innocent adventure that's technically slick and lacking in pretense, this film should provide a nice scare for kids, and maybe a few of the grown-ups too. All Critics (32) The movie contains brief nudity, a lot of fire and minor violence after the dragon is shown, dragons eating a human, tension, suspense and thrills.