Legend (1985)
Director Ridley Scott long dreamed of adapting the legend of Tristram and Iseult for the screen, but ultimately shelved the project, convinced it did not have a broad enough audience appeal. His desire to explore Celtic-inspired mythology remained, however, and ultimately resulted in Legend.
In purely visual terms, Legend is a masterpiece. No filmmaker has ever captured that "faerie tale look" in quite the way Scott does. From the cottonwood spores floating over shimmering woodland streams, to sinister swamp fortresses, these dreamlike images are called into reality by Scott's magic eye. The style of the film has roots in German expressionism, although the more obvious influences are Jean Cocteau's Beauty and the Beast and Max Reinhardt's 1935 A Midsummer Night's Dream.
Admittedly, the visual and aural strengths of the film overshadow the characters and story. The two leads (played by Tom Cruise and Mia Sara) are likable, but depth of character is not one of the film's strengths. Tim Curry, however, proves a formidable exception, and his performance as the demonic Lord of Darkness ripples with black-hearted villainy. Rob Bottin's make-up is equally impressive, fashioning the most frighteningly realistic demon image about Curry. Director Scott also largely dispenses with post-production optical effects, opting to conjure the faerie realm through lighting and on-set effects, and the results are far more convincing.
It must be clarified that there are actually two different versions of Legendone released by 20th Century Fox in Europe, and the other released by Universal in the US. Neither consist of Scott's original director's cut (which ran over two hours, complete with folk songs and a scene where Tom Cruise actually dances while under a faerie spell). The European cut is closer to Scott's original intentions and retains Jerry Goldsmith's rapturous score (the best he ever wrote). But eager to sell records, Universal removed Goldsmith's music and replaced it with Tangerine Dream and pop songs (which gave the film the feel of a glorified pop video).
The European is by far the better version, and is available as a Japanese import. Both versions are in pan-and-scan, but rumor has it that Scott is working with MCA Home Video to restore the director's cut for a widescreen DVD release.
Paul Andrew MacLean
Shelton CT 06484 USA
(800) 232-2224 voice
(800) 775-2729 fax
LadyJanet@RenaissanceMagazine.com