The Dark Crystal (1982)'s comments

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CMT

I can't believe this was only rated G, when I was young I was terrified by the trailer alone.

11 years 9 months ago

Jim Hensen's passion project, The Dark Crystal, creates a world that is totally original, and notably, completely devoid of human characters. It's a feast for the eyes that you nevertheless wish had a more colorful color palette (part of it is 1982's film stock limitations). The story, while a pretty straightforward chosen one quest, has interesting philosophical and psychological underpinnings, resolving into a tale of duality and balance. And it's pretty adult despite the Muppetry; the characters are in real danger. The Dark Crystal's weakness lies in its narration and dialogue. It relies much too heavily on the former at the top of the film, to the point where you wonder whether you're watching an animated story book, and then the hero Jen is too long alone and projecting his thoughts AS narration. According to the deleted/alternate scenes included on the DVD, the film was originally conceived with subtitles for the villainous Skesis, so we dodged a bullet there. But whatever its faults, The Dark Crystal remains a unique and imaginative work, and one of the 80s' better attempts at pure fantasy.

6 years 1 month ago

dombrewer

Can't quite believe this film is not on any official lists. It's a defining piece of fantasy cinema, and one of the best family movies ever. Jim Henson was a genius, and this film proved that his brand of puppetry wasn't just about slapstick and anarchy. Essential.

11 years 10 months ago

wizardhat

This movie was made lovingly and with lots of skills. An example of the ART of filmmaking. You don't see much of that anymore.

10 years 7 months ago

thesiperdevil

This film desserves more attention!

13 years 2 months ago

Ebbywebby

In that one scene, why did Jen throw away the shard? And then a scene or two later, oh, the shard is sitting around where it landed and they just pick it up again. What a strange, useless complication that was. Otherwise, I enjoyed the film a little more than I thought would.

2 years 4 months ago