Fantasy Flix

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Willow (1988)

Director: Ron Howard

Writers:

George Lucas (story), Bob Dolman (screenplay)

Willow, a small farmer/apprentice magician, meets Madmartigan, a great swordsman, and together they journey through a war-torn land of magic and monsters, to save a baby princess from death at the hands of an evil queen.

Willow was definitely one of my favorite movies when I was younger. I remember how much I thought Madmartigan was the coolest ever. I thought this movie was awsome. Now, many years later, I no longer think this movie is awsome. However, I still love it. Besides the nostalgic factor, this movie is actually pretty good. I just don't remember it being as silly as it is in this view. The whole making a giant snowball thing as you roll down the hill kinda turned me off, but if you ignore some of the childishness, it's a good movie underneath.

There's really no blood or gore in this film, but it is surprisingly violent for a childrens movie of the time. People get stabbed and shot and die. I'm not sure there would be this much violence in it if this movie was made today. And there is definitely no nudity to speak of, of course.

The acting is top notch in my opinion. Val Kilmer is always awsome and Warwick Davis is good. The supporting cast is also very good with a few classic actors like Billy Barty, Jean Marsh and Patricia Hayes adding to the excellent cast. Of course this flick is written by George Lucas, and directed by Ron Howard.

There's not much more I can say here. If you've never seen Willow, you definitely need to check it out. This is one you can watch with your kids. It holds up very well, even in the current days of CGI.

Verdict: Recommended for you and your family.

The Cast

Warwick Davis ... Willow Ufgood

Val Kilmer ... Madmartigan

Joanne Whalley ... Sorsha

Gavan O'Herlihy ... Airk Thaughbaer

Jean Marsh ... Queen Bavmorda

Rick Overton ... Franjean

Kevin Pollak ... Rool

Billy Barty ... High Aldwin

David Steinberg ... Meegosh

Maria Holvoe ... Cherlindrea

Pat Roach ... Gen. Kael

Patricia Hayes ... Fin Raziel

Phil Fondacaro ... Vohnkar

Tony Cox ... Vohnkar Warrior

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Hercules (1983)

I couldn't find a good summary for this film, so I'll do my best here.

Hercules (Lou Ferrigno) is put into this world by Zeus (Claudio Cassinelli) for some reason to fight bears, robots, lackeys, puppets, and a guy with a flaming sword. Along the way he encounters hot Italian women, and ends up with the one with the biggest boobs covered with tiny little sea shells.

Director: Luigi Cozzi

Writers:

Luigi Cozzi (screenplay), Luigi Cozzi (story)

First I'd like to say (as usual), this is not a good film. Second, I'd like to say (as usual) I kind of enjoyed it. Let me rephrase. This is a very bad film, and I liked it. I didn't love it. But I didn't turn it off. That's a good sign.

So, 1983. Let's see... After Clash of the Titans. There are obvious ripoffs of Clash here. After Conan the Barbarian. Again, obvious ripoffs of Conan here. This is another flick trying to capitalize on the success of those movies. Unfortunately it does not even come close to their categories.

The film has a load of Italian actors in it and was obviously filmed and created in Italy in conjunction with the U.S. Lou's voice is obviously dubbed by some unknown actor. I doubt I have to tell you that Lou is deaf and does not speak very well. The other acting in the flick is pretty good. I had no real complaints.

I seriously thought about not including this film in my blog at all. I say that I will not include fantasy films with a futuristic flair. I DON'T WANT ROBOTS IN MY FANTASY FILMS. There seems to be robots here that Hercules fights. I suppose you could call them magical beings or something, and Bobo was kind of a robot in Clash of the titans. So, I suppose I'll let it slide.

This film, unfortunately, is rated PG. So it's OK for the kiddies. There are some nicely skimpy outfits for some of the ladies, but nothing good is shown. That being said, there is some nice eye-candy here. Personally I'm partial to Mirella D'Angelo who plays the sorceress Circe.