Dragonslayer (1981) movie review - Sneak Previews with Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 12 май 2019
- This is the original review of Dragonslayer by Siskel & Ebert on "Sneak Previews" in 1981. All of the segments pertaining to the movie have been included.
Развлечения
Still one of the best fantasy movies ever made and very gritty and realistic for its time. Ralph Richardson one of the best cast wizards you'll ever see.
This is one of those films that I liked when it came out, but my opinion has actually improved over the years. The 1980s saw the release of a lot of fantasy films, and this one is a high water mark in the genre. Vermithrax is still my all time favorite movie dragon.
Dragonslayer is an underrated gem. It is a cut above most of the fantasy films of the 80's, though I like those other movies, too.
Well, I really don't categorize THIS movie as a "FANTASY FILM" along with the juvenile likes of Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and Dragon Heart. I think it's more of a HORROR movie, albeit with a medieval setting, where the dragon is a real MONSTER.
@@Sheol-uk3bu - Okay. In the video store, it would have been shelved in the sci-fi/fantasy or adventure section, not the horror section, but you do you, man. LOL!
Great summer movies Raiders of the lost ark, for your eyes only, Superman 2, Escape from New York summer of 1981 fun times at the movies.
Happy 40th anniversary summer 1981 movies.
Just watched this picture for the first time and totally agree with Siskel and Ebert here. It was a wonderful film and I’m sad that it’s not talked about in the same discussions as The Princess Bride and Willow in terms of fantasy. The characters were really good, the effects were excellent for its time, and the part where the dragon babies are eating the princesses foot was horrifying.
Great looking dragon but I never got into the characters or story. Gene and Roger liked it more than me. 😊
Vermithrax Pejorative (which is Latin for "The Worm of Thrace Who Makes Things Worse") is the BEST dragon ever put to film, AND has the coolest name 🤣
I contacted one of the writers of the movie Hal Barwood and here is what he said regarding the name.
Here’s what I remember about naming our Dragonslayer dragon . . . um, after forty years!
Well, things need names.
When Matthew and I started working on Dragonslayer we knew that a name elevates the status of anything, especially the center piece of our proposed tale. We needed something antique, something from the iron age, prickly, evil. And we were stuck.
At some moment I needed to pee, and while standing in front of the toilet, "Vermithrax" hit me. I liked the vicious "V" sound, and the crucial "X". I knew that "verm-" meant worm-, but only later did we learn that the name could be translated as "Worm of Thrace." Okay, why not?
Exiting the bathroom I said the name to Matthew, and he responded that we needed to have the name be more important, be Linnaean, like biological species with two parts, and he added "pejorative."
Vermithrax pejorative - Perfect!
The practical effects for this film still holds up. An interesting achievement for a 40+ year old film, especially in the cgi age.
Many special effects films of the era hold up MUCH better than CGI films made even a few years ago. When you get practical effects right, they never age. Films like "Blade Runner", "Dragonslayer", "The Thing", etc. - they look better than 95% of what's being done today.
The special effects of this movie are stunning. I'm surprised Siskel doesn't seem to understand how suspense works. Hold back the "creature" until you can't take it anymore, and then POW. Worked like magic in Alien, which he would've seen by then.
I wanted to see the dragon too, but to be honest the movie does drag a little at times. If you’re going to hold back on showing the creature, you’d better make film very compelling and able to stand on its own without the creature.
Worked for Jaws too.
Not to mention, "Jaws".
Damn right. Very intelligent movie.
Where is the Blu-ray? I want to watch this movie!
Been waiting for it forever. This is very high on my Blu ray want list. I love the film.
Love this movie
Still pretty impressive even by today’s standards, the dragon’s animation was provided by Industrial Light & Magic. A man there named Phil Tippet pioneered a version of “stop motion” animation which they coined as “go motion”. The end result was a creature that moved seamlessly and didn’t look like a Harryhausen film monster (not intended to insult the great Ray Harryhausen who was a pioneer also).
I vividly remember wanting to see this film so badly, when I was young. The trailer was pretty awesome. It was just one edited sequence teasing the dragons reveal. I miss trailers like that.
From the writer himself
Here’s what I remember about naming our Dragonslayer dragon . . . um, after forty years!
Well, things need names.
When Matthew and I started working on Dragonslayer we knew that a name elevates the status of anything, especially the center piece of our proposed tale. We needed something antique, something from the iron age, prickly, evil. And we were stuck.
At some moment I needed to pee, and while standing in front of the toilet, "Vermithrax" hit me. I liked the vicious "V" sound, and the crucial "X". I knew that "verm-" meant worm-, but only later did we learn that the name could be translated as "Worm of Thrace." Okay, why not?
Exiting the bathroom I said the name to Matthew, and he responded that we needed to have the name be more important, be Linnaean, like biological species with two parts, and he added "pejorative."
Vermithrax pejorative - Perfect!
"Dragonslayer", hands down, is the best-LOOKING sword and sorcery film of the 80's. "Excalibur" is really the only other one that comes close. The cinematography and lighting, especially in the interior scenes, is just gorgeous; no films being made today, fantasy or otherwise, look like that anymore, as it can only be done on actual film stock. I always use it as an example when people argue with me over whether film looks better than digital, as you just can't create the stunning, cinematic look of the movie without using film. It's probably the most underrated (and I use that term knowing that it's an overused one; in this case, it actually is) fantasy film of the era, as I still come across people, even of my own Gen-X generation, who've never seen it. I saw in 1981 and was just blown away. More people need to discover it (it should really be on more streaming platforms) and the new 4K Blu-ray that came out this year is just incredible (it also has a fantastic commentary track by Guillermo Del Toro). It has the greatest practical effects dragon ever made. When you have the lead standing there in the cave, with that dragon *actually* in front of him, in-camera, nothing else comes close. It's a spectacular movie. Some people gripe about the "happy" score that comes in every now and again, but it's never bothered me, as it just underscores the wit and adventure.
Dragon: Is that a sword, or are you just happy to see me?
Dragon Slayer: This isn't no sword!
Maybe the best film out there that's exclusively about dragons. One of the few that really demonstrates how powerful a dragon can be.
This was the early years of the '80s, where fantasy films were mostly gritty and could be aimed at children or adults and respect both demographics. This, Conan the Barbarian, Clash of the Titans, Excalibur, and Dark Crystal are probably the best of the bunch. Later in the decade, it seemed like the genre got bogged down by annoying comic relief, simpler stories, childish humor, and catering almost completely to children without respecting older folks as well.
tis is the best dragon type film ever made to this day, forget- Dragon heart or the miserable hovel that is reign of fire, I always think that showing the creature too soon in these kind of films, is like opening your presents before Christmas, the suspense has to be built or its anti-climax time, look how well this approach has worked for- jaws, alien, tremors, etc, & besides you do see part of the creature when the original girl is sacrificed (looking as though shes going to make it) near to the start
Best dragon ever filmed.
I have a miniature of Vermithrax Pejorative.
Loved this movie. It was a great part of my childhood.
I am happy to inform you they are remaking this with Will Smith, Jennifer Hudson and Samuel Jackson. Very exciting news!
Some of the music in this review is not from the film. Wth?
No mention of the superb performances of Ralph Richardson as Ulrich and John Hallam as Tyrion??????????
Gene thinks princess Elspeth is a superfluous subplot and only serves to slow the reveal of the dragon?????????????????????
Love and respect S&E, but with out the clever storyline and dialogue of the principle actors, no one would care how authentic the dragon effects are.
One side note. There is a scene where the dragon after discovering the bodies of her slain young, conveys disbelief, grief then rage all with facial expressions that produced a small lump in my throat. Testament to the skilled technicians of Lucas film.
Oi, Rog and Gene, "Excalibur" was meant to be mythical, not realistic.
2:37 the music when its like bear with me pls bumbumbumbumdidididi loveit
This film has a lot more going for it than the great looking dragon... They take their time with this story. The actors are excellent... Some of the best in the business.
And the way the writers show the cynicism of the king and the delusion of the Christians .... It’s a delicious film if you take the time to appreciate it... Siskel and Ebert might’ve given it two thumbs up but they didn’t really like it for the right reasons...
👎 on their review! 😏
A decent film. I saw it when it first came out. Good times.
Neither of them appreciated fantasy enough to realize what a groundbreaking movie this was in terms of taking the genre seriously and having well written characters, to them it was slightly better than usual for the special fx.
One of the best films of it's kind ever made.
I cannot agree with you simply because the lack of diversity. And not even a hint of LGBTQ representation.
Great movie ❤
I was dismayed with the lack of diversity in the film. So I cannot recommend it. I had to give it only 1 out of 5 stars.
Magic Sword? He used a lance Gene....
It took a long time to show the dragon and the lead seems like a beach kid. Very insightful! Worthless "critics"
Yeah, they gave this film short shrift. This is one of the rare segments where Siskel and Ebert did not do a very good job...
Have you seen a movie called Jaws it did the same thing it worked . The young hero is a cliche right out Star Wars. Yes ,it took too long to show the dragon, but it was magical and the movie paid off after thst.
dragonslayer>the hobbit