The Dark Crystal (1982)
The Dark Crystal was produced by the same puppetry
wizards responsible for The Muppets, but this 1982 fantasy
was much more J.R.R. Tolkien than it was Kermit the Frog.
Jim Henson, Frank Oz and their army of puppeteers and voice
artists put together an entire world of dark, mysterious
creatures, casting them in a classic tale of good and evil.
1,000 years before the events in the film, a race of powerful
beings called the urSkeks decided to purge all evil from their
bodies. At the time of the "Great Conjunction" (when all
three of the planet's suns aligned), the urSkeks focused the
united light through their powerful crystal, hoping to burn the
evil out.
Unfortunately, the evil merely separated from the good,
creating two separate races - the peaceful Mystics and the wicked
Skeksis. One of the Skeksis smashed the crystal, separating a
shard and turning the crystal dark.
According to prophecy, an elf-like Gelfling would return the
shard to the crystal at the next Great Convergence, putting an end
to the Skeksis' dark reign. To keep their power (and assure their
immortality at the next Great Convergence), the vulture-like
Skeksis sent their giant servants, the Garthims, to kill all
Gelflings.
In the film's present day, a Gelfling named Jen thinks he is
the last of his race, and he sets out to fulfil his destiny. As
his journey continues, the young lad discovers another Gelfling, a
female named Kira, who joins his quest to heal the crystal.
Kira's hungry pet Fizzwig signs on as well, as does a gnarled
old witch named Aughra. Even this united front, however, faces a
daunting task in trying to outwit the dangerous Skeksis and their
evil Chamberlain.
The Dark Crystal was indeed dark, but no more so than
the average Brothers Grimm fable. That didn't seem to matter to
most audiences, however, who had opened their hearts to E.T. -
The Extraterrestrial earlier in the year.
A financial disappointment in cinemas, The Dark Crystal
still managed to build a relatively small, but very loyal base of
fans, who continue to treasure this underappreciated puppet
fantasy.
|
