Review of Dark Crystal, The

Introduction

Released in 1982, this film has aged very well. Helped along by a superb plot, characterisations and convincing animatronics, The Dark Crystal has received a new lease-of-life with the issue of this DVD. Unique for its time, this full-length puppet extravaganza will impress those who are new to the film, as it did those seeing it 20 years ago.

Created by the imaginative genius of Jim Henson and Frank Oz, The Dark Crystal is a mythical tale of good versus evil, set in a forest inhabited by a strange people, the Mystics. This dying race has been slowly eradicated by the evil, vulture-like Skeksis and all hopes for their survival are pinned on a young Gelfling boy named Jen. He subsequently begins a dangerous quest to locate and heal The Dark Crystal; the only sure way to defeat the power-mad Skeksis and return the land to unity with its rightful owners, the Mystics.

What follows is a wonderfully rich adventure, with elements of excitement, drama and a delicate love story. The entire cast is created from elaborate and convincing puppets, although some creatures are heavily costumed actors. The beauty of the film comes from its rich narration and pace. Never boring, it constantly flows with wonderment and is a film you can really lose yourself in. And each time you watch it, the more amazing its influence becomes.

Video

I was amazed by the quality of this 2.35 anamorphic DVD. Colours are rich, accurate and well saturated and there are no banding or contrast problems. It is obvious that a great deal of time was spent lovingly restoring this film to give us a finished product as close to the original as possible. DVD is the only way to see this film and it blows the VHS version out of the water.

The first thing that hit me was the sharpness and definition of the picture; the only hint as to its age comes with the occasional dust spot from the original print (particularly in the outdoor scenes), but this is no way detracts from the film. This is truly a picture-perfect transfer and is an example of restoration and encoding technology at its best.

The world of The Dark Crystal is filled with colourfully varied scenery, strange animals and insects and the most amazing flora and fauna. The quality of the puppetry is breathtaking – the way they flow and move, their personalities and behaviour. You soon forget that these are just latex creations and start looking on them as real and believable beings.

Audio

Presented in DD5.1 the depth of the soundstage is staggering.

A multitude of ambient effects will fill your room with the life and sounds of this magical world. The voice track is clear and articulate and is well separated from the surround channels.

Altogether, a fitting match to the staggering visuals of this disk.

Features

There is a fabulous range of extras on offer here to enhance the feature presentation. There is an hour-long feature “The World of The Dark Crystal” that takes the viewer behind the scenes to take a look at how the film’s magical creatures were created. It also explains how the film was conceived and originally planned. The section on the techniques, and associated problems, with designing and operating the various puppets makes compulsive viewing. It really is quite staggering to see how these creations operate and it makes one appreciate the film that bit more. Jim Henson’s insights into the various key processes are interesting and enjoyable, although made somewhat saddening after his untimely death in 1990.

Also included are a few deleted scenes - the most noteworthy being the superb “Skeksis Funeral Scene”. I think that this would have actually enhanced the film and cannot understand why it was cut, except maybe for reasons of running-time.

Finally, a superb collection of original artwork by Brain Froud is included as is the original theatrical trailer, cast and crew biographies and some extensive production notes.

Altogether a well-rounded and thorough package.

Conclusion

This movie is almost unique in its concept and execution. As the world’s first fully animatronic movie, it set a precedent that has ensured that Henson’s puppetry has survived even in the computer age (‘Yoda’ is a key example).

It comes thoroughly recommended to fans of all genres and is a fitting tribute to the immense talent that helped bring this movie to the screen.