Legend

Legend (1985)
Director: Ridley Scott
Cast: Tom Cruise, Mia Sara, Tim Curry
Memorable Line: "What is light without dark?"

To be charitable, Legend isn't really a misfire, but more of case of missing the bulls eye by about seven rings. In spite of this, there are still many things about Legend to enjoy.

The Plot of Legend
Legend places us in a fairy tale land with Jack (Cruise) and Lili (Sara) as two of creatures that live in the land of Light, while in the land of the Dark resides the Lord of Darkness (Curry) wanting to blot out the land of light. Jack and Lili, being innocent, frolic and cavort, generally have a good time being in love and everything goes well until Jack takes Lili to see the last two unicorns. These unicorns hold the key for the survival of the land of Light. Lili against all better judgment interferes with the unicorns, making an opening for the Lord of Darkness to destroy the unicorns which will bring eternal darkness to the land of light.

Now, it's up to Jack to save not only his lady-love, but all of mankind. Aided by elves and other hobbit-like creatures Jack has to face off the Lord of Darkness to make it happen.

The Performances, Writing and Direction of Legend
There's something that just doesn't seem quite finished about Legend. One of the major clues to this is the fact that Scott changed the musical score completely before the U.S. release of the movie, switching from Jerry Goldsmith's orchestral score to Tangerine Dream's synth score. But that isn't the only symptom of something not quite right. The story has a disjointedness to it that is jarring at times.

Cruise seems wasted in a role that seems ill-fitted to him. Sara is somewhat forgettable, but Tim Curry, even beneath the fantastic make-up, is quite menacing and imperious.

What saves the movie from the brink of mediocrity is Scott's strength, the visual style of the movie. It's simply a resplendent in it's beauty, both in design and cinematography and that's what makes the movie worth watching.

Summary Judgment on Legend
Despite the problems with Legend, it is a movie worth watching simply for the visuals. The story, while fractured and unpolished, is still compelling to some extent. Whole not a whole hearted endorsement, I can say that Legend is a movie worth your time.