An Earth like planet named Krull finds itself under a state of Siege by an all-powerful Beast and its many minions, which are known as Slayers. Two opposing groups unite to fight the Beast and the Slayers only to perish. However, a prince named Colwyn (Ken Marshall) survives, and spurred on by a wise old mentor type named Ynyr (Freddie Jones), he makes the journey necessary to find the Black Fortress (a.k.a. the Beasts' stronghold), to find the weapon he needs (the Glaive - sort of a multi-bladed boomerang), and to gather together a group of travelling companions.
This may not be among the most prestigious of the many films that the late, versatile filmmaker Peter Yates directed, but it's got to be among the most fun. Aided by a very talented cast and crew and a substantial budget, he makes this an agreeable diversion, if also a rather familiar one. The widescreen photography (by Peter Suschitzky, who'd shot "The Empire Strikes Back"), the glorious rural vistas, the soaring music by James Horner (this has to rank as one of his finest scores), the makeup effects by Nick Maley, and a generous dose of cheese and corn do make "Krull" very watchable if not altogether memorable entertainment.
Leads Marshall and Lysette Anthony are appealing and very good looking, if also on the bland side, but compensating for that is the rock solid supporting cast: Jones, Francesca Annis as the "Widow of the Web" (the sequence with Jones and Annis is emotional and poignant and the highlight of the movie), Alun Armstrong, Liam Neeson, and Robbie Coltrane as three of the several bandits who join Colwyn in the fight against evil, Bernard Bresslaw as the one eyed Rell, John Welsh as the blind seer, and David Battley as the character Ergo, who supplies comedy relief by changing into various animals, whether he wants to or not.
All in all, "Krull" should prove to be enjoyable enough for devotees of the fantasy genre.
Seven out of 10.
This may not be among the most prestigious of the many films that the late, versatile filmmaker Peter Yates directed, but it's got to be among the most fun. Aided by a very talented cast and crew and a substantial budget, he makes this an agreeable diversion, if also a rather familiar one. The widescreen photography (by Peter Suschitzky, who'd shot "The Empire Strikes Back"), the glorious rural vistas, the soaring music by James Horner (this has to rank as one of his finest scores), the makeup effects by Nick Maley, and a generous dose of cheese and corn do make "Krull" very watchable if not altogether memorable entertainment.
Leads Marshall and Lysette Anthony are appealing and very good looking, if also on the bland side, but compensating for that is the rock solid supporting cast: Jones, Francesca Annis as the "Widow of the Web" (the sequence with Jones and Annis is emotional and poignant and the highlight of the movie), Alun Armstrong, Liam Neeson, and Robbie Coltrane as three of the several bandits who join Colwyn in the fight against evil, Bernard Bresslaw as the one eyed Rell, John Welsh as the blind seer, and David Battley as the character Ergo, who supplies comedy relief by changing into various animals, whether he wants to or not.
All in all, "Krull" should prove to be enjoyable enough for devotees of the fantasy genre.
Seven out of 10.