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Meg Mucklebones

Meg Mucklebones is a minor antagonist from the 1985 fantasy epic film Legend .

She is encountered by the hero Jack (Tom Cruise) as he makes his way to the ancient tree-like temple in the marshes which leads to the underworld where the Lord of Darkness resides.

She was portrayed by Robert Picardo , who also played Eddie Quist in The Howling , one of the Pirates in The Pagemaster , Equinox EMH and The Doctor in the Star Trek franchise, Amazo in the DC Animated Universe, Edward Teague in Smallville , Wayne Whittaker in Supernatural , Sylvester Smirch in Beethoven's Christmas Adventure and Sebastian Krueger and the Shadowman in the Call of Duty video game series.

• 1 Appearance
• 2 Biography
• 4 Navigation

Appearance [ ]

She is a semi-aquatic swamp monster resembling a giant green-skinned hag. She is grotesque in appearance with lank black hair, a pointed warty nose and a hunched back. Her long fingers end in sharp claws which she uses to snatch unwary travelers. She lurks beneath the surface and drags her prey down into the water where she feasts on her drowned victims.

Her voice sounds like she is gargling swamp water, with a horror villain-like cackle and almost playful tone.

Biography [ ]

But she also turns out to be rather vain and easy to trick as she is easily flattered by Jack, who uses her own reflection to distract her before chopping off her head. Her body continues to writhe for some time after her beheading.

Her allegiance to Darkness is unknown. She does not appear to be an agent of his, instead she is an opportunistic predator just out for herself. But the fact she resides so close to the Lord of Darkness' lair suggests there is a link. Possibly she, like other evil things, is drawn to the power of darkness, but other theories suggest she was originally a fair princess much like Lily and became a lover of the dark lord. Her prolonged exposure to him gradually warped her into a hideous hag, after which he no longer found her beautiful and banished her to the swamp. But this has not been confirmed.

She does not appear to possess any magical powers like a traditional witch, but does display some higher wisdom.

She appears to be based on the English legends of Jenny Greenteeth, a similar hag-like creature that is said to inhabit swamps and rivers and eats unwary children: like many hags she is shown to have a fondness for human flesh but apparently finds "fairy" flesh to be unappetizing.

Gallery [ ]

Navigation [ ]

• 1 Twelve Kizuki
• 2 Maxime Le Mal
• 3 The Boiled One

RETRO REVIEW: Legend Is a Cult Classic Movie for Tom Cruise Fans

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The 1985 fantasy-adventure film Legend had everything going for it. Ridley Scott had made his mark with The Duellists , then turned to science fiction with the Academy Award-winning Alien and the multiple versions of Blade Runner , before aiming at fantasy filmmaking. Tom Cruise had just finished football drama All the Right Moves and was a year away from mega-star status thanks to Top Gun . With tremendous talent in front of and behind the camera, Legend felt like a sure thing.. until it wasn't.

With special effects wizard Rob Bottin ( Robocop ) burying actors beneath prosthetics and Oscar-nominated production designer Assheton Gorton ( The French Lieutenant’s Woman ) creating this world from the ground up, Legend certainly looks amazing. Cinematographer Alex Thomson is also no stranger to fantasy, having been Oscar-nominated for his work on Excalibur . All that creativity, plus an immense amount of money and time, amounts to something -- even if it's not commercial success. Rather, Legend became a cult hit and it deserves all of the appreciation that's been lobbed on it since.

Tim Curry is the True Star of Legend

Curry's Performance as Darkness Stands Out

10 Best Fantasy Movies That Aren't Based on Fairy Tales

The fantasy genre typically pulls a lot from fairy tales, but some of the best films are entirely original.

Tim Curry is the centerpiece around which Legend revolves. A preening, elegant and animalistic creation, his eight-foot-tall villain Darkness is an example of great 1980's practical movie effects . Curry -- encased in a full-body prosthetic -- creates an oppressive presence that dominates Legend from the shadows. Cloven hoofs, manicured talons, and a rich baritone distinguish this denizen of the underworld from the innocence above, while the actor towers over his co-stars. Even though Darkness only appears in the later part of Legend , Curry's performance is the most memorable. He elevates overly elaborate pantomime villainy to legendary status.

When Legend was released in 1985, Curry was best known as Dr. Frank-N-Furter in Frankenstein -inspired The Rocky Horror Picture Show , both on stage and on screen. There is no denying the theatrical element that comes through in his portrayal of Darkness, yet there is nothing camp or melodramatic about it. In fact, considering Legend is in a genre that has traditionally aimed at children, he certainly scares audiences by giving them something grotesque. This shocking difference is hammered home in the film's final act, when animal sacrifice and devil worship throw Legend into freefall. But Curry overshadows Cruise, both literally and figuratively.

Tom Cruise Makes an Early Impression - By Not Making One

Legend undersells cruise's hero character jack, 10 best tom cruise movies (that aren’t mission: impossible films).

Mission: Impossible is a juggernaut franchise in Hollywood, but Tom Cruise has starred in many other fantastic movies.

The true test of any actor is their ability to make an impression. Legend pushes that idea to breaking point with Tom Cruise, who does less than zero throughout the film. Scott captures him amid pollen with glitter glistening on his skin opposite an equally perfect Mia Sara, and the heightened lovefest between their characters Jack and Lili lasts throughout the movie. Nothing more is asked of Cruise acting-wise, apart from the occasional action sequence; Legend is far from the best Tom Cruise performance .

However, there still are glimpses of the movie star he would become. Cruise has an on-screen presence that is impossible to mimic. He may not make a wonderful impression like other fantasy movie heroes, but he walks away from Legend almost unscathed. That's impressive, since at one point he faces off against a towering Tim Curry wrapped in bright red skin and brandishing a broadsword. Less than a year after Legend , Cruise was winning over film audiences as Lt. Pete "Maverick" Mitchell in Top Gun -- proving how much bigger he was than any one movie.

Legend's Uneven Story Kept It From Being a Box Office Hit

The film has a number of production flaws, ridley scott's 10 best movies according to rotten tomatoes.

Ridley Scott’s latest movie, The Last Duel, has reminded audiences of how consistent Scott’s work has been over the years.

There is no denying that Legend lacks a story of any substance . There is so little for audiences to hang onto dramatically that the movie soon becomes an exercise in artistic appreciation. Scenes either feel stretched out too long or lack meaningful dialogue, and writer William Hjortsberg ( Angel Heart ) turns every fairy exchange into rhyming couplets that soon become distracting. But that's not the only way in which the movie wanders off in its own direction -- feeling more like an arthouse film than anything else.

Between the endless shots of Lili running in slow motion, or Jack breaking through sheet ice as the world is plunged into darkness, Legend loses its way. Moments of visual genius are overshadowed by artistic overindulgence, meaning that scenes simply do not work. Whether the fact that the movie's primary set burned down affected the finished product is up for debate, but Legend suffers from tonal inconsistency throughout. Thankfully, Bottin and his team of visual effects boffins manage to turn this turgid trifle into a cult classic, thanks to some groundbreaking techniques.

How Did Legend Become a Cult Classic?

The movie's makeup and effects save the day, 11 most underrated fantasy movies.

Not all movies manage to revolutionize a genre, but underrated fantasy films like Excalibur have some qualities that make them entertaining watches.

From another cult hit in John Carpenter's The Thing to winning an Oscar for Total Recall , Rob Bottin has elevated every movie he touches. In the case of Legend , he designed, implemented, and engineered some of the most intricate practical effects ever seen on film. He was rewarded for his efforts with another Academy Award nomination in the Best Makeup category. Beyond the creation of Darkness, Bottin also brought to life another creature ripped from the pages of a fairy tale nightmare called Meg Mucklebones, played by future Star Trek fan-favorite Robert Picardo.

Encountered by Jack on his way to the underworld, Meg is a marvel of prosthetic make-up and hydraulic invention. Buried beneath this terrifying disguise, Picardo embraces his inner swamp monster. Gnarled, nasty and after a tasty morsel, Meg Mucklebones is the perfect combination of visual effects and acting prowess. Her leering over her intended victim surrounded by a putrid bog is one of the most powerful moments in this disjointed movie.

There is no doubting the ambition behind Legend , which oddly falls between Blade Runner and Someone to Watch Over Me in Scott's filmography . Legend has some of the most impressive visuals Ridley Scott has ever shaped -- including towering trees, woodland glades and awe-inspiring set designs. Those who helped create its world -- including Bottin, Thomson, Gorton and composer Jerry Goldsmith -- made something truly dazzling. Legend might be flawed, but there are elements that shine through the visual distractions, wafer-thin plotline and overly engineered acting. Hiding therein are moments of sheer filmmaking genius. With numerous cuts to choose from and an endless array of interpretations to draw from them, Legend is the cult classic that keeps giving.

In a fantastical realm, a young hero embarks on a quest to rescue a princess and recover the last of the unicorns from a malevolent figure who seeks to plunge the world into eternal night. Joined by allies from the forest, he confronts dark forces in an epic battle to restore balance to the land.

• Tim Curry's performance carries the film.
• Excellent makeup and visual effects throughout.
• Stunning production design and superior score.
• A less impressive performance by Tom Cruise.
• Thinly-drawn story and uneven pacing.

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http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Film/Legend1985

Legend (1985)

"I require the solace of the shadows and the dark of the night. Sunshine is my destroyer." — Darkness

Legend is a 1985 fantasy/adventure film directed by Ridley Scott and written by William Hjortsberg , starring Tom Cruise , Mia Sara , Tim Curry , and Tim Curry's massive pair of horns. It is part of The '80s fantasy boom in film, sharing many of the same elements as its contemporaries . The movie was a flop at the time, but is now a bit of a Cult Classic , mainly for its creative visuals and Rob Bottin 's masterful practical effects. Whatever other problems it has, this movie looks great .

The Lord of Darkness (Curry) plots to cover the world in eternal night. He sends his servant, the goblin Blix (Alice Playten), to kill the light-bringing unicorns and take their horns. The unicorns only appear before the pure of heart, so a lure must be used. Enter Jack (Cruise) and Princess Lili (Sara), pure denizens of the forest. When the stallion is killed, Jack and Lili are separated as snowstorms envelop the world. She and the mare are captured by the forces of Darkness, and he must band together with the woodland fairies to rescue her.

Nothing to do with the 2015 film of the same name , or the short-lived Richard Dean Anderson western fantasy dramedy also of the same name .

Legend provides examples of the following tropes:

• Aim for the Horn : Played for Drama . Much to Jack's horror, Big Bad Darkness's goblins wound and kill a unicorn by poisoning it and cutting off its horn.
• All Just a Dream : At least, Lili thinks so when she wakes up at the end of the Director's Cut , and Jack doesn't confirm or deny it. She doesn't get to see Jack waving goodbye to the elves and unicorns after she's left. The theatrical edition changes the ending completely, and she sees them together with Jack.
• And Now You Must Marry Me : The Lord of Darkness's goblins capture the beautiful Princess Lili and take her to the dark castle, where Darkness falls in love with her and plans to marry her.
• Annoying Arrows : Darkness takes a few from Gump and Jack and he doesn't even slow down.
• The Antichrist : Darkness is effectively this, as he is ultimately in service to his unseen and unnamed father.
• As Long as There Is Evil : "Big D" tries to invoke this, presumably to convince Jack not to kill him. This is likely true, however, see The End... Or Is It? below.
• Award-Bait Song : "Is Your Love Strong Enough?" by Bryan Ferry and "Loved by the Sun" by Jon Anderson .
• Bad Is Good and Good Is Bad : The goblins feel this way. Blix compares Lili unfavorably to rotting meat (he'd prefer the latter), and the goblins also refer to the unicorns as "ugly one-horned mules."
• Bait-and-Switch : Oona seemingly abandons the quest to save Lili after Jack refuses her affections, only to unlock the door that has them trapped a moment later.
• Ball of Light Transformation : The fairy Oona can change into a small ball of light and fly around. She does so in Darkness's dungeon to escape a prison cell and obtain the key to the cell.
• Beauty Is Never Tarnished : Averted, as when Lili is captured, she is a complete and total mess, resembling nothing like a princess, and looking more like a dirty waif.
• Berserk Button : Darkness has entitlement issues. When Lili tells him, "I do nothing for your pleasure!" he loses his temper.
• Big Bad : The Lord of Darkness himself, who is the main villain of the movie.
• Big Red Devil : Darkness is one of the more ambitious depictions of this trope in live action history, with red skin, hooves, and some truly gigantic horns. All he's missing is the batlike wings. There's a reason he's the most iconic visual element of the movie.
• Black-and-White Morality : The heroes are an innocent Princess Classic and a group of forest inhabitants trying to protect the sacred unicorns who make life possible . The villain Darkness is a demonic Evil Overlord who rules over an army of evil goblins and cannibalistic pig-men executioners and wants to create an eternal night to bring about the end of the world.
• Blow Gun : Blix uses one to fire a poisoned dart into a unicorn and kill it so he can cut off its horn.
• Bookends : Only in the Director's Cut . When Jack first appears at the start of the film, a myna bird flies down from the sky and lands on his shoulder. Once Darkness has been defeated and Lili returned to the castle, Jack turns away to survey the forest, and the myna bird returns, once again landing on his shoulder.
• Breakout Pop Hit : "Is Your Love Strong Enough" in the US version was high on the Billboard charts.
• Bumbling Henchman Duo : Trio, actually. The three goblins have moments of this, being much more overtly comedic in their characterization than Darkness himself, although they can also be genuinely effective henchmen.
• Card-Carrying Villain : All of them, though Darkness comprehends he's just one side of the coin. The others, though... Blix: May be innocent, may be sweet... ain't half as nice as rotting meat.
• Character Tic : Jack crouching on his heels, which emphasizes his wildness.
• Cooking the Live Meal : Darkness' castle has a hellish-looking kitchen in which boar-like cooks place live prisoners in giant pies to cook them and serve them up as lunch.
• Corrupt the Cutie : Darkness is advised to "woo" Lili, attempting this trope.
• Cross-Cast Role : The swamp hag Meg Mucklebones is played by Robert Picardo .
• Damsel in Distress : Lili, who gets kidnapped fairly early on, and whom Jack and friends must rescue.
• Dark Is Evil : The demonic villain Darkness is a personification of the concept and wants to extinguish all life so he can subsist in the dead icebound world...
• Disney Villain Death : Subverted with Blunder , who appears to fall to his death but later appears unharmed.
• Distracted by the Luxury : Whilst running around Darkness's lair in a complete panic, Lili is briefly lulled into calm by the sight of a giant diamond necklace, part of his ploy to woo her .
• Doomed Fellow Prisoner : Jack and his friends slide down the tunnel into a cell in Darkness's dungeons. They find a fellow prisoner, Blunder, a fairy who worked for Darkness but betrayed him and was punished with imprisonment. While they're talking to him, one of Darkness's minions enters his cell and takes him out to be baked in a pie (no blackbirds, though). They eventually rescue him before he meets his fate.
• Easily Forgiven : Invoked. When Gump hears that Jack led Lili to the unicorns for love, he promises to forgive Jack for his part in the unicorn's death if Jack can answer a riddle. When Jack does, Gump throws a brief tantrum over it, but then he promptly gets over it and assists Jack to rescue Lili and the unicorns.
• Eats Babies : Blunder contemplates eating a human baby in its crib. This oddly horrifies his fellow goblin, Pox. note  Considering Blunder is The Mole , he was probably overcompensating. Blunder : I simply adore milk-fed meat! Pox : What are ya, some kind of animal?
• Endless Winter : There are two unicorns that provide Light. When one is slain, winter ensues. If the second is killed, the winter will be made permanent.
• The End... Or Is It? : At the end of the U.S. version, Darkness (who was apparently destroyed earlier) is shown laughing in a dissolve shot.
• Engagement Challenge : At first not particularly difficult—dive into a small pond and find the ring the princess threw there. Becomes much harder after the death of one unicorn freezes everything over in eternal winter. Later linked, somehow , to True Love's Kiss after the horn is restored and the pond thaws.
• Evil Costume Switch : Lili in the Bride of Darkness outfit, black lipstick and stylized tear stains included.
• Evil Desires Innocence : Darkness seeks to cast the world into eternal night. But he is captivated by the purity and innocence of Lili. His father recommends he Corrupt the Cutie , and she even makes it seem like it's working when she pulls a Fake Defector .
• Evil Is Hammy : Despite his discomfort with the extensive makeup (see below under Real Life Writes the Plot ), Tim Curry still turns in a marvelously hammy performance as the wicked Darkness.
• Evil Laugh : Both Darkness and Meg Mucklebones are prone to this. Darkness's is more of a deep, gloating laugh, while Meg, being a hag, has the classic witch's cackle.
• Evil Plan : The Lord of Darkness seeks to kill all unicorns so he can plunge the world in darkness.
• Evil Sounds Deep : Tim Curry's voice is pretty deep to begin with, but here it's even deeper and more booming than usual.
• Exploring the Evil Lair : Jack and his friends enter Darkness's lair to rescue Lili and the unicorn.
• Exposition of Immortality : Darkness, during the ending fight with Jack, boasts about how he's been here since the beginning, because there's no Light without Darkness.
• Faint in Shock : When she first meets the terrifying villain Darkness, Lili faints and collapses to the ground. She wakes up a few seconds later and has a long conversation with him.
• The Fair Folk : Even when the world is in peril, Gump tests Jack with a riddle before deciding to help him, when he finds out that he took Lili to see the unicorns. In a deleted scene he even forces Jack to dance with his magic fiddle before asking the riddle.
• Fairy Sexy : Oona the Fairy Companion wears a very short dress.
• Foreign Rescore : when it was released in Europe, it had a Jerry Goldsmith score. When it was released in the US, Tangerine Dream was there in his stead - and Bryan Ferry over the closing credits.
• At the beginning of the movie Darkness says "I require the solace of the shadows and the dark of the night. Sunshine is my destroyer." Just in case the audience forgot, while Darkness is in the underground cave with Lili he says it again. Guess how the good guys defeat him at the climax?
• When Lili enters Nell's cottage she sees a clock on the wall. While she looks at it, it is suddenly covered with frost, a warning of the winter that will descend when one of the unicorns is killed and has its horn cut off.
• The heroes defeat Darkness by reflecting a beam of sunshine against him. This is foreshadowed early on when Lili uses the heart charm on her necklace like a laser pointer to shine a tiny beam of light in Jack's eyes.
• Friend to All Living Things : Jack.
• The Ghost : Lili's father, the king, is mentioned but never seen.
• Gluttonous Pig : The pig-like goblin Pox wants to use the unicorn's magical horn to "turn everything into garbage, a great towering mountain of slop" for him to eat.
• Go-Go Enslavement : Lili is made to wear an Evil Sorceress ensemble after being kidnapped by Darkness.
• Greater-Scope Villain : We never get any details, but Darkness calls out for his father for advice about Lili and calls out to him in desperation at the moment of his defeat.
• Hidden Depths : Lili. And yes, they are hidden pretty deep.
• Hollywood Torches : Both the goblins and Jack have one at some point.
• Horn Attack : Subverted when Darkness charges Jack with his horns foremost as though he's planning on piercing him with them, but ends up with the horns touching a wall with Jack trapped between them.
• Horns of Villainy : Darkness sports what is still probably the largest pair of horns in the history of costume design. They were so heavy that they had to be detached so Tim Curry could rest between shoots.
• I'm a Humanitarian : Not only do prisoners in Darkness's lair get cooked and eaten, we also have Meg Mucklebones who thinks Jack is a "juicy boy." Then there's the goblins. Blunder contemplates eating a baby, and then he and Pox discuss how they want to eat Lili's brains and bones.
• Karma Houdini : Blix and Pox, due to the troubled production resulting in them being cut halfway through filming. One can only hope that they both died horribly off camera.
• Large Deviled Ham: the Lord of Darkness.
• Small Elven-Ham: Gump. "Do you think you can upset the order of the universe, and not pay the PRICE?!? " In the Director's Cut Gump throws a massive hissy fit after Jack solves his riddle.
• Last of His Kind : The two unicorns. After the stallion is killed by the goblins, the mare becomes, much like in that other '80s fantasy movie, The Last Unicorn . At the end, the stallion is magically revived, however.
• Larynx Dissonance : Gump's voice is notably more restrained than his acting. See Large Ham . This is partly because he's dubbed; the producers felt that actor David Bennent sounded "too German" (technically he's Swiss), so he was dubbed over by Alice Playten (who also plays Blix).
• Light and Mirrors Puzzle : The heroes must reflect a beam of sunshine all the way down to the bottom of hell.
• Love Overrides the Law : Subverted where Jack takes Lili to see the unicorns. Lili's purity lures one of them to her and makes it vulnerable to attack, which leads to one of them being killed and one captured and the sudden onset of winter. Later on, a fairy named Honeythorn Gump confronts Jack and demands to know if he had anything to do with it. Jack admits everything, but says that he did it for love. Instead of forgiving Jack, the Gump tells him that he must answer a riddle first. If he can't, then Gump will kill him.
• Made of Evil : Darkness is literally made of darkness, portrayed as the equivalent of evil. He's a Big Red Devil who wants to bring about an eternal night (even though it means the end of the world) because he needs it to thrive. Before his ultimate defeat he also taunts the hero that darkness can't exist without him .
• Maybe Ever After : The Director's Cut leaves the door open as to the future of Jack and Lili's relationship, as she returns to the human world and he goes back to his forest and the fae, though they do kiss and she expresses a desire to visit again .
• The Mole : Blunder, one of Darkness's goblin minions ( who was a disguised elf all along ).
• Ms. Fanservice : Lili's black dress has a plunging neckline and shows her bare legs.
• Must Make Amends : Lili inadvertently lures a unicorn into position to be attacked, which leads to its death. She tracks down the other unicorn and finds Brown Tom guarding it. Brown Tom: You! You're the cause of all our sorrow. Lili: I'm — I'm so sorry. I didn't know. Please, please forgive me. Brown Tom: I'm not the one you should be askin'. Lili: Try and understand. I'm only trying to make things right. Darkness has sent the goblins back for the mare. It's not safe to stay here. You'll have to hurry! Leave now! Go!
• My God, What Have I Done? : When Lili realizes her actions have caused a unicorn to die. It gets better.
• Mythical Motifs : Meg Mucklebones is a reference to water hag characters in folklore like Jenny Greenteeth and Peg Powler.
• Nature Hero : Jack. He's not given a lot of context.
• Navel-Deep Neckline : Lili's "Bride of Darkness" outfit. It's telling that her dress is a sacrificial dress, with her belly exposed for a dagger.
• Neck Lift : Done by Darkness to Jack, but by grabbing his face .
• The Night That Never Ends : The Big Bad Lord of Darkness is attempting to bring this trope about by killing the world's unicorns (the source of the world's light.)
• Noodle Incident : How Blunder ended up with the goblins. Even in the Director's Cut, there's little more than a throwaway line. Blunder: It's a long story. Let's just say I went looking for adventure, and found more than I could handle.
• Nostalgia Filter : While there was nothing inherently wrong with the Jerry Goldsmith soundtrack, many of the fans who saw the American cut first found nothing wholly remarkable about it either. Most fans seem to appear attached to the American cut due to the Tangerine Dream soundtrack which they felt made the film memorable.
• One-Word Title : It's just called Legend .
• Pig Man : Pox is a distinctly porcine goblin. There are also some much larger pig-like ogres in the dungeons.
• Playing with Fire : Darkness has fire-based powers, and the unicorn horn can cause and throw fire.
• Princess Classic : Princess Lili starts out as a quintessential princess classic, only to go through a Break the Cutie process, accumulating in an intense case of Corrupt the Cutie , only for this to be revealed as a ruse she put on in order to trick Darkness into letting her get close enough to free a captured unicorn .
• Quirky Miniboss Squad : Blix, Blunder and Pox.
• Real Life Writes the Plot : Darkness is introduced largely in shadows because Tim Curry had injured himself while removing his make-up note  he'd suffered a panic attack and ripped off the prosthetics before the spirit gum could be softened and took off large amounts of skin in the process . Ridley Scott was so horrified at what had happened and came up with this technique so that Curry would only have to wear sections of his make-up while he healed and the make-up crew could redesign the prosthetics so that Curry would be more comfortable.
• Rebellious Princess : Lili is this to a certain extent. It's implied that she frequently sneaks off into the woods to visit friends, one of whom even comments that she should be back at the palace and not hanging out with poor folks like them.
• In English, the voice of Gump was done by the same actress who played Blix; in German, he voiced both.
• In fact, all of the forest scenes had to be dubbed over in post-production because the noise on the set was so loud, according to Mia Sara on the Ultimate Edition DVD.
• Red Right Hand : Blunder has a chicken foot for a left hand (explained in a deleted scene).
• Rhymes on a Dime : Blix. It seems that all of the goblins' dialogue (and possibly Darkness's) was originally intended to be in rhyme, but this was toned down in the finished movie.
• Riddle for the Ages : Who is the father of Darkness?
• Riddle Me This : "What is a bell that never rings, yet its knell makes the angels sing?" The answer is the Bluebell flower .
• Riding into the Sunset : Jack and Lili walk off together into the sunset in one version of the film. In the director's cut, Jack walks off by himself while Lili goes to her castle.
• Rump Roast : Blix uses the unicorn horn to set Blunder's butt on fire.
• Shapeshifting Seducer : While the protagonists are trapped in Darkness's jail, the fairy Oona tries to get Jack to kiss her by creating an illusion that she's Jack's girlfriend Lili.
• Sic 'Em : When Darkness first summons Blix, he tells him to find and destroy the unicorns.
• Slow Light : At the conclusion of the movie, the sunlight takes 20 seconds to reflect off all of the shields and reach the underground chamber where it blows away Darkness.
• Storming the Castle : Jack and his friends attack the Lord of Darkness' castle to rescue Lili and a sacred unicorn.
• Throwing Your Sword Always Works : Jack defeats Darkness with a well-thrown unicorn horn.
• The Time of Myths : Ridley Scott's goal with Legend was to create a story and setting reminiscent of fairy tales and myths.
• True Love's Kiss : Jack does this to wake Lili.
• Unicorn : Two of them are key to the plot.
• Unicorns Are Sacred : Killing the last two unicorns that guard the power of light would allow the demon lord to roam the world free in darkness. Also, Darkness shows just how evil he is by ordering a unicorn's horn to be cut off, which causes the world to freeze over.
• Unicorns Prefer Virgins : Lili's "innocence" allows her to approach the unicorns. This is taken advantage of by Darkness and the goblins to lure the unicorns into the open so that they may kill them.
• Unseen Evil : The disembodied voice that helps Darkness seduce Lili, presumably the being he calls Father .
• Villainous Crush : The Lord of Darkness has one on Lili, attempting to seduce her and intending to make her his bride.
• Weakened by the Light : "The sunshine is my destroyer!"
• The Lord of Darkness is "distracted" by the captured princess's beauty and innocence and advised by his mysterious 'father' to woo her into temptation. There follows probably the best (and most eloquently written) scene in the film, where the devil's seduction rather backfires when the newly-darkened Princess plays His Lovesick Evilness like a two string harp. note  The first draft of the screenplay was very different: his pursuit of princessly love leads him to turning her into a bestial cat-woman and the two of them having lots and lots of sweaty monster sex.
• Implied of the fair folk, who know love exists, and is powerful, but they have no idea what it is. Which may be why Gump is upset at Oona for 1) hiding her true form, and 2) being interested in seeing what love really is by taking Lili's form.
• Nell and her family. Last seen flash-frozen in their house, they're completely forgotten about at the end of the story (even in the script!). Presumably they thawed out with the rest of the world after the unicorn's horn was restored.
• They just disappear about halfway through the movie, after their encounter with Darkness, despite having had an important role until then. Reportedly, they were cut half way through filming due to budget problems following the loss of most of the sets due to a studio fire. More scenes with Nell and her family may have been cut for the same reason.
• In one version of the script, Blix and Pox are present while Jack and Darkness are fighting, and when Pox wonders if they should help, Blix proposes they stay where it's safe and they slink off into the shadows.
• What the Hell, Hero? : The forest creatures are understandably upset by Lili's actions. Gump is even more upset by Oona's "secret".
• Wicked Witch : Jack briefly scuffles with a hideous swamp hag named Meg Mucklebones.
• Woman Scorned : Oona, although she shows her quality by not allowing it to dissuade her from doing her part to stop Darkness.
• World Limited to the Plot : This film is set entirely in the magic forest and Darkness's castle with only one throwaway line to Princess Lili's King father and a search for a husband . Nor has there been, interestingly enough, any serious fan attempts at Worldbuilding probably due to observing the "if it aint broke.." rule.
• Your Heart's Desire : Jack's heart's desire is his girlfriend Lili. When the fairy Oona and Jack are trapped in the dungeon of the villain Darkness, Oona offers Jack his heart's desire by assuming Lili's appearance and trying to get him to kiss her.
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On the Screen Reviews

The New Orleans Film Critic

Ridley Scott’s “Legend” (1985) is Iconic

With Tom Cruise, unicorns and Ridley Scott behind the lens, what could possibly go wrong? Apparently, it depends on who you talk to.

If Disney and the Grimm Brothers had a bastard baby, it would be Legend , and I couldn’t be more obsessed with it.

Legend is widely rumored to have been a source of inspiration for Shigeru Miyamoto’s classic game series The Legend of Zelda.  Some people may know it as the fantastical film that starred a young Tom Cruise, while others have absolutely no recollection of it at all. I’m part of the former, and I can proudly say that I believe in it’s strong cult status in the cinematic universe.

Many will argue, myself included, that Legend was ahead of its time, but it was a movie opening onto an audience not ready for it. It wouldn’t be until Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Ring’s trilogy that wizards and goblins would win over Hollywood and the masses.

Legend came after after Ridley Scott’s critically acclaimed horror  Alien (1979) and sci-fi noir classic Blade Runner (1982). Part of me always felt like Ridley sat down and just decided that he felt like making a fantasy film, and I’m kind of right.

Where does one begin to dissect how a perfectly campy 80s fantasy movie would be  a complete abomination at the box office and completely forgotten by the public? Maybe I could start with the chaos that engulfed production, or the simple fact that Ridley Scott decided to release Legend three weeks before the Tom Cruise mega-hit  Top Gun bouncing Legend out of every theater in America?

Legend wasn’t the first of it’s kind; the 80s was a haven for the fantasy genre, but few of the sword and sorcery flicks were ever hits…most barely making a profit. What did profit off of these movies, like Dark Crystal , Clash of the Titans and Willow was nostalgia. Whether or not you consider the lot a bad batch is your opinion, but there’s no denying their cult status in cinema.

The story-line is simple, albeit shallow to most, in that a young man must stop the Lord of Darkness from both destroying daylight and marrying the woman he loves.

From the outrageously spectacular set (that actually burned down toward the end of production stalling everything), to the lavish makeup (let’s be honest, CGI would solely be used now), there are many things I truly love about this movie. Every character is framed and designed so artistically (Meg Mucklebones, anyone?) that it’s impossible to pick a favorite…although Tim Curry’s Lord of Darkness is the immediate takeaway for most moviegoers.

Tim Curry as Old Testament terrifying Lord of Darkness is probably the MVP of this movie. Under layers of prosthetics (that took 5.5 hours to put on) from Oscar-winning make-up artist Rob Bottin (known for his work in The Thing ), you would never see this kind of artistry recreated in film today. CGI CGI CGI until you die would be the appropriate response for such complex costume design of this scale. I think we can all agree that they just don’t make them like the used to in a world now dominated by CGI.

When it comes to the ultimate argument, it’s whether or not you’ve seen the theatrical release or the director’s cut. The theatrical release bombed. Hard. Various cuts, endings and soundtracks exist for this film, but nothing seemed to attract audiences. The European cut, in theaters in December 1985, was 95 minutes and featured a Jerry Goldsmith orchestral score. The American release was several months later, in April 1986, trimmed to 89 minutes, and replaced the Goldsmith music with a more contemporary, up-beat synth sound with German electronic group Tangerine Dream. In my unpopular opinion, I’m a huge fan of the theatrical release, because I absolutely love the cheesy Tangerine Dream score and the extreme tight editing that the director’s cut lacked. Regardless, it’s been spoken that Legend was dead upon arrival once it hit theaters.

The final theatrical result may have been a stereotypical 80s fantasy, but this movie will forever remain a gem in my heart.

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Published by Courtney Young

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16 thoughts on “Ridley Scott’s “Legend” (1985) is Iconic”

Well…I haven’t forgotten about this film at all😊 I think it’s a highly underrated classic. And it’s great to see you put it in the spotligh here. Great post! 😊😊

Thank you! While I was researching it, I found so much hate for it…hence my “in defense for” in the title.

I’ve never actually seen this. Hmmmmmmmmm lol

It’s VERY campy and VERY 80s. If you can accept that going into it, you may just like it!

Ooh. This looks great. 80s movies are very special to me and I always enjoy the „nostalgic“ mood I get from watching them. Will look out for this one.

Check it out! I think it’s worth it for good 80s cheese 🙂

Definitely will do so.

Great blog post. I listen to a podcast called the retro cinema check em out here they podcast 80’s movies each Thursday & they did a podcast about Legend http://theretrocinema.com/070-legend/ and your blog post was wonderfully written and spot on about the film. Great work Courtney

Thanks, Nick! I actually listened to the retro cinema’s podcast episode on Legend after I wrote this! Great stuff there!

Oh how funny is that! They do such a great job the retro cinema people.

I was a kid when it came to TV and so have a soft spot for it though it was pretty dark for kids. Been meaning to research it for a while to see how it holds but there’s no denying it’s a great looking movie.

I saw it when I was a kid too…quite terrifying!

Great post! I actually haven’t seen this since the 80’s to be honest, but absolutely have fond memories of it, especially (and unsurprisingly) Tim Curry’s stand out performance. Thanks for rekindling my nostalgia, looks like I shall be heading to my local HMV this afternoon to see if they have this particular 80’s gem on Blu-Ray. 🙂

Thank you!!!

Watched it as a kid. Maybe 50 times. Definitely an all time classic. (And side note : That scene between Lily and the Lord of Darkness probably built a huge deal of my erotic imagination !)

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THE SCREEN: RIDLEY SCOTT'S 'LEGEND'

By Vincent Canby

• April 18, 1986

''Legend,'' directed by Ridley Scott, who has done better, is set in a timeless forest that you know must be enchanted: though the air is heavy with dandelion fluff, there's not a single dandelion in sight. In fact, the air is so full of dandelion fluff that it would seem to be more hazardous to the health than asbestos, which the fluff suggests, at least metaphorically.

However, ''Legend,'' being a fantasy-adventure, doesn't contain many asbestos-vulnerable mortals. Instead, its cast of tens is made up mostly of hobgoblins, leprechauns, elves and fairies. In addition, there are unicorns, of which it's said that ''as long as unicorns rule the earth, evil can never come to the pure of heart.''

These unicorns are the bane of the timeless existence of the Lord of Darkness, who's played by Tim Curry, but who looks like Donald Sutherland in a red Halloween mask and sounds like James Earl Jones as Darth Vader.

The Lord of Darkness represents evil. Representing good - none too efficiently - are a young man named Jack (Tom Cruise), who lives a life wild and free with the forest animals, and Lili (Mia Sara), a pretty, innocent maiden who's described as a princess, though she's without any visible principality.

In the course of ''Legend,'' Lili, who, though pretty and innocent, is extremely dumb, gives in to temptation with effects almost as fatal as Eve's bite of the apple. She pets a sacred unicorn, which allows the unicorn to be attacked by the Lord of Darkness's minions who chop off the unicorn's beautiful horn, which may or may not be a phallic symbol. In any case, we're told that whoever possesses the horn rules the earth.

I think I've got all this right, but the mythology of ''Legend'' isn't easy to follow. It's a slap-dash amalgam of Old Testament, King Arthur, ''The Lord of the Rings'' and any number of comic books. Though the film was apparently conceived by Mr. Scott (''The Duellists, ''Alien'' and ''Blade Runner'') and written by William Hjortsberg, the film's real auteur is Assheton Gorton, the production designer, who appears to have pigged out in the studio's carpenter shop.

He's created a series of fancy, plastic sets that keep the eye busier than the mind or the heart. When he runs out of dandelion fluff, he fills the air with cherry blossom petals and, later, with snow so fine and glisteny it looks to be sugar, plus 1,500 icicles made of resin and hot wax.

Among the small-scale people in the film are David Bennent, who once starred in ''The Tin Drum,'' and Billy Barty, who plays a comic dwarf named Screwball. Mr. Cruise goes through all this nonsense gamely, as if it were an initiation into a fraternity he wants very much to join.

''Legend'' opens today at Loews Astor Plaza and other theaters.

''Legend,'' which has been rated PG (''Parental Guidance Suggested''), contains some scenes of mild violence. The Cast LEGEND, directed by Ridley Scott; written by William Hjortsberg; director of photography, Alex Thomson; edited by Terry Rawlings; music by Tangerine Dream; production designer, Assheton Gorton; produced by Arnon Milchan; released by Universal Pictures. At Loews Astor Plaza, 44th Street west of Broadway; Loews New York Twin, Second Avenue and 66th Street; Loews 84th Street Six, at Broadway; Loews 34th Street Showplace Triplex, between Second and Third Avenues. Running time: 89 minutes. This film is rated PG. JackTom Cruise LiliMia Sara DarknessTim Curry GumpDavid Bennent BlixAlice Playten ScrewballBilly Barty Brown TomCork Hubbert PoxPeter O'Farrell BlunderKiran Shah OonaAnnabelle Lanyon Meg MucklebonesRobert Picardo

Things About Legend Only Adults Notice

We live in a world where not many things are forgotten. As the media conglomerates dig in and go to war for our attention and monthly subscription fees, there's very little original entertainment from the past that hasn't been remade, rebooted, or continued in a sequel set decades later. Nostalgia has become as dominant a force as originality, since we can watch practically anything that's ever been made.

The most interesting artifacts of the past are the rare shows or movies that left a memorable impression, but haven't yet been dug up and given a fresh coat of paint, like 1985's fantasy epic "Legend." The movie was a high-profile riff on fairy tales directed by a red-hot Ridley Scott , who was coming off of " Blade Runner " and " Alien ," two movies that remain hugely popular today with a multitude of sequels. But despite Scott's presence and the star-wattage of a young Tom Cruise, who was riding the success of "Risky Business," "Legend" flopped at the box office , as well as with those who did see it, after a lot of studio tinkering with the final product. The film now has a quiet cult following, consisting mostly of adults who wonder if it might've been something they dreamed up. These are the things you notice about "Legend" when you re-watch it as a grownup.

The opening crawl is more confusing than illuminating

Like the "Star Wars" movies (and many of its fantasy peers), "Legend" begins with a few paragraphs of exposition to give you some context about the world it's set in. It's a reasonable enough way to start, but instead of a few fleet lines that draw you into the action, "Legend" opens with an interminable  seven paragraphs of information that manage to kind of spoil the entire plot of the movie without clarifying any details. It's actually kind of impressive how confusing it can be.

To attempt to sum it up: The world used to be "shrouded in darkness," but "then came the splendor of light," filling the world with life as we know it. It's pretty basic Book of Genesis stuff so far. But the Lord of Darkness plots to retake the world by eliminating unicorns who harbor "precious light" in the their souls. Okay? Also, there is a boy of the forest named Jack and a beautiful girl named Lili that are about to learn there can be no light  without darkness. What? If there's one thing everyone can agree on about fairy tales, it's that we don't need to get into aphoristic moralizing until the end of the story — not before it even starts. By the time the crawl wraps up with some mumbo-jumbo about how maintaining the aforementioned light/darkness balance is how "Legends" are born, children and adults alike are just hoping there won't be a quiz later.

Legend is terrifying for a PG-rated film

The first striking images in "Legend" show the lair of villain Darkness (Tim Curry), whom you may remember looks exactly like the Devil. A small man, perhaps an elf, is hacked at by an armor-clad pig-man with a machete against a backdrop of fire. It's a pretty striking approximation of most descriptions of Hell, and a nightmarish way to begin a movie marketed to families and children, and given the second-lowest rating: Parental Guidance Suggested.

As we get older, the MPA ( formerly MPAA ) rating system is something that hardly makes sense when you're a kid, and makes even less as you get older. In the modern age, the sexual undertones of "Legend" alone would be enough to disqualify it for PG (more on this later); so would one of the most terrifying and realistic depictions of what is basically Satan, or the nightmare-inducing swamp hag ... and so on. This might give a young enough child bad dreams for a decade, but don't worry — there aren't any curse words. The MPA merely suggested you sit with your kids as they go to Hell and back.

What is the message of Lili's story for young girls?

The strangest part of "Legend" and its vague pastiche of fantasy tropes is that it rests the weight of its story on Mia Sara's Lili. Tom Cruise's Jack is a straightforward hero with no semblance of an interior life. It's Lili who is a "lady," interloping into the lives of common villagers. She's out of her element, and her desire to touch a unicorn is what sets all of the plot's world-ending events in motion. Even though it's clearly the forest-dwelling Jack's fault for leading her to the unicorns and not explaining the stakes of the "no touching" rule to her, she weeps and tries to atone for her mistake.

Later, when she's held captive by Darkness, she's seemingly tempted by a life of gothed-up dresses and makeup as Darkness's bride, but it turns out to be a ruse as she betrays him. But without any context, or even any dialogue explaining her motivations or history, Lili's journey is just a confusing parable with nebulous and unhealthy takeaways for any young girls watching. Don't be curious? Don't make out with your boyfriend in the forest? Don't be "seduced" by Darkness? It would be one thing if Lili were a rote "damsel in distress" character, but to give her human flaws and no clear redemptive arc is worse, and more confusing to boot.

Who is Darkness' father?

Another paradox of "Legend" is that one of the most memorable images, Tim Curry's massive prosthetics and makeup as Darkness, bogs the story down with an endless number of metaphysical questions, especially for adults. On paper, he's just the embodiment of literal darkness, with a very clear and understandable anti-light and anti-unicorn stance. But by choosing to make him look exactly like the horn-headed, red-skinned theological figure that we all know as Satan, "Legend" invites distracting rabbit holes each time Darkness reveals more about himself.

By far the strangest is when Darkness speaks to his disembodied "father" for advice and counsel. The opening crawl told us nothing about Darkness' father, but if Darkness is Satan, then he'd be talking to ... God? Or perhaps his father's voice is the voice of darkness itself, which makes you wonder if "light" has similar therapy sessions with the unicorns, who embody light in the same way? It's not out of bounds for epic fantasy texts to allude to religious dogma or imagery pretty specifically; "Lord of the Rings" and "The Chronicles of Narnia," for example, traffic extensively in Christian metaphors. But by making Darkness so specifically a visual reference to devil myths, "Legend" tries to stake out narrative depth and profundity that it doesn't even come close to approaching before the credits roll.

Legend's practical effects still look great

As confusing as it may be for the story, Tim Curry's massive horns and spectacular red makeup as Darkness are the best example of the way in which "Legend" has aged the best: It still looks incredible. Darkness and the swamp hag Meg Mucklebones (Robert Picardo), in particular, stand out as the kind of massive practical effects work that would almost certainly be mostly computer-generated today. The various goblins and elves are impeccable, as well. Outside of noticing the horns wobbling slightly on the horses playing the unicorns, "Legend" holds up as a flawless work of '80s effects craft.

Ridley Scott's heavy use of close-up shots also serves to ground the film visually in a way that most other fantasy epics don't, opting for more wide and sweeping shots for the most part instead. Combined with the unique electronic score by the band Tangerine Dream, "Legend" feels like watching a movie from 1985 in all the best aesthetic ways. 

What is Blunder's backstory?

In addition to Jack, Lili, and Darkness, "Legend" breathlessly introduces a half-dozen supporting characters in its short runtime that you might not even remember until revisiting the film. One of the most confusing additions is Blunder (Kiran Shah), a wayward elf that poses as a goblin for the entire first half of the film. Initially seen wearing a helmet, he's one of the least competent members of Darkness' entourage, and eventually turns on Darkness, threatens him with the alicorn (the severed unicorn horn), and gets banished to the dungeons.

When Jack and his friends encounter Blunder, it's revealed that he's the brother of one of the elves, and he explains his presence by saying only that he "found more adventure than [he] could handle." Now that he's on the outs with Darkness, he helps the heroes defeat him and joins in the celebration at the end, and no one revisits the subject again. Why did he pose as a goblin? Why is everyone cool with Blunder now, even though he helped track and shoot one of the unicorns earlier?

Tim Curry saves Legend singe-handedly

In his long and storied career, Tim Curry is usually a highlight of any film or stage production in which he appears. Just as he anchors the longest-running theatrical release of all time , midnight-show favorite "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," as the mercurial Dr. Frank N. Furter, his portrayal of Darkness in "Legend" is arguably the only thing keeping the movie from fading into total obscurity. In a movie where Tom Cruise barely musters any of his charm, and Ridley Scott brings none of the clarity and precision of his other blockbusters, only Tim Curry holds up his end of the bargain and gives a performance for the ages under an impossibly elaborate costume.

Tim Curry's Darkness is sultry, brooding, and impossibly intense. Despite the makeup and facial prosthetics making it hard to really see Curry's performance that well, his expressive voice compensates like a special effect unto itself. In a movie full of flat or cheesy dialogue, Curry capably delivers elaborate, Shakespearian lines like "I sit alone, an impotent exile, whilst this force, this presence, returns to torment me!" Making such a lasting impression in a movie that time has forgotten — that's how legends are made.

Legend is surprisingly sexual in tone

The most surreal and dreamlike element of "Legend" is its penchant for endless sexual tension. And not just the light, implied tension of a story like "Little Red Riding Hood," but the panting tension of '80s late-night cable programming. From the beginning, Jack and Lili's chemistry is composed primarily of burning, intense staring at one another — and then, as they make out, the movie cuts to a time-lapse shot of the sun passing over the shy. What could the editing be implying is happening?

Oona the fairy (Annabelle Lanyon) reveals to Jack that she can take human form, mostly to lust after his human form very openly. By the time we get to Lili's imprisonment in Darkness' lair, and her "seduction" by a ghostly black figure that dances with her until she's suddenly wearing a revealing black dress and dark makeup, "Legend" has taken a bizarre left turn from a family fantasy in the vein of "Willow" to something you probably wouldn't want to watch with your parents. How far did you need to go with this sort of thing in the '80s to get bumped to ( the then very new ) PG-13?

There's virtually no meaning behind the story

We remember fairy tales because they make sense. Whether they're movies or bedtime stories, the characters in fairy tales learn clear lessons that we can sum up in a few words. In telling stories with simple lessons, they teach us universal truths. "Legend" has the look of a fairy tale, and it has the ingredients and the allegorical logic of one, but by failing to introduce characters that undergo any obvious changes or learn anything, it doesn't manage to be about anything at all.

The general stakes are clear: Some characters are evil and some are bad. We know who to root for, but not why anyone involved with the movie thought this was a story worth telling. "Legend" attempts to summarize its own lesson in the opening crawl with the bit about "without darkness there can be no light," but that's only as deep as a tattoo of a yin-yang symbol without a good story to back it up. If you're going to call your movie "Legend," and invite comparisons to the stories that have stood the test of time the longest, the last thing you can do is be meaningless.

Why does Jack wear armor but no pants?

A point in favor of "Legend" is that it's so stylistic and dreamy that it doesn't invite any real nitpicking about the plot. While a lot of fantasy-genre properties inspire "Why not just fly the ring to Mount Doom with the eagles?" theorizing , "Legend" stumbles ahead with its particular stream-of-consciousness-like momentum and carries you with it, for good or ill. The only consistently distracting question is, "Why isn't Tom Cruise wearing pants?"

At first he's just Jack, friend to all forest creatures, so it makes perfect sense that he'd have bare legs like a Teen Beat Peter Pan. Then about halfway through the movie, when he resolves to go on a quest to retrieve the fallen unicorn's horn, his elf friends lead him to a huge stash of weapons and armor. Finally, you think, he's going to dress the part of the conquering hero. But, hilariously, he decides to equip himself with a sword, chain-mail tunic, and shield — but no pants. What conditions possibly call for chain-mail but bare legs? This seems obvious, even to a peaceful forest-person.  

Legend needs more Oona

In just a few scenes, Annabelle Lanyon creates the second-most memorable character in "Legend" (behind Tin Curry's Darkness) as Oona the fairy. She's one of the only characters in the movie with a small character arc of her own: She wants Jack, he rejects her, but she helps him and the elves anyway. Lanyon brings a manic intensity to Oona's eyes, and a biting petulance to her delivery that make for a unique, chaotic menace contrary to the Tinkerbells of the world.

There's even a personal subtext to Oona's role in the plot: She reveals only to Jack that she can switch between fairy mode and human size, and is hurt when he reveals this to the group in the dungeons to help them escape. She then attempts to blackmail Jack into being with her, and even takes on Lili's form in a move that reveals a deep loneliness and desperation. Oona arguably deserves an entire movie to herself, as opposed to all the paper-thin characters around her.

What does the shot of Darkness at the end mean?

"Legend" ends just as it begins: with another impossibly cryptic reminder about "balance." After Darkness is defeated by teamwork and sunlight, the unicorn is healed, and Jack finds Lili's ring at the bottom of the lake, everyone is smiling and waving goodbye. But just as Jack and Lili walk off into their happily every after, and the camera lingers on the smiling faces of their elf and unicorn friends, "Legend" dissolves into a final shot of Darkness, laughing his piercing and booming laugh, before cutting to black.

Is it a flashback? Does Darkness still live? Once again, while it's in line with the story that "Legend" seemed to think it was telling about balance and good and evil, in practice it's just one more spin on a plot that went nowhere. Since the struggle against Darkness never felt like anything more than an allegory to begin with, it's not particularly upsetting to get a final reminder of his eternal threat. In the end, it's just more noise at the end of a legend that never was.

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Set in a timeless mythical forest inhabited by fairies, goblins, unicorns and mortals, this fantastic story follows a mystical forest dweller, chosen by fate, to undertake a heroic quest. He must save the beautiful Princess Lili and defeat the demonic Lord of Darkness, or the world will be plunged into a never-ending ice age.

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Legend (1985)

Tom cruise: jack.

• Photos (37)
• Quotes (13)

Photos 

Quotes 

Princess Lily : Are you afraid to kiss me, Jack?

Jack : I'm afraid you'll break my heart.

Princess Lily : Then still your heart, for you are dear to me as life itself.

Meg Mucklebones : What a fine fat boy you are, Jack!

Jack : You don't really mean to eat me, do you, ma'am?

Meg Mucklebones : Oh, indeed I do!

[cackles] 

Jack : That would be a shame because someone as fair and lovely as yourself, Miss Meg, deserves far better than scrawny me. Don't you think?

Meg Mucklebones : Think me fair, do you, Jack?

Jack : All the heavenly angels must envy your beauty.

Meg Mucklebones : [cackles]  What a fine meal you'll make, be the rest of you as sweet as your tongue!

Jack : I... I must be dreaming...

Gump : If life is a dream, better you dread the waking!

Jack : How do you know my name?

[cranes head away in annoyance from Oona, who is buzzing around his head] 

Jack : Stop it! Go away!

Gump : I know everything, Jack. Yet I do not understand what has happened today. Suppose you tell me, Jack? You know these woods as well as any elf. Did you not see something odd today, any strange spirits? Did nothing untoward happen?

Jack : I took Lily to see the unicorn...

Gump : [In outrage]  You did what?

[the other elves chatter noisily] 

Gump : Silence!

[They hush] 

[repeated line] 

Jack : I trust you, Lily.

Jack : [solves the riddle]  Flowers...? Bluebells! To hear them ring, it means your life is at an end!

Jack : Who are you?

Gump : Here be a forest child and not know of Gump?

Jack : Gump, is it?

Gump : Honeythorn Gump, at your service.

Jack : Ask me your Riddle, and Pray God my answer pleases you.

Princess Lily : Teach me rabbit!

Jack : Not today

Princess Lily : But I'm your best student.

Jack : [yells]  Darkness!

Gump : Come on, Jack, don't keep us in the dark!

Jack : In the dark is where we'll stay. We're cursed.

Jack : These are Sacred Animals!

Oona : Call that a kiss? Am I not sweet?

Jack : Sweet as bee-pollen.

Oona : [Changes into Lily]  Sweet as the wind that blows me to you.

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