|
| 
 enlarge | Director: Matthew Robbins
Actors: Peter Macnicol, Caitlin Clarke, Ralph Richardson, John Hallam, Peter Eyre
Studio: Paramount
Category: DVD
List Price: $9.98
Buy New: $4.08
You Save: $5.90 (59%)
New (46) Used (24) from $4.06
Rating:  114 reviews
Sales Rank: 4184
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dvd-video, Subtitled, Widescreen, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled)
Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Region: 1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 109 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 5.3 x 0.6
MPN: PARD013674D
UPC: 097360136746
EAN: 0097360136746
ASIN: B0000AUHOM
Theatrical Release Date: June 26, 1981
Release Date: October 21, 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: BRAND NEW sealed shipped daily. International Shipping via Air Mail.
|
| Customer Reviews:
 Only the virgin lottery is fun March 3, 2008
OverTheMoon (overthemoonreview@hotmail.com)
2 out of 6 found this review helpful
Dragonslayer might sound like a film involving barbarians and knights taking on a fire breathing monstrosity... instead you get a young jolly magician with a crystal stone who buffoons about the place like a court jester, dates a boy-girl (yes) and takes on an iguana with wings glued onto it.
The only good part is that the local village has a virgin lottery to decide which dame is going to get sacrificed to the dragon so that they can live peacefully that year. There are certainly not enough dragons (baby dragons that get stabbed to death by the cheery hero don't count) and the blue screen effects are clearly visible. This doesn't seem to be a good production, even for its time (1981). Overall I wanted to watch a good fantasy film and found this one on the list, but was disappointed by the plodding plot, lack of story, hamming acting and bad special effects.
Let this one burn.
 Best Dragon Movie to Date February 27, 2008
SRFireside (Houston, TX United States)
Even when you consider this movie was made in 1981 and you have current movies like Reign of Fire and Eragon to contend with Dragonslayer beats them all. Not only do you have the coolest dragon ever, but you also have a very well written story with plenty of parallels moving alongside the main plot. Add to that a fantastic setting and talented cast and you have not only the best dragon movie, but also one of the best fantasy movies made so far.
Lets start with the dragon, Vermithrax Perjorative (cool name eh?). This is simply the best-designed dragon to ever reach the silver screen. From the conceptual design to how ILM (Industrial Light and Magic) made it come to life, Vermithrax is a delight to behold. Granted most of the dragon sequences are filmed using stop motion effects, but the process used makes the movements very fluid and believable. The dragon design itself is not the only beautiful thing about it. The way they tease you will a little shot of the tail here and a claw there makes seeing the dragon all that more satisfying at the final scenes. The dragon is definitely a treat to behold. The rest of the special effects (non-dragon related) are subtle and effective. Perfect for a movie of this sort.
The story is as well designed as the dragon. Everything falls into place like it should. This is very refreshing when many Hollywood movies tend to throw a scene in just to appease what they think the audience wants. Dragonslayer is all substance without any of that fluff. I particularly like some of the underlying subjects like the rise of Christianity and the end of the age of magic. The story is complimented by what I consider one of the most detailed and accurate settings for a medieval dragon story I have ever seen. You really feel like you are in the Dark Ages. The acting, from both veteran and young actors, is compelling and believable without any of the camp many fantasy films fall victim to.
The one thing I didn't really enjoy was the soundtrack. Granted it was done very professionally and the music is definitely befitting of the movie theme, I just found it more distracting than anything else on most of the scenes. There is no melody or pace set to the music. It just flies off all over the place like a mad scientist's experiment. I know most people who like Dragonslayer love the music. I just can't say that I am one of them.
Too bad the DVD treatment isn't as good. No special features to speak of. No commentary tracks. Nothing special at all. Would be nice to at least see a remastered version sometime in the future.
Compelling story, wonderful sets and location shots, talented and effective acting, spectacular special effects (especially considering when it was made), and a kick butt dragon design make Dragonslayer required viewing for any fantasy movie fan. This is especially true if you are into the swords and sorcery type or into dragons. If you want to see a really good story done really well then this too is the movie for you. Action fans might or might not get into it depending on how much action you really need, but there is probably not enough action for you testosterone freaks out there. All I can say is when you see this movie get ready to put away every preconceived notion you had on what a REAL dragon movie should be like.
Dragonslayer November 21, 2007
lefty frizzell (Norfolk, VA (right now))
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Dragonslayer it's a good price for a good movie. Another rainy day special. Bought these as another Christmas gift. Good Movie. Many of the actors are now gone..including the female lead. Good price.
 A sincere, if flawed gem of a film. October 12, 2007
Mr. Eddie (New York, NY)
1 out of 7 found this review helpful
"Dragonslayer" starts out on a refreshingly offbeat note; a dark medieval adventure tale with the magnificent Ralph Richardson as an eccentric wizard and his bumbling sidekicks. It has a smart story about the origins and ramifications of the fantastical Dragons, and the cowards and heroes who populate its world. Excellent production design and cinematography pays great respect to the middle ages.
Alas, "Dragonslayer" is not a classic film by most people's estimation for a number of reasons. The plot gets increasingly convoluted and the "subtext" is somewhat overstated. Obviously, the filmakers are on the side of supernaturalism and take some weak jabs at Christianity and its followers. If this were done today it would be much, much worse. The filmakers also cannot ever quite figure out what they want to say about the benefits and drawbacks of magic and in the end it just kind of gets lost in the mix. Shakespeare this is not.
I admire the enchanting world of Dragonslayer, I only wish it were a bit more spectacular. Suprisingly, the dragon Vermithrax (fabulous name) looks pretty lousy when compared to Harryhausen's work from many years earlier. It acts erratically, pops its head in for a fight then ducks out for two minutes. Worst of all it does not follow and of the laws of aerodynamics or gravity in flight! That is not the fault of technology but with TLC in the animation. Whenever it breathes fire, the head just kind of stays put while a column of flame pours out. I think that ILM was trying to prove that they could make "good" FX without spending gazillions and tinkering over every optical composite to death. It shows.
Still, Dragonslayer has a place in my heart for its sincerity and total originality. My grandfather took me to see it when it came out and I was bored but also intrigued. If it fails a bit in execution it still is leagues ahead of most any adventure film made this decade -- particularly Peter Jackson's pandering, overripe LOTR films.
Micro fantasy film August 27, 2007
MortensOrchid (Cleveland, OH)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I have admitted previously that I am not a big fan of fantasy films with magic, fairies and unicorns in them. However, this being the first of the genre I was exposed to as a child left an impression on me. It was one of those movies they ran all the time on HBO when we first got cable. Seeing it as an adult is another matter all together.
Nearly 30 years before Ally McBeal, Peter McNichol plays an ernest peasent boy / sourcerer's apprentice who is approached by a group of equally concerned peasents in a neighboring village. Twice a year on the summer and winter equinox, they sacrifice a virgin to appease a dragon. They are looking for help so they don't have to keep giving up their damsels and hope to emplore the skills of the sourcerer. Peter McNichol joins the group in their trip back to their home village, and discovers quite by accident that the leader of the group is a woman disguised as a boy. She said since she was born, her father has dressed her as a boy to keep her from the virgin lottery. It's given her many opportunities that she otherwise would not have had, let alone increase her chances of staying alive.
What I liked about this movie best was the relationship between the crown and it's subjects, and the struggle of the haves and have nots. Like the masquerading boy says to Peter, her father is poor and cannot afford to pay the bribes to say out of the lottery. They have to resort to other means of avoidance. Their king is arrogant and uncaring, saying only a few of their children are being sacrificed and it's not really a concern. When his own daughter, Princess Elsbeth, learns that her name is not on the list of possible sacrifices, and some of the townspeople are paying bribes to stay out of the lottery, she altruisticly puts herself as the one and only in the grab bag. When the king witnesses this, he is of course terrified, but she announces that she will give up her own life to appease for the risk they have taken and she had not due to her status. The dragon, of course, is then slayed by our hero. But, the damsel in distress (Princess Elsbeth) is not rescued, but still gives up her life. She's the real hero of this story.
|
|
|
Copyright 2008 DVDonsale.com | |
