Amazon.com video review:
Jim Henson's fantasy epic The Dark Crystal doesn't take place
a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, but like Star Wars it takes
the
audience to a place that exists only in the imagination and, for an hour
and
a half, on the screen. Recalling the worlds of J.R.R. Tolkien, Henson tells
the story of a race of grotesque birdlike lizards called the Skeksis,
gnomish dragons who rule their fantastic planet with an iron claw. A
prophecy tells of a Gelfling (a small elfin being) who will topple their
empire, so in their reign of terror they have exterminated the race, or so
they think. The orphan Jen, raised in solitude by a race of peace-loving
wizards called the Mystics, embarks on a quest to find the missing shard of
the Dark Crystal (which gives the Skeksis their power) and restore the
balance of the universe. Henson and codirector Frank Oz have pushed
puppetry into a new direction: traditional puppets, marionettes, giant
bodysuits, and mechanical constructions are mixed seamlessly in a fantasy
world of towering castles, simple huts, dank caves, a giant clockwork
observatory, and a magnificent landscape that seem to have leaped off the
pages of a storybook. Muppet fans will recognize many of the voice
actors--a few characters sound awfully close to familiar comic
creations--but
otherwise it's a completely alien world made familiar by a mythic quest
that
resonates through stories over the ages.
The DVD features the 50-minute documentary The World of the Dark
Crystal, with interviews and illuminating behind-the-scenes glimpses.
The
VHS edition includes a shortened 15-minute version of the documentary.
--Sean Axmaker
