The Last Unicorn (1982)

Directors:

Jules Bass
Arthur Rankin Jr.

Writers:

Peter S. Beagle (novel)
Peter S. Beagle (screenplay)

Release Date:

19 November 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Family | Animation | Fantasy

Tagline:

A Treasured Fantasy Classic of Incomparable Charm!

Plot:

A brave unicorn and a magician fight an evil king who is obsessed with attempting to capture the world's unicorns. |

Plot Keywords:

Unicorn | Magician | Evil King | King | Wine

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Alan Arkin	...	Schmendrick (voice)
Jeff Bridges	...	Prince Lir (voice)
Mia Farrow	...	Unicorn / Amalthea (voice)
Tammy Grimes	...	Molly Grue (voice)
Robert Klein	...	The Butterfly (voice)
Angela Lansbury	...	Mommy Fortuna (voice)
Christopher Lee	...	King Haggard (also in german language version) (voice)
Keenan Wynn	...	Captain Cully / Harpy (voice)
Paul Frees	...	Mabruk (voice)
Rene Auberjonois	...	The Skull (voice)
Brother Theodore	...	Ruhk (voice)
Don Messick	...	The Cat (voice)
Jack Lester	...	Hunter #1 / Old Farmer / Cully's Men (voice)
Nellie Bellflower	...	The Tree (voice)
Ed Peck	...	Jack Jingley / Cully's Men (voice) (as Edward Peck)
Kenneth Jennings	...	Hunter #2 / Cully's Men (voice)

Directed by
Jules Bass
Arthur Rankin Jr.

Writing credits
Peter S. Beagle		(novel)
Peter S. Beagle		(screenplay)

Produced by
Jules Bass	....	producer
Arthur Rankin Jr.	....	producer
Martin Starger	....	executive producer
Michael Chase Walker	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Jimmy Webb

Film Editing by
Tomoko Kida

Production Design by
Arthur Rankin Jr.

Production Management
Masaki Îzuka	....	in charge of production (as Masaki Iisuka)

Art Department
Don Duga	....	additional storyboard sequences

Sound Department
Tom Clack	....	sound effects
John Curcio	....	sound recording engineer
Dave Iveland	....	sound recording engineer
Donald O. Mitchell	....	sound re-recording mixer
Kiyoshi Ôhira	....	sound effects (as Noriyoshi Ohira)
John Richards	....	sound recording engineer

Camera and Electrical Department
Hiroyasu Omoto	....	camera operator

Animation Department
Lester Abrams	....	character designer
Tohru Hara	....	animation coordinator (as Toru Kara)
Mitsuo Iwasaki	....	background artist
Kazuyuki Kobayashi	....	key animator
Kubo	....	continuity animation
Hidemi Kubo	....	key animator
Minoru Nishida	....	background artist
Kiyoshi Sakai	....	assistant animation coordinator
Kayoko Sakano	....	animator
Yoshiko Sasaki	....	animator
Fukuo Suzuki	....	animator
Katsuhisa Yamada	....	animation director
Masahiro Yoshida	....	animator
Tadakatsu Yoshida	....	key animator
Kazusuke Yoshihara	....	background artist

Music Department
Matthew McCauley	....	orchestrator
William McCauley	....	orchestrator
Elton Moser	....	additional orchestrations
Jimmy Webb	....	additional orchestrations

Other crew
Lee Dannacher	....	production coordinator (as Lee Dannacker)
Irra Duga	....	tapestry design
Lew Grade	....	presenter (as Lord Grade)
Katsuhisa Yamada	....	continuity

Production Companies

• Rankin/Bass Productions
• Incorporated Television Company (ITC)

Distributors

• Jensen Farley Pictures (1982) (USA) (theatrical)
• Artisan Home Entertainment (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Lions Gate Films Home Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Maple Pictures (2007) (Canada) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Das letzte Einhorn (West Germany)

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

USA | UK | Japan | West Germany

Language:

English | German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Canada:F (Ontario) | Canada:G (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Quebec) | Singapore:PG | Sweden:Btl (TV rating) | Australia:G | UK:U | USA:G | West Germany:6

Company:

Rankin/Bass Productions

Trivia:

In September 2003, Carlton Communications, successor to ITC Entertainment, claimed that they earned over a million pounds in revenue from DVD and cable TV sales of The Last Unicorn. During this period, Peter S. Beagle had not received his contractual share of the income, which includes 5% of the net profits from all revenues from the animated film, 5% of the gross revenues from all related merchandising, $20,000 for any and every sequel or remake, and various fees for any possible television series adaptations or spinoffs. When negotiations with Granada over this issue failed to yield any results, a public campaign for support was launched on Peter's behalf by Conlan Press in August 2005.

Quotes:

Schmendrick: If we run away then all the unicorns of the world will remain prisoners forever except one. And she will grow old and die.
Amalthea: Everything dies! I want to die when you die.
[looks at Lir]
Amalthea: I'm no unicorn, no magical creature. I'm a woman, and I love you, Lir. Don't let him change me! Lir, I will not love you when I'm a unicorn.
Prince Lir: Amalthea, don't...
Schmendrick: Then let the quest end here! I don't think I could change you back, even if you wished it. Marry the prince, and live happily ever after.
Amalthea: Yes, that is my wish.
Prince Lir: No. My lady, I am a hero. Heroes know that things must happen when it is time for them to happen. A quest may not simply be abandoned; unicorns may go unrescued for a long time, but not forever. A happy ending cannot come in the middle of the story.
Molly Grue: But what if there isn't a happy ending?
Schmendrick: There are no happy endings, because nothing ends.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Shrek (2001)

Soundtrack:

That's All I've Got To Say

Classic fantasy.

The Last Unicorn stands out as that rarest of beasts: a film far better than the book. This can be attributed to the fact that the book's author, Peter S. Beagle, was forced by the constraints of film to pare his work down to the bare essentials. The Last Unicorn is marketed as a children's film, but it's far more than that -- a tale of redemption, of the search for identity, truth, and lost innocence. Molly Grue's meeting with the Unicorn stands as one of the most poignant moments in cinema.