Dragonheart (1996)

Director:

Rob Cohen

Writers (WGA):

Patrick Read Johnson (story) &
Charles Edward Pogue (story) ...

Release Date:

31 May 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Fantasy

Tagline:

You will believe.

Plot:

The last dragon and a disillusioned dragonslaying knight must cooperate to stop an evil king who was given partial immortality.

Plot Keywords:

Dragon | King | Evil King | Battle | Immortality

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 2 wins & 5 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Fri. Dec. 4	12:45 PM	AMC
Sun. Dec. 13	6:45 AM	AMC

Cast

Dennis Quaid	...	Bowen
David Thewlis	...	King Einon
Pete Postlethwaite	...	Gilbert of Glockenspur
Dina Meyer	...	Kara
Jason Isaacs	...	Lord Felton
Brian Thompson	...	Brok
Lee Oakes	...	Young Einon
Wolf Christian	...	Hewe
Terry O'Neill	...	Redbeard
Eva Vejmelková	...	Felton's Minx (as Eva Vejmelkova)
Milan Bahúl	...	Swamp Village Chief (as Milan Bahul)
Peter Hric	...	King Freyne
Sandra Kovacicova	...	Young Kara
Kyle Cohen	...	Boy in Field
Thom Baker	...	Aislinn's Chess Partner

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for action/violence.

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS-Stereo | DTS

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (certificate #34567) | France:U | Iceland:12 | Canada:14+ (Ontario) | South Korea:12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12/9 | Germany:12 (w) | Ireland:PG | Portugal:M/12 | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | Netherlands:12 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Bratislava, Slovakia

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

The five dragonslayers' names are Uhlric, Cavan, Ivor, Tavis, and Trahern, according to the novelization of the film by Charles Edward Pogue. Also, despite playing a pretty important role in the story, none of the dragonslayers or the actors that played them are listed in the credits.

Goofs:

Continuity: The dragon's tooth that Bowen holds in the first fight changes shape twice.

Quotes:

Bowen: [stuck in Draco's mouth, sees an arm stuck in the teeth and plucks it out] Oh, good lord! Sir Egglemore!
[throws the arm out behind him]
Draco: Oh, thank you very much. It's been stuck down there for months. Can you get your buttocks off my tongue?
Bowen: Why should you be comfortable? My armor is rusting in your drool and your *breath*, is absolutely foul!
Draco: Well, what do you expect, with an old knight rotting between my molars?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Light and the Dark: The Making of 'Face/Off' (2007) (V)

A Fun and Heartwarming Movie

Dennis Quaid is Bowen, a passionate knight who falls under bitter circumstances and finds himself roaming the land avenging himself against dragons who he blames for his lot. He finds his match in one dragon, Draco, who instead of finishing off Bowen offers to declare a truce. The two cynics team up and stage sham combat in front of terrified villagers who are only too willing to reward the knight for "slaying" the dragon and who won't miss a few sheep to the dragon either. The con goes bad though and the two are forced to confront their common destiny.

This movie was originally heavily sold based on its superb digital effects and it remains that Draco is a magnificent creature in these days when digital effects are no longer unusual in movies. Even so, the cast and cinematography are excellent and everything moves along seamlessly. It is an all round great movie.

There is some brutal medieval warfare, but nothing so graphic that a pre-teen couldn't handle it.

I saw this film originally at a theatre and again on rented VHS.