Legend (1985)

Rating – 6/10

**SPOILERS**

What the hell, Ridley Scott?

Scott has earned his status as a legendary director, giving us classics such as Alien, Thelma and Louise, and Gladiator. Even if his output has gotten a bit inconsistent, and he’s become the type of old man to blame smartphones for his movies’ financial failures, he’s generated more than enough goodwill to cement himself in the cinematic Hall of Fame. 

In 1982, Scott released Blade Runner, a moody, atmospheric sci-fi noir about humanity and what actually defines it. In 1985, he gave us Tom Cruise fighting an ogre with front flips. 

That is anything but a logical career path. 

Legend is Scott’s foray into the dark fantasy genre. His only foray in fact. It features a classic fairy tale story with goblins, unicorns, elves, and a princess (and presumably more glitter than all of his other films combined). It features Cruise, Mia Sara, and Tim Curry in an instantly iconic performance as the Lord of Darkness (but really he’s just Satan). And that’s really all I have to say for an intro. 

Normally I’d go into more of a description for the general plot and all, but “classic fairy tale story” kinda sums it up. Tom Cruise’s protagonist goes on a quest to save a princess from a powerful evil force who wants to rule the world. Hijinks happen along the way. There’s lots of wacky side characters. Not quite the complex thematics of Blade Runner. 

Since working on his first film, Scott had hoped to film a fairy tale of sorts, but was concerned it would end up as another art house film with a limited audience. When he did get around to filming it, he would strip most of the subplots from the film, ultimately taking it from what would be 2 and a half hours to only an hour and 50 minutes. The result is a story that’s paper thin, as the characters just go about their quest with absolutely no nuance whatsoever. There’s just no time to flesh them out, Cruise’s lead, Jack, being the least well served. Jack is an anonymous “hero” type. He’s there to save the princess, with no real backstory, no real character depth, no real arc, not really anything (I mean he can talk to animals apparently, but that doesn’t go anywhere). Cruise seems utterly lost with such a nothing character. In fact, Cruise would refuse to talk about Legend for years after its release. 

This is a weird movie tonally as well. For much of the runtime, Scott seems to go for exaggerated whimsy. The sort of whimsy where characters frolic in the woods and comically deflect arrows with a frying pan. It has a tendency to get very silly. But some darker fare creeps through. A disturbing unicorn death scene, a scene in a kitchen where our heroes hide from the chef, in fear of being cooked alive. Scott creates a very real sense of dread at times, but it’s thrown off by goofy whimsy and comic relief characters. 

Now, those familiar with the story of Legend’s production will be aware that the film suffered from extensive studio interference, which reduced the film’s runtime by a further 20 minutes (making it utterly incomprehensible). However, I’ve only seen Scott’s 2002 director’s cut, meaning everything in the film was part of his original storyline, flaws and all. But now my problem is that there are records of other aspects of the story that were left on the cutting room floor, such as a theme of each character struggling with inner darkness (Jack experiences lust for the Princess, the Princess feels greed, etc), making the story more about characters overcoming the darkness inside of them. In other words, making the story about something. There are even signs of these storylines throughout the final film. The Princess feels drawn to extravagant gifts offered to her by Darkness, Jack has to decide whether or not to kiss another woman to get out of trouble. However, these complete plot threads don’t appear in the director’s cut, suggesting that they were never shot, suggesting that they were part of Scott’s original 2.5 hour story that got cut down. And just. Why?? Why weren’t these crucial pieces of character depth and themes included?

Despite all of these significant issues, you probably haven’t forgotten the fact that I’ve actually given Legend a solid rating here. In terms of writing and character work, this is by no means a masterpiece. Therefore, the fact that the production design of this movie single handedly makes it worth watching tells me it might be some of the best production design ever. The entire film takes place in gorgeous, intricately designed sets that Scott and cinematographer Alex Thompson shoot the hell out of. The peaceful forests are lush, colorful, and feel magical. The dark caverns and shadows in the lair of Darkness drip with atmosphere, and Scott milks it for all its worth. This film is a masterclass in set design, prop design, and costume design. But the real MVP here is Rob Bottin.

Mr. Bottin is a makeup and effects icon of the 80s, also responsible for creature effects in The Thing (1982) and the title character’s suit in Robocop (1987). His creature designs are insane here, from the slimy swamp witch that attacks Jack, to the goblins designs based off of Keith Richards (no really). But his crowning achievement is Darkness himself, sealing Tim Curry in a hulking, fully practical latex suit that is easily what most people will remember about this movie. It’s a jaw dropping piece of effects mastery, and when combined with Curry’s deliciously evil scenery chewing, it elevates the character to iconic status. Bottin was able to push makeup effects of the 80s to their absolute limit, and along with the gorgeous production design, they’ve aged impeccably. 

Legend is not a great film. Ridley Scott wanted to make a fairy tale that could be enjoyed by all ages, but clearly went too far in stripping back the more complicated elements of his script. The story is ultimately too simplistic, most actors are only given thin sketches of characters to work with, and the overwhelming whimsical elements and comedic characters feel cheesy today. That being said, Scott still gives his all in every other aspect of the film. The world he creates here is striking and memorable, even if the story told within it doesn’t reach the same heights. This is going to work for a significant amount of audiences. The visuals and effects are worth seeing. However, if you’re like me, you’ll feel a little let down storywise by this wacky, uneven, frankly batshit little film.