The Dark Crystal

The Dark Crystal (1983)

Runtime: 93 minutes

Directed by: Jim Henson/Frank Oz

Starring: Various voice artists and puppeteers

From: ITC

Some may be aghast that this hadn’t been seen before by me despite my status as a child of the 80’s and 90’s. While it wasn’t a box office smash, its release on video was standard so there were opportunities as a kid. It’s a dark adventure tale for families and despite its general weirdness, that likely wouldn’t have been an issue back then. Last month the film was on HDNet Movies, so just now I got around to the DVR recording I made.

After one hell of an info dump by a narrator, the story is presented; due to the target audience, it’s not War & Peace… but it was still compelling to view Jen-one of a race of humanoid elfin creatures known as the Gelflings-go on a hero’s journey to put back together a shard from the titular crystal (cracked a millennia ago) to prevent the evil vulture-like Skeksis from ruling FOREVER over the Gelflings and the kind Mystics… to steal a quote from the concept artist Brian Froud himself, think a cross between a dog and dinosaur.

These days, I have no clue how many modern adventure stories there are out there (for any age bracket) involving a prophecy, a quest, grotesque villains, weird creatures, alien lands, and all the rest… The Dark Crystal does scratch that itch. The story intrigues but it’s for certain the production design and the practical effects that are standouts. Whether it be the sets, the design of all the creatures, the puppetry, or the visual tricks done in the age before CG, it was always a visual delight; aurally, the Trevor Jones score was also a treat.

As previously mentioned, this is a dark fantasy; the intent was to be like a Brothers Grimm story, so it was supposed to be a bit frightening for children. At times, some may think it’s too frightening but I was glad to have finally gone on this quest. And yes, I do remember all the positive buzz that the Netflix prequel series (The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance) got when it debuted several years ago.