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quote:
Originally posted by DalekTek790:
“Froudian” would refer to fans of Brian Froud, the genius who brought us The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth and several books on mythology and folklore.I could go on and on about The Dark Crystal, but I don’t want to disrupt your thread.
Since you mentioned The Dark Crystal, I decided to get my laserdisc copy out of storage. It’s been I while since I’ve watched it.
Feel the power.
To prevent the “On Public Figures and Private Lives” thread from getting off topic, I’m starting the Dark Crystal ravings on this thread, which Flamegrape has generously presented us with.
No film besides the Star Wars movies evokes such strong emotions in me as The Dark Crystal. The story is ingenious. Complex yet simple (I don’t know if that sounded Campbellian or just stupid
), a modern retelling of the classic tale of the hero’s quest, like Star Wars, only a “land” instead of “space” adventure. Actually, I read that the plot of The Dark Crystal was based on an early draft of Star Wars: Episode IV. I don’t know if that’s true, but from reading Star Wars: The Annotated Screenplays I can definitely see parallels (with the Kiber Crystal and all). The Dark Crystal is also one of those movies that you notice new things in every time you see it. I can also pick out what I think are allegorical/symbolic elements in it, but I got a little negative feedback at Froud Chat for my symbolic analysis so I won’t go into my theories here.I first saw The Dark Crystal when I was 10, and it had a profound impact on my psyche. I had seen Labyrinth, and thought that was pretty neat, but I was absolutely blown away by The Dark Crystal. It had a beautifully ordered yet tragically chaotic world, with so many awe-inspiring elements it was almost an overload for my simple pre-adolescent mind.
And I still love it, maybe I can’t appreciate it in quite the same way I did when I first saw it, but it is to this day one of my favorite movies, and I can still “get into” it.The creatures are amazingly lifelike and intriguing on both a visual and a psychological level. You have the admirable Mystics, the delightfully creepy Skeksis, the humorous Pod People, the wondrous wildlife. And the Gelflings! love those things (to be perfectly honest I used to have the biggest crush on Kira
).Yes, I’ve heard the reviews from critics and friends alike that it’s “flat,” “lacks edge,” is “hopelessly puerile,” “simply eye-candy,” or “too dark for children and too light for adults.” And I don’t know if anyone is really going to read this or if I’m typing in vain. But I say if you can just look beyond the Muppet-ness it’s really a great film. The script is well-written, and the characters are actually pretty realistic (more so than those of many “normal” sci-fi movies). All in all, The Dark Crystal is an incredibly creative and moving science fantasy that almost rivals the Star Wars films (almost
).[ 08-11-2001: Message edited by: DalekTek790 ]
Yeah, it’s a great movie. The things I remember most are Ogra, Fizgig, of course Kira and (can’t remember his name except that it starts with a J), and the Skeksis. My dad does such a good impression of a Skeksis saying “Essence of Gelfling”. I always feel so sorry for the pod people when they’re being attacked.
WOW!
That’s quite a mouthful DalekTek790
I would love to expound further on the merrits of this particualr movie(which I may add I did not actually see until I was an adult) but memory fails me now.
Sad but true, I chose my screen name because I felt it was cute, I too had a crush on Kira, and (oh my god what was his name Jem? Jen? big ol gasp and self flogging).
I think I’m going to have to pop down to the ol video store and pick up a copy for the weekend. Perhaps I may even have something intelligent to say, but I doubt it
quote:
Originally posted by Aeryn Crichton:
Yeah, it’s a great movie. The things I remember most are Ogra, Fizgig, of course Kira and (can’t remember his name except that it starts with a J), and the Skeksis.
quote:
Originally posted by Gelfling:
WOW!
That’s quite a mouthful DalekTek790
I would love to expound further on the merrits of this particualr movie(which I may add I did not actually see until I was an adult) but memory fails me now.
Sad but true, I chose my screen name because I felt it was cute, I too had a crush on Kira, and (oh my god what was his name Jem? Jen? big ol gasp and self flogging).
I guess I tend to “get into” The Dark Crystal more than others. I’ve researched the making of it and the supplemental books, made my own page devoted to the movie (it’s not up anymore), and seen it I don’t know how many times. It all seems so familiar to me. I forget that the typical person can’t quite remember all the details. Okay, here are the main characters-
Jen: Our Gelfling hero.
Kira: His lovely Gelfling companion.
Fizzgig: That annoying furball.
Aughra: The one-eyed witch.
urSu the Master: The Mystic that sends Jen on his quest.
skekSil the Chamberlain: The Skeksis exile.
skekUng the Garthim Master: The new Skeksis emperor.
skekTek the Scientist: The essence-stealing scientist.
SilSol: The urSkek who heals Kira.
quote:
Originally posted by Gelfling:
Sad but true, I chose my screen name because I felt it was cute, I too had a crush on Kira, and (oh my god what was his name Jem? Jen? big ol gasp and self flogging).
Tell me, Gelfling, do you have wings?
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“Exterminate!” -Dalek warrior, The Daleks: Episode 4-The Ambush
“Feel the power of the dark Crystal!” -skekTek the Scientist, The Dark Crystal
“I will love you forever!” -drone #790, Lexx 1.1: I Worship His Shadow
I was hoping for an in-depth Dark Crystal discussion here, since lately the Froudian message board has been off topic. 
Yeah, I need to get a life. - You must be logged in to reply to this topic.