This is still one of my favorite films! I can't get enough of it. I don't care about any of the flaws, and I sure as heck don't listen to those two idiotic critics. I will treasure this film, it's gorgeous score, and hopefully share it with my children one day.
My kids love it. Siskel/Ebert were idiots. This film is a guilty pleasure. I like the film just for the score. The same guy did Star Trek 2. This movie is much better than today's drek!
+Dr. Larry Mitchell If you do nor return with the Glaive, you will not return at all. But the effects were small and shit, and the magician looked very noncy. Personally I think that adds to the appeal.
He said, "Wait!" Right before he got crushed. Then I remembered about how Cyclops see their own deaths and to deny that will lead to a horrible death, which sounds about right
This is film is great. And Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel didn't understand any of it. The villain isn't omnipotent. His name isn't Krull. It's simply "The Beast". Krull is the name of the planet.
Yes, the professionell critics had not been to fond of the movie. But, and that is a big but, this had happened world wide when the movie got out. Still remember a German radio commentator from those days; " the people in Krull are all beautifull and they speak so well behaved but that is all what goes for the movie ". I am not shure it was the Fantasy setting or the plot but somehow Krull got underrated. Still like the film untill today.
If he wasn't so snarky I would have given him the benefit of the doubt, screwing up Krull being the name of the planet was the icing on the cake of how much he didn't actually know, nor care to versus actual criticism.
It's hard to explain to a young person just how much Siskel & Ebert swayed moviegoers, keeping them away from films the two critics panned. It's amazing how often I enjoyed a certain movie, only to see S & E knock it - then twenty years later hear how it has built up a cult following, or it has been recognized as having been underappreciated. As for their questions on Krull - What's burning under the horses as they're flying? Well, they're not called Fire Mares for nothing, they generate their own fire. I won't get into all the points, it's that way with most movies they underrate, missing key elements.
They called the "The Beast" Krull.... Siskel and Ebert were a bunch of blowhards. Watch their review, I'm not sure they were paying attention, it was just playing in the background.
and ''if the story has already been foretold in prophecy, why is everyone in suspense''? Well, it's an ancient prophecy and no one knew the time of when it would come, plus it was hidden knowledge that only Ynyr was given to know.
I saw Krull in the cinemas as an 11 year old boy yearning for anything sci-fi. I loved it back then and still love it today, mostly for the fantastic soundtrack and the concept design. I still think the Beast in Krull is one of the best looking monsters ever and it's a shame we never see it fully in the film. But it's one of those movies that you have to have a nostalgic connection to in order to appreciate it.
The same for me - but concerning never fully seeing the Beast, this might actually be intended...As we know from Jaws and Alien, you can actually make a monster more scary by showing it only in parts.
despite being obviously flawed, when I was a child this used to be one of my and my best friend's favourite movie ... I even remember we built some Lego settings of the Krull's world! xx The story isn't great despite some nice idea in and there, but the visuals are overall very interesting and the score is fantastic.
You can find the glaive in the lava pool on the right (in the entry cave, not the cavern) as you enter Onyxia's lair in WoW. One of the lesser known Easter eggs in the game. I may or may not have squee'd when I first discovered it...
Yes, and this is what the movie shares with Star Wars, though in a different direction....Basically, Krull tells the story about a medieval planet being invaded from outer space. Those people have no concept of spaceships, for instance, so they do not now what they are seeing if they encounter one - so the giant spaceship that invades their world becomes the Black Fortress. They do, however, seem to have a concept of different worlds existing besides their own, which was a concept totally unknown in OUR Middle Ages. Equally, a lot of stuff that is really only technology tends to be interpreted as "magic" (following Sir Arthur C. Clarke), though this planet seems to have its own system of magic as well. It did, however, always baffle me how a child born on such a technologically backward world, should become the ruler of an entire galaxy. In Star Wars its different, we have the story of an interstellar war told from the point of view of people who understand the technology they are living with, though they have a system of "magic" as well. There is a lot of advanced technology, and yet we have planets (Alderaan, Naboo) whose Princesses are dressed and coiffed in a medieval fashion despite that fact. But there is the same mixture of genre elements, with Krull basically just straying into another direction than Star Wars. It may be stupid but the first time I saw Krull in theatres I had seen Return of the Jedi a few months earlier, and when I heard that line about the son of Lyssa and Colwyn being propehsied to become the ruler of the galaxy, I initially assumed that this was a Star Wars prequel and that Lyssa and Colwyn were the parents of Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader...
I wouLd not calL this a science-fction and or a science-fantasy fLik moovie , tis obviousLy an action-advnture-fantasy story wth som mythology thrown-in tha mix . starwars Like fLash-Gordon is a space-fantasy and startrk is a science-fction series
I still love this film I hate that critic is he still alive I remember his rant on gremlins i put this film on about two times a year its a classic and will defend it
I actually think the Widow of the Web scene is most remembered from the film. The score is still one of Horner's finest & I have listened to it many times.
Me encanto ésta película, sin duda,una de las mejores en la historia del cine y la televisión,felicitaciones a todos los que participaron en ella,2018,y la sigo disfrutando!.
This movie has grown on me in the years since I first saw it as a kid. I absolutely love James Horner's score for it and the track Ride of the Firemares is hands down some of the best music he ever composed. The horses themselves in the movie no doubt inspired the look for one of the horse mounts you get in World of Warcraft.
We're all intelligent creatures so it's always dumbfounded me why so much attention is paid to critics of any kind and it saddens me to no end when I think of how many great movies were probably irreparably damaged by those idiots Siskel and Ebert (really a fantasy film not making logical sense!). Regardless of what those pretentious blowhards thought I enjoyed this movie as a kid and eagerly await it's release in a HD format since I regrettably missed on on it's initial DVD release. I'm hoping a studio like Shout Factory can restore and release this gem with a great new HD transfer (and tons of bonus features!)
Robert Boshears JR Exactly what I think. Was reading about The Avengers, which led me to the music composer, which led me to this, a film I haven't seen in around 20 years (I'm 29 now). I'd totally forgotten about it, but after seeing the title and the cyclops thing, it brought back memories of how I loved this film. Fantasy is fantasy, it isn't supposed to make sense.
Robert Boshears JR I've got a huge collection of films and have seen thousands in my lifetime, but most of the films I find excellent, the paid 'critics' give them rubbish reviews. Yet films I find rubbish, the critics give them excellent reviews. Imo its usually the worst films winning all the awards at the Oscars etc. Gonna start a film marathon now with all the related 1980's fantasy films I'd forgotton about
Daniel Gardecki I love collecting old films from my youth. I just picked up Labyrinth on BR. Had the DVD and have seen it a million times but seeing it again with pristine clarity takes me back to the summer of 1987 when I first saw it! I also love all the making-of featurettes that show you how these films got made. I also love the score from this film. In fact it's a slight reworking of the score he did for ST2:Wrath of Kahn, another excellent and beautifully scored film!
I've just watched 'Kings of Summer' a 2013 film which got excellent 5 out of 5 reviews, which was supposed to be like a 'Stand By Me' meets 'Superbad' type of film. I was never a fan of 'Superbad' as it didn't make me laugh but was OK to watch, but 'Stand By Me' was quite good. 'Kings of Summer' though is just average imo. There's not much action, not much comedy, not much of anything in it tbh so how it got such good reviews I'll never know
'Kingsman: The secret service' another film I've watched this week, correctly got good reviews although I would've given it 9/10, not 58%, 74% or 8.1/10 like its been given
I loved this film as a kid. As a grown up I still enjoy it, I have loaned my DVD to a number of folks over the years and no one has said they didint like it. In fact I know of a few kids who've watch the DVD and loved the movie too. I dont think it gets the respect its due and Im always surprised that even with all the newer movies out there, kids still enjoy seeing this oldie.
You're right in telling people not to take it personally, but it's hard not to when some of their points feel insipid, whining about a horse being so fast is a bit pedantic when the movie clearly shows it has a fantasy and magical element to it (Though that element was a touch disjointed) , and it feels like he never really bothered to pay attention to it, which hurts his points on it (As another commenter put down.). Getting pissy about critics is petty, but it's irritating when they clearly don't watch a movie carefully to give a careful critic, it just feels like they're lazy about it, and this can be worse when you realize they have influence over other people who want to listen to them BEFORE they watch a movie for themselves.
11:03 feeling "completely lost" was one of the things I liked most about the film. It gave license to my child imagination in the way that a prescriptive exposition couldn't.
I grew up w this movie & it was such a classic at my house growing up (along w the original star wars & Indiana Jones trilogies). But everyone I talk to has never heard of this movie & I cant find it anywhere on Blu-Ray
It's interesting to see all these comments. I actually worked at the Columbia Pictures Story Dept. The script had been rewritten at least three times before I arrived. To be brief the subtext of the script was never understood by the producers. There was a desperation to rewrite it. I have actual copies of those scripts that I re edited. I however had no idea of the hard work needed to shepherd those edits (about two years before production). I foolishly left the story department for training in Post Production. My notes done as practice, yes mere practice, were generously sent to the head of production by my boss but with no track record not implimented. When I saw the film in New York City with adults not kids in the audience the reaction was of total deriscion. For fun I include an idea that would have "tightened" up the logic of the story. Fire mares,flame producing, fire proof horses needed for the rescue would have been hunted to death by an agrarian society (they would have burned up fields they traveled through) There are actual horses that live in Marshy areas of France. That inspired my idea of having to find these gorgeous white horses in marshes where they would have food to eat and a place that was safe from their flame producing hooves. The film used Draft horses , not very exciting and no logic to their survival in the desert. More to say if anyone is interested.
I love Krull in the same way I love 'Flash Gordon' -- it evokes such a particular sense of place, and inspires the imagination. Oh I mean they were both perfect films when I was eleven years old.
Nonsense, you were illustrating an example of the most famous scene from the director's best-known movie. We had to see a large chunk of the car chase to know what we're up against as viewers. It's nice to see someone like yourself taking their time with the clips. Thanks for the vid, Krull is now on my re-watch list.
I loved this movie as a kid! Thanks for doing a review on it, it's one of those forgotten in the cannon. A bit on the cheesy side but delightful childhood memories.
Subbed!!!! XD omg it's like you've watched only the movies I've enjoyed growing up! It's so refreshing to find a movie reviewer whose channel doesn't cater to the masses. I'm currently on a movie review binge with your channel being my substance. Willow will be the next review I'm watching. I'm so glad to have found your channel!XD
I loved this movie as a child, and it's still a guilty pleasure. I recently acquired the Bluray, and it looks really great. It looks like they remastered from the original negatives, definitely cleaned up. The sad part is that the Bluray has no special features, and is missing the commentary from the DVD. I'll have to track down the DVD now. :(
I have to say Oliver that you sumed it up very well. In fact when people speak of films that they wish to see remade Krull tops my list. A competent fantasy director such as Peter Jackson with a more fleshed out script and ramped up special effects could not only be better than the original film but surpass it and bring the world of Krull into the mainstream. The current film is a film watcher's guilty pleasure to be sure.
I wish I watched this movie as a kid. Regardless of the boxoffice, the production of movies like this is always fascinating. Thanks for the review, Oliver.
So Krull cost 30 million and ROTJ cost 32 million? Was it that "Return" used that money really really well or was it that Krull used it really really BADLY. With one exception though, the slayer armour is f**king awesome. Also, I'd love to have been in the room where they said to Peter YAtes "Peter, Bullit was a great film and eveyone loved it, the effortless cool of Steve McQueen, the car chases, brilliant!" "Thanks" "No problem, NOW we want to to direct a Star Wars ripoff about an alien monster invading a farr off magical planet." "Will there be a car chase"! "No but there will be clydesdale horses with flaming hoofs" "You had me at flaming hoofs!" Also, Ken Marshall may not have had a massive movie career, but he did get to play the wonderful role of Michael Eddington in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, probably one of the more intersting characters in the whole franchise.
I love this movie!!... only heard/watched of it no more then 8 years ago and big fan of it since the start why so many people hate it??? I give it a 8 out of 10.
Good for you mate, I saw it the cinema as a kid, loved it then and I still love it to this day. I don't understand the hate thats thrown at it either. Its just good fun and the glaive rocks.
Thank you for your thoughtful reviews. You mentioned Dune and Princess Irulon's explanatory statements. The idea of the Princesses comments is right from the book. She wrote a history of the events that took place in the story of Dune. In the movie, she narrates with pieces of her history, like she does in the book.
I spent the whole time wondering where I knew the lead actor from, and it turned out he was the bald rebel leader in Deep Space Nine who kept calling Sisco "Javert."
I went to see Krull at the cinema. I would've been 13/14 years old and I really enjoyed it. Lysette Anthony had a small part in the first series of Auf Wiedersehen Pet and I had a mega crush on her, lol. I recall S&E being on TV in the U.K. For a while doing movie reviews back in the 80s. I struggled with their personalities and presenting style. Seeing them again now I appreciate their insights more. I enjoy your output very much. Keep em coming!
I've always loved this film, despite (and maybe because) of its limitations. Some of the special effects are truly spectacular and for the most part it's very well acted.
I just started watching your series of retrospectives today, and thought "I have to tell him to do one about Krull!" Glad I decided to search for it first. Thanks for doing this.
Great vid, thanks for posting. Just curious, you never mention Lysette Anthony by name, you just refer to her as "the actress"; was there a reason for that?
Excellent retrospective of one of my favorite movies, though I probably love it a lot more than you did! Ah, Siskel and Ebert, a perfect example of folks who don't enjoy fantasy movies, enjoying picking it apart for cheap laughs for their audience. Heavy rolleyes here.
Oh it was scarey as shit when I was a kid, saw it in the mid 80's. Loved the film though, its one of the classics of the time like Flight of the Navigator and how about TIME BANDITS - that was a movie.. When I was older I got into classics like Excalibur - there was a LOT of good stuff from the 80's, from schlock comedy horrors like Reanimator to all the Sci Fi flicks (Flash Gordon to Star Wars!), Arnie getting big (as it were) and plenty of grand adventures on the whole. Krull always stuck with me as a great movie but scary too - the part with the old guy in the swamp, and the giant spider and the Beasts Castle having that strange aesthetic to it - I loved the mix of fantasy and sci fi.
I never got to see the whole movie, but I remember the ads in comic books, the movie posters in the subways, and on billboards. I was in the 4th grade and was fascinated by that throwing star (the glaive) which everybody wanted. I am shocked to hear that it didnt do well, since I remember thinking that EVERYBODY saw this movie except me. Every kid I knew at school saw this movie.
I completely forgot about this movie, and for years I had this vague recollection of a fantasy move with a 'glaive', and I didn't even remember what it looked like, just that I liked it. I just found this a minute ago.
@@Tyrfingr True, but that's why the original will always exist. I know it's not out yet, but if I saw a remake trailer for Krull with the care and dedication that the new Dune remake seems to have, I'd lose my shit.
@@jtphr33ky If it is that 1 out of 10 movies, then i'm in agreement. As for Dune. I reserve judgement until i actually see it. I don't wish to come off all negative and shit but, i have been disappointed so many times now that i have grown.... cynical 🙄
Ken Marshall was in a movie with Brooke Shields called ""Tilt" (1979) about Pinball. So this wasn't his first movie. Not only does "Krull" ROCK INSANELY, it's also the rare great film that doesn't have a pointless and crappy sequel. I was the best ever at the video game of "Krull". As usual, Siskel and Ebert have NO IDEA what they're talking about!
Wow this movie came out the year I was born but I've never heard of it, I adore 80's fantasy films like Legend and Willow, I'll have to give this one a watch
I have to disagree with the video saying the story is not a strong point. There might be a few issues with the script, but there were magnificent concepts there. There are huge stakes for each member of the group of adventurers, and most get a noble conclusion to their individual journeys. I would love it if it had been better executed, but just think about what each person who acompanies Colwyn goes through, what they sacrifice and how they get closure. And ffs, just take a closer look at their stories: a man whose long lost beloved is trapped at the center of a giant spider's web, and he must reach it for one last gift, having only the time given to him by the sands of a broken hour glass to pass it on; a man who is destined to see how he dies and risks great suffering by defying fate, so he can save someone else; a group of bandits whose last adventure restores their honour. Come on... it's ridiculous how anyone can think this is _boring_ . Oh, and on the "illogical" nature of the movie, according to those critics... I sure hope they never read any mythology or their heads would explode.
A>nd I don't understand why they ever did. I heard Lysette Anthony's original voice the way it was at the time, and it squared with her looks - the looks of a still teenage girl. The actress who dubbed in the voice was much older.
I remember this came out at the cinema when I was in 4th grade, but I thought it looked too scary to go see, because of the Beast in the movie poster. I regret that now, but I did see it a couple of years later on VHS, and enjoyed it very much. I did not see it again until the year 2000, when I found it in the video store and thought I'd relive the adventure.
