X
- 1986
- Unrated
- Universal Pictures
- 1 h 34 m
- 1986
- Unrated
- Universal Pictures
- 1 h 34 m
Summary A young man must stop the Lord of Darkness from both destroying daylight and marrying the woman he loves.
Directed By: Ridley Scott
Written By: William Hjortsberg
- 1986
- Unrated
- Universal Pictures
- 1 h 34 m
- 1986
- Unrated
- Universal Pictures
- 1 h 34 m
Legend
30
6.2
Where to Watch
Summary A young man must stop the Lord of Darkness from both destroying daylight and marrying the woman he loves.
Directed By: Ridley Scott
Written By: William Hjortsberg
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Unfavorable
Based on 11 Critic Reviews
30
9% Positive
1 Review
1 Review
45% Mixed
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
45% Negative
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Unfavorable
Based on 11 Critic Reviews
30
9% Positive
1 Review
1 Review
45% Mixed
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
45% Negative
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
What with the film's cotton-candy mise en the scene, rhyming goblins (“Mortal world turned to ice/Here be goblin paradise”), sexless pixies and elementary light/dark metaphors that reference the order of its universe, Legend is a gothic fairy tale brought to life.
The film seems just right for kids, though what older fans of Cruise ("Risky Business") and Scott will make of it is far less clear. [22 Apr 1986, p.B4]
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 33 User Ratings
6.2
48% Positive
16 Ratings
16 Ratings
45% Mixed
15 Ratings
15 Ratings
6% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 33 User Ratings
6.2
48% Positive
16 Ratings
16 Ratings
45% Mixed
15 Ratings
15 Ratings
6% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
This movie was incredible. Everything was dreamlike and terrifying. I don't understand the hate for this movie.
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When I first saw this movie,on DVD, I was like wow! This movie is gorgeous to look at, a famous trademark of Ridley Scott. The main flaw in this movie is Tom Cruise. He looked confused throughout the movie, but he was still likable. The other flaw, is that the storyline takes a while to get going. But all this actually managed to pick itself up, and do bear in mind it is theme driven film. I was impressed with Mia Sara. She started off a little uncomfortable, but when she turned evil, she came alive. In fact, the personifications of good and evil were one of the main reasons why I like this movie, other than Tim Curry, who is one of my favourite actors. The performance of Tim Curry is what makes this movie. He was unrecognisable, underneath all the Oscar-nominated makeup, but what a performance, it blew me away, in perhaps the most definitive portrayal of Satan ever on screen, both frightening and sexy at the same time! Even more amazing was that he is only 5'9 or so, and he had to wear stilts, also that he was in his late 30s when he took on this role, and I am glad he did. I felt as though I was in a different world when I saw this movie. The supporting actors David Bennent and Alice Playten offered solid support. I also liked the script, a little inappropriate with the goblins perhaps, but not that bad. The outstanding music score by Jerry Goldsmith is without doubt one of his finest and most underrated works. This was evident in the dress scene, Lilli's song, the final underwater scene and the very end. Magical! I liked the American version, but I much prefer the version I have on DVD, the European version, somehow I like less the score by Tangerine Dream . One definite thing that I liked about the American version was Darkness's "Mother Night" speech, in the European version he is a lot more mysterious. When this is on TV, it always shows the American version, but my personal opinion is that the European version is better (this is the one I have on DVD). If you are a fantasy fan, watch this movie, and either version. It is just beautiful, and definitely under-appreciated! 8/10. Bethany Cox
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Ultimately, LEGEND--a pet project of Scott's that took years to research, shoot, and edit--is done in by the director's ambition. What might have been a pleasantly innocuous children's story becomes an enormous, lumbering FX machine into which the actors, particularly a nervous Tom Cruise, seem to disappear.
Although awesome in its fantasy splendor, Legend has even less substance than Scott's last film, "Blade Runner." And whereas that detective thriller of the future offered a truly original vision, the look of Legend, as gorgeous as it is, seems a distillation of all the illustrations for all the fairy tales ever read to a child. [18 Apr 1986, p.C4]
Mr. Cruise goes through all this nonsense gamely, as if it were an initiation into a fraternity he wants very much to join.
It's not fair in a film like this, a shambles from beginning to end, to judge the performances, but as Tom Cruise has now become a big star, something should probably be said of his characterization. Something. [21 Apr 1986, p.C12]
Legend may turn out to be legendary, but not in the way the filmmakers intended. As a flight of fancy, it has the balletic grace of the goony bird, crashing on takeoff and spending the next 90 minutes in a fluttering tizzy on the ground. [24 Apr 1986, p.D3]
I liked this movie as child but over the years I came to the conclusion that it was noting special or that great. On the other hand it is not truly bad and was well made. It is in the realm of neither being good or bad. The story follows the Lord of Darkness who wants to cast the world into eternal night (O.K. that sounds pretty generic if I think about it). For this he has to rely on his henchman as he is banished from light and cant take much action outside the night. A key to this goal are Unicorns and the two humans Jack and princess Lili who get involved into this. These will decide the fate of the realm. O.K I must admit I sounds even more generic here on paper in such a way that I cant or wont argue against it. To be fair the plot is a bit basic and feels short. If this was a D&D adventure it would be over in the third session with the big bad beaten to give perspective. However the visuals are great and they put care into the movie. The characters are fine for me with Tom Cruise as Jack and Mia Sara as princess Lili for the main actors. Tim Curry however is truly remarkable as Lord of darkness. The costumes and make up together with his acting skill impressed me as child and still as adult. Other than those I will praise Alice Playten as Blix and David Bennent as Gump. The cast works well and makes the movie entertaining. I must praise the sets, costumes and make ups. It looks and feels awesome. In this regard I would give at least a 9/10 especially given the time and budget. They succed in creating the atmosphere. The rest is history. It was a failure at the box office and did not mange to gain a loyal fan base. Today it is even rare on TV. Overall I think this is a poster-child for the “Average is worse than bad” statement which some people made. Because it is neither good or bad enough to be remembered it is forgotten. There are far worse movies out there that are remembered or enjoy as “So bad it is good (entertaining)” is a thing.
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The design is awesome and Curry does a great job as Darkness but there is no story here. It's so bare, It doesn't even feel like you're watching a movie. And mainly because barely any dialogue is spoken for long periods of time. This movie is very much a guilty pleasure for those that enjoy it, It's just not a good movie at all.
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Beyond weird, excruciatingly boring, atrociously paced, and atrociously acted. I cannot believe this movie actually got made. When I watch-streamed this whole entire movie online for free I felt like I was on an acid trip. Tom Cruise and Mia Sara's acting was atrocious and beyond cringe-worthy (I usually hate the word "cringe", but this is one of those rare times where it's necessary to say). Some of the other actors' (the ones who played Jack's allies) acting was atrocious too and the movie was so boring I fell asleep through parts of the film.
The Shakespeareanlike dialogue was atrocious and extremely cringe-worthy. I cannot believe Tom Cruise read the script and agreed to star in this atrocity. One of the worst, worst acted, and most boring movies I have ever watched in my entire life. Legend is the weirdest movie I have ever seen. I cannot believe Ridley Scott directed this garbage.
Tom Cruise and Mia Sara read their lines at a second grade level. Most of the acting in this movie is even worse than the acting in the Star Wars Prequel Trilogy. The only saving grace of this film is Tim Curry as Darkness a.k.a. Satan. Tim Curry is the only (or maybe one of the very few) actor whose acting was solid in this film. The two lead actors' (who played the good ones) acting was so horrendous to the point where I rooted for the Devil to win.
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Awards
Academy Awards, USA
• 1 Nomination
BAFTA Awards
• 3 Nominations
DVD Exclusive Awards
• 3 Nominations
