Review of Highlander (1986) by Kai82 — 24 May 2020
The classic movie from the eighties. It is hated by many critiques, loved by fans and has an awesome soundtrack with some of the best songs from Queen. It is the story of Connor MacLeod an immortal who was born in the Scottish Highlands 400 years ago.
He is in a never-ending battle with other immortals. The winner beheads the other and takes their power. At the end there will be only one and get a reward only know as the price. He is in a personal struggle against his nemesis Kurgan.
Kurgan is the one you don't want to have the price because he is an amoral maniac. So far the premise of the movie. It is an interesting concept and unlike every other fantasy movie of its time (or the others are unknown).
The movie shows the strengths of this concept as cutbacks to the past are here a powerful tool. You learn about his past life and the struggles of immortality while always being in a fight for survival.
The visuals and costumes are excellent but the visuals are even better. The Scottish setting and landscapes are breathtaking and were used in many movies. There are even today guided tours for tourist to movie locations.
Together with the memorable characters and fitting story the movie creates an enjoyable setting with great lore. It spawned a franchise with sadly many bad movies. Highlander 2 and Highlander The Source are frequently on the worst films of all time list.
For the actors: All are good. Cant go wrong with Sean Connery. Christopher Lambert has his signature role. Clancy Brown is an enjoyable evil villain. Beatie Edney and Roxanne Hart are excellent choices.
Then there is the Queen soundtrack. You have the phenomenal good tracks “Princes of the Universe”, “A Kind of Magic”, “Don't lose your Head” and of cause “Who wants to live forever”. I must admit that Queen and Freddie Mercury are in my favorite music list.
Overall a really good movie but I must admit this is not for everyone. I could also write a pretty solid negative review instead of all the praise. Watch the movie for yourself to find out. Special Warning: Much of the Highlander franchise is really bad.
As fan I can only recommend the TV-Series and The Search for Vengeance. Highlander 3 and Endgame are O.K. for me but no masterpieces.
This review of Highlander (1986) was written by Kai82 on 24 May 2020.
Highlander has generally received positive reviews.
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