MovieChat Forums > Dragonslayer (1981) Discussion > A real gem of a film fantasy - worthy o...

A real gem of a film fantasy - worthy of a remake?

posted 20 years ago by gerardx
76 replies | jump to latest

Dragaonslayer was a bomb commercially as we know, as early 80's audiences were a very fickle bunch, spoiled by the likes of "The Empire Strikes Back" and bored to death by the sword and sorcery films like "The Lord of the Rings" (1978).

I remember reading in an magazine (maybe American Cinematographer) that Dragonslayer suffered from some poor release prints. The prints were very dark (possibly timed this way to hide some hideous matte lines courtesy of ILM.) There were reports of viewers complaining to the theater managers that they could not see - especially in the dragons lair and the final battle sequence.

Still, the film endures as a cult classic mostly because of the astounding go-motion effects and full size dragon model photography. In addition, the film hits on some very interesting themes, especially the sub-plot related to the rise of Christianity and the death of the "dark arts" - dragons and sorcerers.

I think the film is worthy of a re-make. What would you want to see changed, added or removed altogether from the original story?

[–] remadri2000 20 years ago

A remake??'!!!!! What's wrong with the original? Why do we need a remake for? Will you do a remake of Casablanca, Gone with the wind? No, right? It's sort of tiring this trend of remakes. Leave Dragonslayer alone!!!!!

[–] gerardx 20 years ago

Remakes are a Hollywood tradition since the very beginning. Nothing wrong with remakes. I don't think anyone would bother remaking Casablanca or Gone with the Wind becasuse they are classics and huge successes in there own right which would be hard to top (remember the Psycho remake?) Dragonslayer was neither - although a cult favorite, it's hardly a classic. I think a remake would be cool, especially exploring the themes of the old magic world giving way to the new christian world, combined with a coming of age story for both a young man and woman - I think you have a formula for a huge hit.

[–] Sorcerio 20 years ago

The Thing by John Carpenter was a remake. Remakes can be good. But maybe wait until the hype of cgi dies down and for its quality to improve.

[–] Padwanna 20 years ago

No I think a remake would be bad. The late 70's, early 80's was a very special time for cool fantasy films. It was before the time of tacky cheap CG FX, and after the time when stop motion FX had been all but perfected. That's what makes Dragonslayer such a cool flick; the excellent and scarey dragon that crawls around at the end, and the fantasy ambience that nobody seems to be able to capture anymore.

Leave it be one of the best cult fantasy classics of modern cinema!

Padwanna.

[–] 20 years ago

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[–] Riding_With_The_Valkyries 20 years ago

You remake old films that were either crap, not-so-well-known, or way too old for modern audiences. This film is not any of the three.

[–] JoeBone546 19 years ago

Couldn't agree with you more. I am just nuts about the special effects in the movies from the 80's. The dragon in this movie looks more real to me than anything CG in the newer Star Wars movies. It's such a shame that these new movies do everything via computer effects. The horror movies from the 80's fit this category too. The Thing (Carpenter), The Howling, American Warewolf in London, etc. They have a sense of realism in them that is lost when the effects are C.G. I guess when you can actually touch or be touched by the effect, it just means more and looks better. Watch Bad Moon Rising and then watch the Howling and ask yourself which transformation from man to wolf looks more "real" and which looks....synthetic. I realize it's all synthetic but you get my drift. The dragon in Dragonslayer looks incredible and very real. C.G. blows and that's exactly how they'd remake this movie...I'll stick with the original.

[–] ekim1982 19 years ago

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Posted by - Sorcerio (Sat Mar 19 2005 15:51:21)

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The Thing by John Carpenter was a remake. Remakes can be good. But maybe wait until the hype of cgi dies down and for its quality to improve.
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John Carpenter's "The Thing" was NOT a remake, per se. It was a completely different take on "The Thing From Another World". Remakes often follow the source material closely, of which Carpenter did not. He put his own, creative spin and ideas into a film that somewhat paid homage to the original Thing From Another World. The only similarity was the arctic setting and the idea of finding an ancient, malevolent alien life form in the ice. All other things considered, it is so far removed from The Thing From Another World, that it coudl hardly be considered a remake. Most, if not all JC's The Thing fans argue this point passionately. I suggest going to www.outpost31.com to understand that more.

[–] Horngar 19 years ago

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Posted by - ekim1982 on Sun Jul 31 2005 11:32:00

John Carpenter's "The Thing" was NOT a remake, per se. It was a completely different take on "The Thing From Another World". Remakes often follow the source material closely, of which Carpenter did not. He put his own, creative spin and ideas into a film that somewhat paid homage to the original Thing From Another World. The only similarity was the arctic setting and the idea of finding an ancient, malevolent alien life form in the ice. All other things considered, it is so far removed from The Thing From Another World, that it coudl hardly be considered a remake. Most, if not all JC's The Thing fans argue this point passionately. I suggest going to www.outpost31.com to understand that more
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Actually both films were based on the short story by John Campbell "Who Goes There?". Carpenters verison is actually closer to the story than the 1951 version. Therefore you could call Carpenters a remake in the sense that it does follow the same source material (Campbell's short story) as the 1951 movie "The Thing From Another World".

My opinion on remakes is this....It's not my money involved (unless I pay to see it) and if someone wants to remake a film then I say let them. At the worst we will get a bad movie that no one will ever watch again, but the upside is we actually may get an even better or different view on an already enjoyable movie.

I dont understand the logic that remaking a movie somehow detracts from the original. There are two movies currently in theaters at the time I write this that are remakes...Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and War of the Worlds. I found both to be highly entertaining films (the remakes) and neither takes any enjoyment away from the origninal films. Even if both new versions were bad, it still would not change my opinion of the originals.

Just my opinion of course.

[–] mmoore325 16 years ago

I appreciate your post and agree. I think a remake done by the "right" team could be very interesting ala "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", "Pride and Prejudice". Heck - let's have the Merchant-Ivory team do it, the half that's still alive anyway. Why not?

Regardless, I still am a proud owner of the original "Dragonslayer" and still feel sad/weird/creeped out when the master sorcerer is "killed" at the beginning.

[–] ursapater 18 years ago

Agreement! While there are some films that benefit from a remake, to my mind ones that had a good story but crappy FX. However, the FX in Dragonslayer were fine and still hold up just fine in my opinion.
Nor did it suffer from bad acting. So why do a remake? BTW Forbidden Planet is another one that is just about perfect just like it is. IMHO :)

Ursa the ghost bear

[–] richard-793 20 years ago

If there were to be a remake then flashbacks to the past when the Dragon and Ulrich were in their prime may work well. However, I know deep down that if it were remade today for the family market then the film would be lighter, losing it's gritty edge, nobody would get killed and the dragon would be a friendly, talking dragon with a Scottish accent! You know what I mean!

[–] omegamagezero 20 years ago

It lives forever on DVD, no remake necessary. Also, I understand exactly what some other posters mentioned. It would be impossible to recapture the feel of this movie. It would be too slick and silly if they tried to remake it today. There was a run of really excellent(or just entertaining) fantasy films in this era. Dragonslayer, Excalibur, Conan the Barbarian(and Destroyer to a lesser extent),Fire and Ice, Beastmaster, Sword and the Sorcerer, Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome(basically some weird Fantasy with guns and a plane). There's some element to them that just clicked. Maybe nostalagia clouds my judgement, but stuff like Kull the Conqueror and Scorpion King just don't have that same feel.

[–] electric_hypro 20 years ago

I have yet to see a actually good remake of an oldie.
They usually just make them so childrenfriendly, catchy and a bunch of one-liners to be a little funny.
Cant they make a serious movie for once and try stay true to the original? Dark, dirty and feel realish.
Not too serious like some dead boring "about life" drama style of characteristics.
I can almost imagine a remake of Jaws... Some stupid teenagers having sex and flashing tits everywhere on beach and stuff and being just dumb. I have seen enough of such things. And the shark will look as my old bathtubshark.

That makes me think of some other films, Alien and predator, how the hell can AvP creatures look worse than from the older films? The predators face looks terrible in AvP, and then look at Predator 1. Which is more convincing?? hmm Where is speciall effects going today? Star Wars looks all fake too, but in a way pretty... for a videogame, because it sure aint look "real"!

Reign of Fire had some nice creatureFX and the dragon must been Vermithrax long lost lover. Movie was a bit of a letdown though.

IF they ever decide to make a remake, sequal, prequal (most likeley these days :P)
and i admit, a prequal could be the trick here, there got to be some serious people behind it. Im a sucker for Steven Spielbergs movies, and i cant think of a bad film he ever made that i've seen. James Cameron have made one of my all time favorite movies, Aliens, Abyss is a fine movie too. And so are Titanic. Finsher.. the guy who did Se7ev an Alien 3 can sure put up awesome atmoshpere could be a good choice too.

Or something totally different, new director, low budget, none hollywood. Is that possible? Cause if it could get as far away from the hollywoodsyndrome, that would be absolutly perfect ! hehe

[–] 20 years ago

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[–] rciafardone 14 years ago

Yea, Reign of Fire had some amazing visuals, and despite some comments i have read the acting was very good, the problem with it is that the plot made no sense at all, the beginning, middle and end were well... stupid.

Let me explain:

"Dragons" are "real" lifeforms, yet somehow they can live for millions of years in stasis. Now this organic creatures that can be killed with a single round of a heavy machine gun somehow overpowered and defeated the armies of the whole world... They eat ash... There is only one male... WTF?

Now in Dragonslayer Dragons are a rare creature of immense power in an age when firearms are non-existent or too weak to be useful. You don't deal with "origins" or "why", there is an evil that must be defeated and the story goes on with it.

The meat of the movie is in the little details of the story. Example: The king at the end claiming credit for killing the dragon... that was priceless storytelling right there, 80's moviegoers were/are idiots, there is no explanation why something like resident evil is in the top of the box office. Dont get me wrong, i actully love the Resident Evil story... but that of the game.

[–] AndromedaRoach 19 years ago

The Bakshi LotR should have failed any way. http://flyingmoose.org/tolksarc/bakshi/bakshi.htm

Sorry, Dragonslayer gets a "meh" from me. The effects were good, the story was good, but if it were remade with 2008-grade CGI, I still wouldn't like it. I'm not sure why. Maybe it's too realistic for me.

[–] liz-langley 19 years ago

NO !!!!!!!!!!!!! , there is no need for a remake,just bought DVD in woolworths for a fiver this tuesday just gone,saw it on the shelf and just snapped it up,watched it with my 2 young children and they loved it ( me as well ).
The scene when the dragon turn's it's head in the cave is so fluid and lifelike.

[–] BijouBob8mm 19 years ago

I hope this is one film that doesn't get remade. Granted, with CGI, some scenes could be "tweaked" in terms of technology, but I think part of the film's charm is the way it looks. (Ditto for the films of Ray Harryhausen or George Pal.) And how could they ever replace Caitlin Clarke? (Only person that might come close, although by now she's too old for the role, would be LeeLee Sobieski...one of the better things of Hallmark's recent HERCULES mini-series.)

[–] jason_hauser 19 years ago

No, the original Dragonslayer doesn't need to be remade. It needs a full blown SEQUEL: Dragonslayer 2. That's what Hollywood is all about. Sure, it wasn't a commercial blockbuster originally, but cult classics have monetary value attached to them. And that's what it always comes down to.

[–] BijouBob8mm 19 years ago

Only problem with that--wasn't the dragon of DRAGONSLAYER supposed to be the last of her kind?

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] BijouBob8mm 19 years ago

Prying4deth has a point, providing dragons are subject to the same rules of reproduction as other reptiles. Then again, in the 1930s there was only one King Kong and he had a son, and in the 1960s there was only one Godzilla and he had a son, too. (Maybe there's more to giant monsters than science suspects.)

[–] thepoodlechef 12 years ago

I love remakes...
I'm all for it...
I've never seen this movie, but I'd probably like the remake better than the original because this was before my time.

I'm my own star.

[–] Horngar 19 years ago

I thought Galen killed the young dragons as he entered the dragons lair. I may be remembering it wrong as it has been many years since I saw the movie

[–] lasums 19 years ago

**Only person that might come close, although by now she's too old for the role, would be LeeLee Sobieski**
??
Sobieski is only 23, Cailtlin was 29 when Dragonslayer was released, so probably 28 while filming.
Other than that, i agree totally with your post :)

[–] Blueghost 19 years ago

Nothing.

I don't want it remade.

And I particularly don't want it remade by committe.

[–] BijouBob8mm 19 years ago

Remakes are so hit and miss (usually miss), that I agree with Blueghost, there's no need to remake this. (And please don't let them go in and replace the existing FX footage with CGI "enhancements," ala the original STAR WARS trilogy.)

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] BijouBob8mm 19 years ago

I recall reading a rumor to that effect, but thought it to be just that...rumor.

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] darthmix 19 years ago

I'd rather see a sequel than a remake. Or perhaps a prequel.

I feel that a sequel might inspire people to go back and watch the original, whereas a remake might not. "Oh, I don't need to see that movie since I saw the newer one already" etc.

[–] BijouBob8mm 19 years ago

Then again, there are plenty of untold tales from Celtic, Greek or Roman mythology (or the mythology of other cultures) that could be used as the basis for future films. I recently read that a new version of "Beowulf" (BEOWULF & GRENDEL) is in production. Unlike the previous version (1999) with Christopher Lambert, which tried to modernize the tale, this one seems to be sticking close to the source material. (Ray Harryhausen was one of several filmmakers over the years that wanted to do BEOWULF.)

[–] Inkwell765 19 years ago

I don't think there was any proof Galen killed ALL the baby dragons.

"We have a powerful enemy somewhere within our planetary system." -Commando Cody

[–] Lutzqueen 19 years ago

If they can justify Bambi 2,I think Hollywood might go for Dragonslayer 2! There could be another dragon for sure! Still, this was so dark and gritty,with the princess dying and all-very dark film,which is why it has improved with age compared to the current crap that some fantasy films are. Vermithrax is the ultimate movie dragon,and the original rocked,in its small way. I think that a sequel would be a botch,because Reign of fire shows the modern CGI assisted take on dragons and it stank,even though the filmmakers of that film couldn't stop talking about Dragonslayer in interviews and were readily familar with its story.

[–] johnericbackstrom 19 years ago

why does people always cry out for remakes? Is the american movieindustry that un-originel. And this isn't a masterpiece either but a remake would only bring better special effects, enjoy it as it is ffs

[–] inquist2000 19 years ago

As a Fantasy action movie buff I Love Dragonslayer, it took up to date for their time period technology and made a Dragon fly and appear on screen that had few rivals up to the point of Dragon Heart, Reign of Fire etc etc when technology finally came along to accomindate the types of fantasy, (AD&D Stuff, and NO NOT THAT HORRIBLE CRAPPY INSULTING MOVIE!!!) But like LOTR, Dragon heart, and others.

I however would side against remaking it. I think this movie should remain as is and stand as something to live up to in this field. It is one of those bench marks on how to make a fantasy movie. Plus I kinda like that Latin was used as a language that commands Magical powers.

We can have more original fantasy movies, we don't need to remake the good ones, only use them as examples as to how to make a new one.

[–] 19 years ago

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