Starring:
The amazing creations of the Jim Henson Creature Shop, including elfish heroes, creepy bird-like villains and scary, scary monsters.
Synopsis:
Long before Harry Potter and the Lord of the Rings movies, there was Jim Henson's The Dark Crystal. This classic fantasy flick features a cast of amazingly-crafted puppets inhabiting a mysterious and magical fictional world. The Dark Crystal is exciting, imaginative, funny and scary – basically, it's got everything you'd want out of a mystical movie.
In a distant world ruled by the tyrannical and evil Skeksis, an important astronomical event called the Great Conjunction is about to occur. The three suns of the planet will align, and, on this day, a prophecy can be fulfilled by a member of an almost exterminated race, the Gelflings. Jen is one of the last elf-like Gelflings, whom the Skeksis have almost completely wiped out. He was raised by a tribe of mystics and sheltered from the terrible world outside.
Then, as his master lies dying, Jen is told of his mission: He must find the missing shard of the Dark Crystal and restore it to the crystal at the moment of the Great Conjunction. If he succeeds, the dark rule of the Skeksis will end, but, if he fails, his world will be dominated by evil forever. (Talk about pressure.) Jen's quest leads him into treacherous situations even as he finds new friends and discovers his amazing world for the first time. The creatures he encounters run the gamut from cute to creepy to just plain weird, and you're constantly wondering what new being he'll come across next.
Jim Henson brought his own special genius to this awesome and exciting tale, and, despite the fact that special effects have advanced light-years since it was made, The Dark Crystal manages to create a convincing and fascinating fantasy world. So check it out over winter break. You, and most of your family, are sure to enjoy it.
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