Dragonslayer [1981] with Peter MacNicol

Dragonslayer (1981)


http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082288/

Dragonslayer is a 1981 live action fantasy movie set in a fictional medieval country. It follows a young wizard (played by Peter MacNicol) who experiences danger and opposition as he attempts to defeat a dragon.

Peter MacNicol ... Galen
Caitlin Clarke ... Valerian
Ralph Richardson ... Ulrich
John Hallam ... Tyrian
Peter Eyre ... Casiodorus Rex
Albert Salmi ... Greil
Sydney Bromley ... Hodge
Chloe Salaman ... Princess Elspeth
Emrys James ... Valerian's Father
Roger Kemp ... Horsrik
Ian McDiarmid ... Brother Jacopus
Ken Shorter ... Henchman
Jason White ... Henchman
Yolanda Palfrey ... Victim
Douglas Cooper ... Urlander

A co-production between Walt Disney Productions and Paramount Pictures, Dragonslayer was more mature and realistic than other Disney films of the period. Because of audience expectations for a more child-friendly film from Disney, the movie's violence and adult themes were somewhat controversial at the time - even though Disney did not hold US distribution rights, which were held by Paramount (it was rated PG in the U.S.; TV showings after 1997 have carried a TV-14 rating). The film grossed just over $14 million in the U.S. with an estimated budget of USD$18 million. Often regarded as a commercial failure, it later became a cult classic on home video.

The film was directed by Matthew Robbins (later director of *batteries not included), from a screenplay he co-wrote with Hal Barwood. It starred Peter MacNicol, Ralph Richardson, John Hallam and Caitlin Clarke.

Dragonslayer also featured then-unknown actor Ian McDiarmid as the minor character Brother Jacopus. McDiarmid's next film role after Dragonslayer would be that of the villain Palpatine in Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, a role which he would reprise in the subsequent Star Wars films.

The special effects were created at Industrial Light and Magic, where Phil Tippett co-developed an animation technique called go motion for the film. Go motion is a variation on stop-motion animation, and its use in Dragonslayer led to the film's nomination for the Academy Award for Visual Effects; it lost to Raiders of the Lost Ark (another Paramount film). The film was also nominated for the Academy Award for Original Music Score; Chariots of Fire took the award. Including the hydraulic 40 foot model, 16 dragon puppets were used for the role of Vermithrax, each one made for different movements; flying, crawling, fire breathing etc.

The film was also nominated for a Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation. Once again, it lost to Raiders of the Lost Ark.