Ladyhawke (2011)

Synopsis:

Ladyhawke follows Phillipe Gaston (Matthew Broderick), a petty thief in Medieval Europe known as "the Mouse." Soon after escape the dungeons of Aquila and the hangman's noose, he accidentally becomes entwined with the quest a pair of star-crossed lovers Attiene Navarre and Lady Isabeau (Rutger Hauer and Michelle Pfiefer) to break themselves of a curse put on them by the corrupt and evil bishop of Aquila (John Wood).

About the Movie

Ladyhawke stands as one of my favorite movies. I tend to go towards fantasy as a matter of course, but this movie has strong 'chick-flick' elements in it.

But I don't care. Matthew Broderick is delightful and a little silly as 'the Mouse,' showing in this film, exactly why he's endured as an actor for all these years. Rutger Hauer, an actor I've always liked, did a great job as well. His portrayal of the cursed and grieving Navarre is believable in its intensity. And of course, Michelle Pfiefer, while not a scene stealer, certainly is nice to watch.

The story itself is the classic tale of star-crossed lovers (right down to the enchantment that keeps them apart), but unlike Shakespeare's classic play, the lovers get to have each other in the end. This is a true epic fantasy, with a good many original elements.

The first thing most people mention when they see this movie is that the musical score is out of place. I have to admit that that analysis is right on. The musical scoring for this movie was done by 80's band "The Alan Parsons Project." While generally, I have liked their music, the disco-pop electronica that runs through a good portion of the movie and many of the action scenes is out of place and poorly chosen. In 1985, this was cutting edge stuff, but now nearly 20 years later, it is hopelessly dated and out of place for a pure medieval fantasy film. Fantasy movies should have a fantasy score.

It would be wonderful if a director's cut were released with a revamped musical score. Such a project would turn what is at this point a very fine movie (with hokey music) into a stronger and better lasting film.

But for all the downsides of the musical score, it's the story itself that steals the show. There's something attractive and heartwarming about it and its characters. As a result, they hold your attention easily and through them, the grand finale truly manages to make the viewer grin with satisfaction.

About the DVD:

This DVD release of Ladyhawke is nothing special as far as DVD releases go. It comes on a double sided DVD in both Letterbox and Fullscreen versions in a cardboard snap case. The movie is translated into French and Spanish, and comes with English, French, and Spanish subtitles. There are a few bonus features as well, but all of the textual variety. More on that below.

The video quality of this DVD is not much better than you'd find on a video cassette; something that's somewhat disappointing given the DVD format's high capacity for quality images. The heavy film grain that showed up in some scenes is not something I like to see on DVD. It's a real shame, because the lack of quality really shows on a high resolution screens. Likewise, the sound is about average as well.

This DVD does have a few bonus features that come in the format of a few screens of trivia about the making of the film and various aspects of the cast and production. All are interesting reading but aren't anything more than interesting trivia. The only actual video portion of the bonus features is the orginal theatrical trailer for the movie.

Bottom line here is that this is a mediocre DVD release. The bad film transfer really is noticable on high-res screens, and there really isn't much in terms of extra features and material. I give it 4 stars. A fine movie that worth seeing, on a mediocre and disappointing DVD release.

I am not a fancy movie critic, but I know what I like and I like this movie. There are very few movies that leave a lasting impression on me, and Ladyhawke is definitely one of them. The story, music (no, it is NOT disco-medieval) and acting is haunting, funny, romantic and hopeful. This was the first time I ever saw Michelle Pfiffer and I remember thinking how beautiful and perfectly suited she was for this part. Rutger Hauer is absolutely dashing as a knight in black and they make a perfect pair. Matthew Broderick provides a wonderful balance of humor and support for the 2 cursed lovers. I have loved this movie for 15 years and it still remains one of my favorites. The location and scenery is absolutely beautiful. Like I said, I'm not some fancy movie critic, looking at every aspect of a film. But, I can say this: It was one of the best films put out in the 80s and I still recommend it to friends when the topic of old movies comes up. If you're a romantic at heart, you'll love this movie, I promise.

Buy Ladyhawke (2011) Now

It's amazing how many people have seen this film even though it was never a critcal success at the box office. Ladyhawke boasts an outstanding cast (I believe this to be Rutger Hauer's 2nd best film next to Blade Runner) and an excellent script with an original storyline that many should find quite engaging. The costumes are first rate and the sword fights are the most effective I have seen in film to date (neither Excalibur nor the insulting First Knight were ever as effective with their fight sequences; it should never look like you're swinging tooth picks around; swords are heavy and fighting with them is exhausting; the director obviously realized this fact and utilized it effectively in the finale--excellent). Yes, the music score for this film makes you scratch your head. Nevertheless, there are a handful of effective emotional tracks that tug you in the right direction (and a couple that make you cringe).

Overall, a beautifully shot film, high production quality, and an original story. This is a first-rate film that should please most. This film never fails to impress me.

Read Best Reviews of Ladyhawke (2011) Here

...and I don't even particularly like the fantasy genre, so this 5-star recommendation is saying a lot about the film. It's old (1985), and it's still a favorite at our local video rental store. And it's got Michelle Pfeiffer in it, so what's not to like?

The romance at the heart of the story is that of 2 lovers upon whom a curse has been put, the girl becomes a hawk with every sunrise, and her lover turns into a wolf as the sun sets, so they're never humans at the same time. So the plot is to get the curse removed, defeat the villain who cast the spell, and reunite the lovers.

Watch it with your kids; adults and kids can enjoy this movie on entirely different levels.

Want Ladyhawke (2011) Discount?

In this film Matthew Broderick playes "the mouse", a young thief who manages to escape from the dungeon and the clutches of the tyrannical Bishop of Aquilla. Broderick is saved from recapture by Rutger Hauer who plays "Navar", the former captain of the Bishop's guard. Michelle Pfeifer plays the hauntingly beautiful "Isabo" who loves Navar. Here's the catch -the Bishop also desires Isabo. When the Bishop learned that Isabo was already in love with Navar, he fell from grace and made a pact with the evil one to place a curse on the lovers -during the day Navar is a man, but Isabo is a hawk. At night Navar transforms into a large black wolf and Isabo reverts to her human form. They are together forever, eternally apart. That's the situation Broderick falls into.

This movie includes love and loyalty, deceit and repentance (on the part of the lovers' former priest), drama, a good sword fight or two, a touch of magical mystery, and, dare I say it? -True love.

The soundtrack was developed by Alan Parsons (of the Alan Parsons Project). It therefore has a a somewhat modern sound to it, but Parsons works his musical magic to make it work with the medieval time frame. I think it's a wonderful touch to the movie.

Whether you enjoy medieval stories or not, this movie is well worth watching. It will tug at your heart strings and get you cheering for the unlikely heroes.

Great stuff!

5 stars.

Alan Holyoak