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Dragonheart
- It's about the last of the great dragon slayers, Bowen
(Dennis Quaid), who teams up with the last of the great
dragons, Draco (and voiced by Sean Connery), after they
realize that killing each other would put them both out
of business! So they devise a bogus dragon-slaying act that's
a huge hit as they tour from village to village. Later,
they must rouse the peasantry against the loutish Prince
Einon (David Thewlis), whose life was once saved by Draco,
but who now violates the "Old Code" of honor with
a ruthless reign of terror.
Dragonslayer
- Dragonslayer was gradually recognized as one of the finest
fantasies to emerge in special effects. It's still one of
the best adventures of its kind, featuring one of the most
fearsome fire-breathing serpents in movie history. Ominously
named Vermithrax Pejorative, this ill-tempered monster terrorizes
the peasantry of sixth-century England, feeding on maidens
sacrificed by a duplicitous king until a sorcerer's apprentice
named Galen is recruited as a reluctant hero. Aided by a
tenacious beauty (Caitlin Clarke) and his resurrected mentor
(Ralph Richardson), Galen confronts the soaring beast in
a breathtaking climax. Employing a then-innovative technique
called Go-Motion
to animate the dragon, the special effects are still
dazzling, and stunning locations in Scotland and Wales allow
director Matthew Robbins to maintain a vivid atmosphere
for the wealth of movie magic.
Rein
of Fire
- When workers in a London tunneling project
awaken an unearthly fire-breathing beast from centuries
of slumber, all hell breaks loose. Twelve-year-old Quinn
(Bale) sees his mother, one of the workers, die trying to
escape this new terror. Twenty years later as a "fire
chief," he tries to keep a group of refugees alive
with fierce dragons dominating the air, burning the land
and feeding on the ash. Unexpectedly, Van Zan, a hotshot
American militia leader, shows up with a ragtag group of
slayers on a perilous crusade to hunt down and destroy the
beasts. Tempers flare when there is a struggle for leadership
-- until both men realize only one species is getting out
of this alive. The reptilian fire-breathers are stupendously
convincing.
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