David Bowie all dressed up in leggings with big hair, and a 16 year old Jennifer Connelly playing mind games around a maze – cracking stuff is Labyrinth.
by Genna Patterson
Made back in 1986, when Bowie was still rocking out the tunes and taking a foray into the world of acting, Labyrinth fell out of the mind of screenwriters (possibly on mind-altering drugs). Monty Python’s Terry Jones was one of these writers, which ensured the presence of absurd humour throughout.
Although not successful at the time of release, Labyrinth is a family film that has gained cult status over the years and guaranteed its place as a favourite in the mythology genre.
The plotline is fantastical but sure who needs reality anyway? Sarah (Jennifer Connelly) wishes that her baby half brother Toby, be taken away when he won’t stop crying. We’ve all done that; no one likes a whiney baby.
The problem is the King of Goblins, Jareth (David Bowie) is listening and he takes her brother as wished. He will only return Toby if Sarah can complete his crazy booby-trapped labyrinth in thirteen hours… see that’s why they called it Labyrinth.
Directed by Jim Hensen of The Muppet’s fame, you’ll see a lot of the creatures are muppet-esque with the ‘wizardry’ / (as stated in the trailer) of George Lucas (producer).
Featuring singing and dancing by Mr. Bowie, an exceptionally elegant goblin king, only Sarah,Toby and he are human actors in this movie. If you liked The Muppets and you fancy seeing scary-looking monster Muppets prance around to a delightfully eighties soundtrack, then watch this movie.
Also if you enjoy fart humour, the bog of eternal stench should have you rolling with laughter. Meanwhile the whole movie has a dream-like ambience, thus the possibility of the writers having taken drugs.
Enjoy movie watching responsibly.
