Ridley Scott directed Legend in 1985, with a cast that features Tom Cruise, Tim Curry, and Billy Barty. Cruise plays a pure being, known as Jack in the Green, a forest child. Curry plays Darkness, and Barty plays Screwball. Now, that's diversity.
The good guy has to keep the bad guy from enveloping the world in constant nighttime. Considering some of the things I've seen in broad daylight, I really can't decide which is worse. However, without this conflict, there's no movie. So let's press on.
There are goblins and unicorns and elves, oh my. Legend was an expensive movie, but that didn't make people like it. Ticket sales didn't quite recoup the $25 million budget. One film reviewer complained that writing his review was like remembering a bad dream. Well, Ridley Scott still had some juice left in him after this flop, so he was able to move on with his life very comfortably.
The collaborator for Legend Vineyard Exclusives Wines is Napa Valley's Raymond Vineyards. According to the sales pitch, they help LVE bring together classic elegance, rich complexity and modern soul. That's how the blurb reads, anyway. The Raymond vineyards are owned by Burgundian vintner Jean-Charles Boisset, and farmed biodynamically. The Legend part is musician John Legend.
LVE wines offer a $95 Cabernet Sauvignon and a $55 Chardonnay. There are other options if you'd like to spend less, or more. The wines are made with estate grapes from the Raymond Napa Valley property.
Now we find the real dark side of fantasy. Dragonslayer, from 1981, was co-produced by Paramount and Disney. Moviegoers who expected a Disney film were shocked, as Dragonslayer was a tad on the violent side and sported a bit of nudity. The version seen on The Disney Channel reportedly had two scenes removed out of family-friendly concerns.
Dragonslayer is a heaping helping of all that I don't like about medieval fantasies, dragons being chief among them. There is a wizard in this one who tries to convince someone that he has magical powers. He does this by asking to be stabbed. Guy runs a sword through him and he dies on the spot. In a game of "next guy up," the new wizard seems to have his mojo working properly.
The film's special effects were pretty good, but not good enough to win an Oscar in a two-movie category. The dragon, Vermithrax, could have used a name that didn't sound like a pest control company. I could swear I saw a Vermithrax truck driving in my neighborhood last week.
Former NBA star Yao Ming makes wine now in the Napa Valley. If he hands you a bottle of his Dragon Cabernet Sauvignon, does that count as an assist? Maybe, but there will no doubt be an asterisk next to it in the statistics book. If he does hand you a bottle, it will be because you crossed his palm with $98 to get some of that Year of the Dragon 2021 vintage.
The Sword and the Sorcerer was possibly one of the lowlights of 1982, as if 1982 needed any more lowlights. Wasn't MTV enough? Albert Pyun directed this, and many other, low budget films in the fantasy realm. Some people called him "the new Ed Wood," as if the old Ed Wood needed any competition.
Richard Moll, whom you may remember from TV's Night Court, played the role of Xusia of Delos, a sorcerer. There's no record of who played the sword, although there are plenty of cool blades around in this flick. Xusia lived on the beautiful vacation spot, Tomb Island, which must have been just east of Delos. It sounds like Tomb Island may have been at least as much fun as Martha's Vineyard.
Pyun gave his best on The Sword and the Sorcerer. It was a pretty big hit, despite the lukewarm critical response. Who listens to movie critics anyway, huh?
Cinnabar Winery has a bit of Santa Cruz magic on their menu. Sorcerer's Stone is a $50 blend of Zinfandel and Petite Sirah. Poke around on their website to find a picture of a guy who looks to be ready for a game of D&D.
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