Jim Henson and Frank Oz's The Dark Crystal: A Review of a Childhood's Favorite Movie

As a child, I remember being enthralled by a movie called The Dark Crystal, directed by Jim Henson and Frank Oz. I would wrap myself up in a blanket with a bowl of popcorn propped on my lap and happily disappear into the world of The Dark Crystal. Eventually as the years passed by, the memory of the Dark Crystal became faint until the day I came across a DVD copy of this very movie. I bought the DVD home with my boyfriend, who never saw the movie before.

I had a fear that it would turn out not being as good as I remembered it being and that the special effects would be terrible. I'm pleased to say that I was just as impressed and I personally think the special effects for this movie was quite advanced for the early 1980's. I decided to do a review on this movie for anybody who has never seen or heard of this movie. If you have a child, please do show this movie to your child! It's a must-see just like "The Never-ending Story," "Labyrinth," "The Goonies," and so on.

The world of The Dark Crystal is a story of a land that was once ruled by gentle thinkers and creators who inhabited a glittering castle where a great Crystal glowed with power gathered by the world's three suns. But a thousand years ago, an unknown convulsion shook the world and the crystal cracked and darkened. At that time, the evil Skeksis became the rulers and took over the castle. The corrupted Crystal became the key to the Skeksis' power.

As the story begins, an astronomical occurrence is about to commence, and if it is allowed to proceed uninterrupted, the Skeksis would forever rule. The one fear that the Skeksis had was an ancient prophecy that a Gelfing would somehow destroy their power. Thus the rulers made it so that all Gelfings were wiped out or so they thought. There was a Gelfing boy, Jen, who was saved by a tribe of gentle and mysterious urRu.

Jen was brought up by urSu the Master, wisest of the urRu and was told that he was the last of his race. As urSu passes away, with his last breath, he assigned Jen with the task of discovering the secret of the Dark Crystal and restoring its light. To do so, he had to search for a shard of crystal and return it back to its rightful owner before the occurrence where the Skeksis stay rulers for good.

Forever changed was Jen's world as he sets off for an unforgettable adventure filled with unknown danger and excitement. While he searches for this small crystal shard, he was spied by a crystal bat who betrays his existence to the Skeksis. Terrified that the ancient prophecy would be fulfilled, they order that Jen is destroyed immediately. Meanwhile, Jen reaches the brilliant observatory of Aughra the astronomer and finds the crystal shard. While he learns something about his destiny, the Garthium, warriors belonging to the Skeksis, attacks the observatory. Jen manages to escape into the swamp.

Lost and frightened in a place completely new to Jen, he wanders and discovers that he is after all, not the only Gelfing left. A gelfing girl, Kira, was raised by the pod people, simple peasants who live hidden in the depths of the forest. Together, they learn the true meaning of the crystal shard and resolve to complete their quest of resuming balance to the world they inhabit.