Labyrinth - 30th Anniversary Edition

Some movies make a great transition from the big to small screen, and this brilliant 1986 collaboration between Jim Henson, George Lucas, Terry Jones (of Monty Python fame), and artist Brian Froud is one such gem.

"Labyrinth" is not only crammed full of visual details and touches that are invisible on the small video screen, but it's also mercifully free of all the clunky stiffness that marked Henson and Froud's previous collaboration, "The Dark Crystal." Also, this pre-digital effect film is free of digitally seemless Gollum-like creatures and, I believe, was the last big-budget epic tale ever done with puppets and old-school special effects; that's part of what makes this re-release a must-have.

"Labyrinth" is a gorgeous visual feast full of tiny details that only someone with the cluttered and never-ending imagination of Brian Froud could have conjured up. While you are watching the film, keep looking in the corners and in the backgrounds, and you will notice details that are never included in digital films. Somehow, when the sets were all crafted by hand by the Henson crew, they just couldn't help but make every square inch of space count for something fun, and it's a joy to see how much stuff they were able to cram into each frame of this movie.

The story of "Labyrinth" is a twist on "Alice in Wonderland" and other fairy tales in which an obnoxious, self-involved teenage girl gets caught up in a fantasy world and has to find her way back home. But in this case, before the girl in question can get home again, she has to save her baby brother.

In a fit of anger while babysitting for the little tyke, the girl wishes the Goblin King from a book she is reading would come and take the baby away. Poof! The baby disappears, and the Goblin King pays the girl a visit offering to return her baby brother if she can find her way to his castle in 13 hours. But there's a special catch to this challenge: there's a dense, complex labyrinth surrounding the castle that is filled with magic, strange creatures, and many dangers that might lead the young heroine astray... not to mention the fact that the Goblin King is using every trick at his disposal to delay the girl so that he can keep the baby boy and turn him into a goblin.

Off the girl goes, of course, and along the way she encounters many enchanted critters including a troll, a big hairy thing, and an incredible assortment of mystical folks. What good is a fairy tale without a moral? The writers and producers supply her (and us) just such a lesson: in her dangerous journey through the maze, the girl learns to be less self-involved and more aware of the fact that there are folks on the planet other than herself. Of course, everything works its way to a happy ending; after all this is a Jim Henson film.

In addition to the luscious visuals, wonderful puppet creatures, and a gorgeous and very young Jennifer Connelly, the movie also boasts what is probably the late David Bowie's best film work to date. He brought just the right touch of creepy malevolence to his role as Jareth the Goblin King, and those costume tights leave nothing to the imagination.

The usual Muppets gang of performers adds their inspired fun to various roles, including characters performed by the ubiquitous Frank Oz, Dave Goelz, and Brian Henson, son of Jim, who has taken over the reigns of the Muppets since his fathers' death. The Muppets are still around, but since Jim Henson's untimely demise they have surely lost their way, and there is no better evidence of that than the glorious creativity that Jim Henson lavished on this movie. Simply stated, there has not been anything even close to this level of puppetry and magic on film in Henson's absence.

Grab this re-release and let your eyes and mind feast on the unexpected twists and turns of a story made all the more fun by the wit, whimsy, and once-in-a-lifetime talents of the irreplaceable Jim Henson. We miss you Jim!

4K Ultra HD - Special Features: