Caleb Carter on The Dark Crystal

Netflix’s latest attempt to dig out a unique space in media (somewhere between the weird wild west of the internet and the sheen quality of Hollywood) is a serialised reboot of Him Henson’s 1982 fantasy-adventure-puppet film,┬áThe Dark Crystal.┬áThough the Netflix label feels apt, re-watching the original might leave you confused at Henson’s name being attached. In opposition to endearing, literary backdrop of┬áThe Muppets┬ámovies,┬áThe Dark Crystal┬áis set on the planet┬áThra: orbiting three suns, it is under the tyrannic rule of the┬áSkeksis┬á(a race of rotting raptors) who greedily sap the life of an omnipotent crystal shard and so Jen (the last of the dying race of┬áGelflings) is sent on a quest by┬áThe Mystics┬á(four armed, giant armadillos) to stop them… I think. When thought about too hard,┬áThe Muppets┬áare admittedly a weird creation, but not this weird; where Kermit and pals have at least one foot dipped in reality and other Henson projects have a human protagonist for us to relate to and empathise with, our main character here is a humanoid mouse/monkey/thing that plays the flute. I remember when I watched it first at a young age I was scared (probably due to the shrieking, prehistorical┬áSkeksis), a little intrigued and largely bored. The truth is that this movie is far too slow and dense for children – with less of a plot than a stream-of-consciousness string of events and it is true that Henson devised the world of┬áThra┬áfar before its story. On the other hand, it is also admirable that┬áThe Dark Crystal┬áhas the courage to reject immediately recognisable characters and environments to build an entirely new world (albeit one influenced by the trollish illustrations of Brian Froud); one that runs on arcane magic, complex astronomy – never explained – and prophecy. It relies entirely upon its own boisterous imagination and its hand-moulded world is of such an intricate level of detail and craft:┬áThe Mystic’s┬áwrinkles seem more like occultist language engraved into their snouts, every single┬áSkeksis┬áis of a uniquely agonised deformity and identity and scenery is attacked by the elements to heighten it to fluctuating life. And these scenes, though plodding, present such a tour of newness it reminds of that wide-eyed wonder of Ghibli, where every minute seems to thrust a fresh creature in front of your eyes that you will never see again. Because of this and its pace, it seems perfect, then, for those inattentive Sunday mornings at around 7 or 8 years old: it is the end of summer but it is raining, everything is boring and so you’d sit and draw or write or play in front of the TV with┬áThe Dark Crystal┬áplaying, letting the weird world of Henson seep into your young, limitless creations.

Anastasia Kropotina on Labyrinth

Few films today boast the same kind of cult following Jim HensonÔÇÖs second directorial venture does. The fairy-tale spectacular that is Labyrinth has conquered the hearts of generations, who have grown up watching Sarah search for her little brother in the Goblin Kingdom.

Constrained by the technology of the eighties, most of the imagery in the movie was a careful product of Jim HensonÔÇÖs stellar puppetry work. Hoggle, the first creature Sarah encounters on her quest, was the most complicated puppet created at the time. Its facial expressions were controlled by a team of people, all of whom had to figure out how to work perfectly in sync in order to bring the character to life. Even more production effort went into the iconic ‘Magic Dance’ scene, which required upwards of 50 puppeteers to make every goblin dance to the music. This personal approach and dedication on the part of the crew are, perhaps, the major contributing factors to the atmosphere of whimsy that Labyrinth is still loved for. It was one of the defining works to prove that shots achieved right in front of the camera could be more impactful to audiences than CGI.

HensonÔÇÖs influence has, however, spread beyond the filmmaking. While itÔÇÖs almost impossible to imagine anyone donning the wig of the eccentric Goblin King with the same poise as David Bowie, the role could have allegedly gone to Michael Jackson or Sting. Eventually convinced by his son John, the director settled on Bowie. The singer composed and performed the original soundtrack for the movie, taking Jareth out of the realm of on-screen characters and firmly putting him on the list of David BowieÔÇÖs stage alter-egos. Now, more than thirty years later Labyrinth has been referenced in numerous shows, adapted into novels and manga and is, reportedly, in the process of becoming a Broadway musical.

Unfortunately, Jim Henson did not receive the recognition he deserved for the work on Labyrinth in his lifetime. Pulled from theatres only a month after its release, the movie got a mere 13 million dollars in the box office. The words ÔÇ£mereÔÇØ and ÔÇ£13 million dollarsÔÇØ in one sentence may raise a few eyebrows, but the sum really is miniscule compared to the filmÔÇÖs budget, which was nearly over the double of this amount. Appreciated mainly by children, the movie was financially and critically a flop. Jim Henson, tragically, passed away just a few years after, never having witnessed the massive impact his creation had on modern pop culture.